A dog--survival key #6

#6: a dog. 

Okay, so maybe this one isn't a key to everyone's survival when they have Lyme...but it's certainly a key to mine.

If you know me in real life, you know that I love my dog. Like, he's probably my favorite thing on this planet if we're being real. If you don't know me in real life, let me tell you now; I love my dog. He's probably my favorite thing on this planet if we're being real. 

Keeper (that's his name if you're new here) isn't a service dog. He isn't specifically trained to help me when I'm sick or to sense things or anything like that. But he gets it. He understands when I need him near me. And he understands when he can't be excited around me. He understands when I'm crying. And he understands when I'm angry. He just gets it. 

He's probably 90lbs at this point. And he 100% thinks he is a lap dog. But, after I had gallbladder surgery last year, he didn't once try to jump on me. He sniffed my incisions when I came home, and he understood. He knew when I put a pillow over my stomach that he could lay his head there, but he never once tried to jump on me like he normally would. He just gets it. 

He licks my face when I'm crying. And he lays close to me when he knows I'm sad. He just gets it. 

I was going to say that I don't know how the Lyme life would be without a dog, but I do. Before Keeper we had Hershey. And, after Hershey died we had 3ish months without a dog before we got Keeper. I was so sad. Partially because I missed Hershey, but also because this crazy Lyme life felt impossible without a dog by my side. Keeper made things okay again. 

Maybe you don't like dogs. Maybe you're afraid of dogs. Maybe you're allergic to dogs. That's okay. Find something like a dog. Something that understands you without you having to tell them. Something that just gets it. Whatever that thing may be for you. 

I know I, for one, am forever grateful for mine.