So I have social phobia, panic attacks, anxiety, the whole nine yards. I recently got a puppy (well he's about 10 months old now) and he has made a world of difference in my life already! I have a sleep disorder and he helps me get up in the morning when i have to be up by at a certain time. I have also trained him to lean his weight on me when i have panic attacks, which helps them pass quicker by slowing my breathing (he's a big dog ha). Overall, i feel less anxious when he's near me; not exactly sure why this is, I just know having him around helps calm and soothe me. Knowing this, I feel like being able to take him with me places, would help diminish the struggles I have with my social phobia. Basically I think having him with me would allow me to go more places and do more things that I would definitely not do otherwise.
So i was wondering if any of you have service dogs for your phobias/ anxiety/ panic, etc. and if so, how did you go about certifying a dog/ or training one/ etc. I have asked my pdoc, who i thought would be the one to handle it, but she had no helpful information! and the information i have found on the internet seems to be quite vague and lacking on information on this topic! i'm not wanting to purchase or acquire a new dog, I just want to figure out how to get my current dog certified, trained, or whatever, as my service dog. Any information would be helpful!