Cheri Christensen

What My Service Dog Means to Me

I am a Veteran. With all the experiences I had both good and bad, I am proud to have served in the Air Force. I am now blessed to have my Service Dog, Skye, to help me. I have TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury) and PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). I have a wonderful and loving family. However, I have wide field of things that make me sad. When my head is acting up it causes: balance issues, I run into corners in the hallway, can’t get off the floor without crawling to the table to stabilize. I get very confused, foggy, lose my sense of presence (where I am) and extremely lonely. I get lost leaving my house past my driveway. I can’t put three words together without losing my thought. I am a Believer and know that God does love me, yet I am still feeling all this! There’s nothing wrong with my Faith, it’s just my head being off.

Skye has been in my life for over 2 months now with the help of Operation Dog Tags with Joe Scheffer. Skye heads off high anxiety attacks BEFORE they begin. She senses my anxiety before I am aware of it. She gets my heart rate down (grounds me to the present) by putting her head on my arm or putting her paws on my lap and shoulders. If I am sitting in my chair and my heart rate jumps to over 110. She gets in front of me and puts her paws on my lap and shoulders. Puts her face close to mine and licks my nose or forehead. She won’t get down until I acknowledge her.

She really grounds me and makes me feel valued. I remember I have a purpose and I am thankful for so much! Any Veteran who is reading this and is contemplating hurting themselves or doesn’t feel like they have a purpose, I have been there. Please call Operation Dog Tag (509) 276-4364.

With having my dog with me ALL the time, I am NEVER alone again!

Cheri Christensen, Female Veteran, Air Force E-4