For The Love Of Animals
  By Cheryl Legal

 As far as I can remember I have always had an allergy to animals, pets mostly. It did not matter whether it was a cat, dog, rabbit, or bird. As a child I would go to visit friends and relatives with my parents and would sneeze uncontrollably if they were living with a pet. We lived in the Mid-West so allergies were always a part of my life and I did not make the connection to animals until later when my allergies were under control except for the times that I was around animals. I remember walking into a pet store and not being able to breathe because of the sneezing and wheezing. My eyes would tear up and my throat would get unbelievably scratchy.

      Once in awhile I would go to a party or visit a friend and have to cut my time short because I did not realize that they had a dog or cat. My standard question anytime I was invited anywhere was, "Do you have any pets?" I had to decline many invitations because it would be too uncomfortable for me to even stay fifteen minutes. I thought I got smart and tried to take allergy medication to block the histamines before I went to a home with a pet. It curbed the symptoms slightly so that maybe I was able to stay 30 minutes instead of 10 or 15 minutes.

      Recently, I had a few situations arise that told me I had to take care of this problem once and for all. My significant other and I went to stay with some friends for the weekend. We got there and they told us their exciting news…they just got a dog. We were suppose to baby-sit for them that night so I was stuck in the basement the entire weekend since the dog was not allowed down there. Then the holidays came around and I had invitations to spend Christmas Day with friends since my boyfriend had to work out of town. Unfortunately everyone that had extended an invitation had pets at home and I had to decline. The final straw came when my boyfriend's mother, accompanied by the family dog, came to stay with us for a couple months. We had decided to keep the dog out on the screened in patio so that it's dander would not get all over the house. As luck would have it, the weather became very cold and it would be impossible to leave the dog out there, so into the house it came.

      I needed help and I needed now! Then it came to me, a hypnotist could help me find the relief I so badly needed. So I called Bob Brenner at The Brenner Hypnosis Center to schedule an appointment. I had gone to Bob previously to deal with some personal issues. I felt dramatic changes occur within myself after those sessions and just knew I would have the same results with my allergies.

      During our session, I was able to remember an incident that occurred with my father when I was a small child. He was a zookeeper at the Detroit Zoo and he worked with larger mammals. One day he had been feeding a rhinoceros when a truck went by that scared the animal and the animal reared up hit my dad and threw him across the stall. I was at my neighbor's house when my mom came over very shaken and told my friend's mom what happened and that she had to hurry to the hospital because he might not make it. She asked if they could watch me. My dad did make it, but when he came home, he looked horrible. The injuries were severe and he looked terribly bruised and battered. As a child, it was extremely frightening to see my father that way and know that he had almost died because of an animal. From that point on, my subconscious decided to protect me from all animals since they were dangerous and could hurt me. That protection resulted in my severe allergies to animals. After discovering the root of where my allergies to animals began and realizing that it was only an accident, my allergies disappeared immediately.

     I went home that day after my session, scooped up the dog, and had no reaction what so ever. The dog and my boyfriend's mom have been living with us for two months and the dog has since taken over our house but I have not sneezed once. I was also able to visit a few friends with pets and they are amazed that I am no longer affected. I put up with this inconvenience for far too long. I hope that people begin to realize that the inconveniences that allergies bring into their lives are not something they have to suffer through for the rest of their lives.