Regaining Confidence after a dog attack: A Survivor’s Story
The Path to Gaining Control after a dog attack
Regaining Confidence after a dog attack: A Survivor’s Story
This time I was walking my dog Yeti, when we were attacked by a large German Shepherd. We were only a few houses from where I live. A lady across the street from where we were told her 10-year-old son to let the dog out. He did so, but did not put the dog on a leash and, upon seeing us, the dog came running across the street and at once started biting me. My instinct saved my dog as I at once picked her up. I was bitten several places on the back of both of my legs. After I screamed and continued to yell at the owner, the owner finally was able to get her dog away from me. I still remember the pain and the blood dripping down my legs. I will never forget that moment when I was able to keep standing and never let my dog go.
I went to the emergency room and received 15 stitches and both legs were wrapped. I could barely walk and missed time from work. I went to my primary care physician for continued care and then to a wound clinic as I continued to have issues with an infection. I had surgery on May 2, 2022 and then was on a wound vac continuously for several weeks and received Home Health services.
June 22, 2022 I was finally able to complete the final packing to my wound and was released from wound care. After 4 months of constant dressing changes.
My first step was physical healing as I had just recovered from having a cryoablation procedure for Afib and was starting my exercise with walking again when I was attacked.
I am an active person and enjoy walking my dog and exercising. This has significantly affected my life both physically and mentally. My legs have scars and I still have problems with my legs when exercising or sitting. But I am thankful I survived and can walk. I share my story because if the owner had used a leash and taken responsibility this incident may have been prevented.
Emotional healing is accepting the painful experiences you have endured and being able to acknowledge that you do have the power to change and overcome your past.
The second step is the mental and emotional healing which continues every day. I did complete sessions with a counselor because of the trauma. On June 15, 2022 my brother unexpectedly passed away in his sleep. During all of this I was also searching for another position as I needed to make a professional change in my life.
In October 2022 I left a position I held for over 20 years and moved onto my new position where I continue my work as a Social Worker.
The past year has been extremely challenging personally and professionally. Life has a way of leading to where your next phase in life is. One of the last things my brother said to me was “Everything happens for a reason”. Because of all these impactful changes in my life I decided to “tell my story” To help create a positive change. My story is about Resilience and Healing. Part of my mental healing is creating this blog about pet awareness.
“I’d rather regret the things I’ve done than regret the things I haven’t done” `Lucille Ball
Every day we must live with regrets of things we wish we did or didn’t. I am choosing to make a difference. I survived, I am here, and I am going to make a difference.
How do you mentally recover from a dog attack?
I believe talking to a counselor can help provide validation that the anxiety you are experiencing is normal and part of the healing process.
Empower yourself by learning about dog behavior.
Avoid “what if” blaming yourself. This is about Dog Owner Responsibility. I am using this opportunity to empower myself; I will gradually regain my confidence.
“I can be changed by what happens to me. But I refuse to be reduced by it”. Maya Angelou `
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