Pets and Mental Wellness: Dr Patricia Celan On How to Maximize the Mental Health Benefits of Having a Pet
An Interview With Wanda Malhotra
Hold pets during difficult times or hard conversations. I’ve found that simply having my cats on my lap during stressful periods has been a way for me to stay grounded in the present moment, keeping me relatively calmer than I would have been if I was completely alone during hard times. It makes a difference!
Pets have always been more than just companions; they play a pivotal role in enhancing our mental well-being. From the unconditional love of a dog to the calming presence of a cat, pets have a unique way of alleviating stress, anxiety, and loneliness. But how do we truly harness the therapeutic potential of our furry, feathered, or scaled friends? How can they aid in promoting mindfulness, reducing depression, or even enhancing social interactions? In this interview series, we are talking to veterinarians, psychologists, therapists, pet trainers, and other experts who can shed light on how to maximize the mental health benefits of having a pet. As a part of this series I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Dr. Patricia Celan.
With a lifelong passion for healing psychological pain, Dr. Celan is specializing in psychiatry to help her patients. She has an interest in incorporating pet therapy in her practice, as a result of a lifetime of observing the positive mental health impact of connection with animals.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before we start, our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your background and your childhood backstory?
Thanks so much for inviting me to speak with you! My background is that I immigrated to Canada from Eastern Europe as an infant and grew up in a small city outside of Vancouver, BC, Canada. While the community was wonderful in teaching me that I can achieve anything if I reach for the stars, unfortunately I lived a sort of double life as I was raised in an abusive childhood home. This impacted me in many ways, one of which was inspiring a curiosity about healing the mental health impacts of adversity. It became my lifelong dream to become a psychiatrist in order to help those suffering from traumatic experiences.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career?
That is a tough question as I have had lots of interesting experiences, both with patients and colleagues. Since we are going to talk about pets today, at the forefront of my mind is when I was a medical student observing a man with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in therapy with his trained therapy dog. As this man was recounting his traumatic experiences for psychological processing, he became quite agitated, clearly struggling with the emotional dysregulation that came from sharing his painful memories. The dog, compassionate and attuned to his human’s emotional state, began to spin around in order to distract the man, and then leapt up to comfort him. It was amazing to see how that helped bring the man back to a more grounded, calm state, and he shared that this dog has helped him recover through many triggers so that the man could function in day-to-day life without being debilitated by triggers.
Is there a particular book that made a significant impact on you? Can you share a story or explain why it resonated with you so much?
I really enjoyed The Body Keeps the Score by Dr. Bessel van der Kolk. It was a great book to learn more about trauma, which I feel is particularly essential for those studying psychiatry, given that the current paradigm in training barely touches on trauma. I’ve observed that many psychiatrists don’t know enough about how to recognize and treat trauma disorders, and this book certainly opened my eyes to the need for quality improvement in postgraduate medical training for psychiatrists. It should be mandatory reading in my opinion, not just for trainees but also for anyone who lives or works with those affected by trauma!
Ok, thank you for all that. Now let’s move to the main focus of our interview. Can you share a personal story about how a pet has helped you or someone you know to improve mental wellness?
I have seen trained therapy animals help patients like I mentioned a moment ago, but I’ve also seen my own pets help me throughout my life. Growing up with adverse childhood experiences, I have always had a hard time feeling accepted, wanted, loved, and I have always struggled with trust. This improved when I moved out of my childhood home, yet worsened again when I began my postgraduate psychiatry training in a new city on the other side of the country, where I faced much more adversity as an outsider. Having cats to turn to throughout my childhood and adulthood has been a great solace. Cats have provided me with that sense of belonging and love that is so essential for human beings in order to satisfy our need for connection. They have uplifted me through so many difficult times. I keep a daily gratitude list for years now, and nearly every day there is something about an interaction with cats for which I find myself feeling grateful.
While human interaction is essential for emotional well-being, in what ways do interactions with pets offer unique benefits that human relationships might not provide?
There are so many benefits of interacting with pets! One of the things that stands out most for me is the mood-boosting simplicity of it. Pets allow us to simply live in the present moment, enjoying the company of another living being without complexities. I’ve found that pets are often a source of judgment-free, unconditional love, they are a reliable source of companionship, and they reduce stress by simply being as they are and loving us as we are.
Can you explain how this works? How do pets, particularly common ones like dogs and cats, biologically and psychologically help to alleviate human stress levels and anxieties?
Bonding with pets can be deep and intuitive, transcending the need for words to communicate. With animals, you get uncomplicated social connection due to the lack of verbal communication. You’re unlikely to walk into misunderstandings that lead to conflict or emotional labour. You simply exist in another living being’s presence, enjoying the biological, mood-boosting benefits of the oxytocin, serotonin, and dopamine release of connecting with another, without the usual negativity that can arise when human relationships don’t meet our expectations.
In the backdrop of global events like pandemics or natural disasters, how have you seen pets playing a role in alleviating anxiety and providing comfort? Can you share some instances where pets have been integrated into therapeutic practices? How do they complement traditional therapeutic techniques?
One of the biggest struggles people had during the global pandemic was the increased sense of isolation due to social distancing measures. Pets can be companions even in times like that, and many people adopted pets to cope with the pandemic. Just cuddling or petting an animal can release oxytocin and reduce stress. I only hope most people who adopted pandemic pets would choose to hold onto those pets rather than abandon them as they grow older — because pets are only one part of our lives, but to them, we are their whole world and they love us unconditionally. We need that unconditional love in our lives just as much as they need us to survive.
Animals have been integrated into therapeutic practices as emotional support animals to help people with PTSD, anxiety, depression, and other challenges. Sometimes they are trained service animals and can help someone who is about to have a panic attack, for example. And I’ve seen many programs that involved bringing therapy animals into hospitals or nursing homes. Pets are fantastic at enhancing people’s ability to bring their minds back to the present moment, away from the depression-inducing ruminations of the past or the anxiety-inducing worries of the future. When people are engaged in the present moment, they can focus on emotional and mental wellness and enhance their ability to progress in therapy. Pets are also a great way to interact with another living being even when humans have broken someone’s trust, leading to trauma-related trust difficulties or social anxiety. It’s a way of building graduated exposure to social interactions, by starting with social creatures that do not judge us and that remain loyal and loving no matter what.
Not all pets are dogs or cats. From birds to fish to reptiles, how can individuals choose the right pet that aligns with their mental health needs?
We all gravitate toward preferred animals for different reasons. Plenty of people gravitate toward horses as their therapy animals and pets, or toward birds, or fish, or reptiles. Now, many people know I’ve been heavily involved in pageantry for the past several years. This year’s Mrs. World titleholder is a child psychiatrist in Germany who works with dolphins as therapy animals. Dolphins are incredibly intelligent animals so this makes sense intuitively, yet still surprises people because they’re not what you would traditionally expect to see in therapy. It just goes to show that we can build therapeutic bonds with many animals, across many species — wherever our preferences gravitate. Sometimes people see themselves in a certain type of animal, for example I am a cat person and I’ve been told many times that I’m quite catlike myself. Other people simply develop a fascination for the unique characteristics of a species; dolphins have a lot of very cool features! Or some may find that they communicate most intuitively with certain species. Whatever feels right!
How does the act of taking care of a pet — feeding, grooming, exercising — contribute to an individual’s sense of purpose and mental well-being?
Pets maintain routines naturally, as anyone would know if they have had a pet complain at them for being late with providing dinner. This is important, because sometimes people have lost their sense of purpose in life. Being responsible for keeping another living being alive and happy can take people out of self-absorbed misery and into selflessness that ends up bringing joy back to the self, because it is natural to feel happy when we make another happy. Grooming animals also releases oxytocin as I mentioned earlier. And exercising with animals, like taking dogs for a walk, playing with a bird toy with a cat, or swimming with dolphins, are all great for motivating people to get the mood-boosting endorphins that exercise can bring.
The past 5 years have been filled with upheaval and political uncertainty. Many people have become anxious from the dramatic jolts of the news cycle. From your experience or research, what are your “Five Ways To Maximize the Mental Health Benefits of Having a Pet?” Can you please share a story or example for each?
1 . Schedule snuggle time with your pets each day! We all benefit from the oxytocin boost of cuddling, and when cuddling other people may not be an option, cuddling with animals can be just as rewarding — if not more, because there is nothing further attached than enjoying the present moment. Some people may not like the idea of going to sleep with their pet in their bed, but if people are open to giving that a try (depending on the pet, as this wouldn’t be feasible with a dolphin), then it can be beneficial for both the human and the grateful animal to bond by falling asleep side by side.
2 . Share your gratitude list with your pets! Everyone would benefit from making a daily gratitude list. Speaking that gratitude out loud may have more mental health benefits, affirming the feeling more deeply. Animals can be great non-judgmental listeners, and they may understand more than we realize. Have you ever tried keeping identical plants in separate pots and speaking nothing but negativity to one plant for several weeks, and nothing but positivity to the other plant for several weeks? The one that receives the positive comments tends to grow more lushly. Somehow, the words we verbalize matter to other living beings, and pets may be grateful to hear our gratitude list, especially if they feature on that list for making you happy.
3 . Hold pets during difficult times or hard conversations. I’ve found that simply having my cats on my lap during stressful periods has been a way for me to stay grounded in the present moment, keeping me relatively calmer than I would have been if I was completely alone during hard times. It makes a difference!
4 . Play or exercise with pets every day! Whether that’s jogging with a dog or teasing cats with a toy or something else, it boosts our mood through endorphin release for us to get our bodies moving in any way. Especially if the play turns into a miscalculation or funny reaction on the animal’s part, giving us an opportunity to laugh at their clumsiness or simple adorableness!
5 . Add a mindful pet break into your daily routine. Most of us are very addicted to technology. Making an intentional choice to take a technology break and spend that time focusing only on our pets for a brief period of grooming, play, confiding a gratitude list, or anything else, is beneficial to reduce overall anxiety by keeping people grounded in the present moment. A daily routine of this would provide us with control over predictability even in an unpredictable world.
The loss of a pet can be deeply traumatic. How can individuals navigate this grief, and how does it compare to other forms of loss in terms of mental health impact?
It can absolutely be very difficult! I recall my own grief when a beloved cat passed away years ago. People who have a strong connection with animals know that losing a pet can feel like losing a child or a sibling, depending on our age at the time of the loss. Losing someone close to us can affect our mental health just as much when they are animals as when they are humans. For me, the grief was substantial enough that I sought support from a mental health professional who provided eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) to help me cope with the trauma and integrate the loss in a healthy way in my mind. Different people may find different therapies work best for them, as there are very many modalities out there that can fit different types of minds. But nonetheless if someone is struggling with long-lasting grief from the loss of a pet, I suggest seeking some kind of professional therapy.
You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of peace to the greatest amount of people, what would that be?
I feel that a holistic connection to nature is key, and I do not think the harm humans cause to animals on a widespread scale (such as animal agriculture or other forms of exploitation) are meaningless. I think that impacts all of us in ways that we have yet to realize, perhaps a spiritual element that we will someday discover, similar to when people did not know about germs before the 1800s. If I could inspire a movement to bring about the most amount of peace to the greatest amount of people, that movement would involve nonviolent compassion toward all living beings, not hurting or exploiting animals just because they do not communicate with us in our verbal languages. I believe we would all benefit more than we could ever know if we could reconnect with animals across all species, without causing them harm.
We are very blessed that some very prominent names in Business, VC funding, Sports and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them. :-)
Taylor Swift, of course. I’m a big Swiftie and I’m as much of a cat lady as her. I would love for us to bond over our mutual love of cats. And maybe we could make some songs about cats and mental health together — that would certainly be a dream come true for me!
How can our readers further follow your work online?
Readers can follow my website patriciacelan.com for updates on new content that I put out, whether that’s featuring in articles, giving talks, or sharing about my personal life and adventures.
Thank you so much for sharing these important insights. We wish you continued success and good health!
About the Interviewer: Wanda Malhotra is a wellness entrepreneur, lifestyle journalist, and the CEO of Crunchy Mama Box, a mission-driven platform promoting conscious living. CMB empowers individuals with educational resources and vetted products to help them make informed choices. Passionate about social causes like environmental preservation and animal welfare, Wanda writes about clean beauty, wellness, nutrition, social impact and sustainability, simplifying wellness with curated resources. Join Wanda and the Crunchy Mama Box community in embracing a healthier, more sustainable lifestyle at CrunchyMamaBox.com .
