Put Your Wrap Where Your Mouth Is

 While I was living in the Bay Area, I had to meet with a client who had a very "dog aggressive dog".

I liked both the client and the dog but I also felt a pit in my stomach every time I had to meet them for a training:  The dog was one of the sweetest dogs I have ever worked with but she went from “zero to 250 arousal” in a matter of seconds! 

The minute Reggie saw a dog  five blocks away- mind you, or heard the “clink-clink” noise from the tag of a nearby dog, the presence of a dog behind a fence, Reggy would leap her almost 80 lbs straight up in the air. Really- just like her guardian had warned me! 

She would also bark and lunge at dogs as she took turns jumping up high, pulling forward and keeping her ground making it almost impossible to peel her away from the scene.

After the first session, I changed my approach all together. Besides re-thinking my training plan, tools to use and looking for a more appropriate location to work with Reggy I decided that I needed to do something for myself so that I could feel more “grounded” and present while working with my client and her dog.

It occurred to me that if I regularly put a TTouch® wrap on a dog to calm him, I should just put my money where my mouth is and wear one myself!  What I ended up doing was wearing a half wrap across my chest under the shirt. No, the client had no idea that it wasn't only her dog that was wearing a TTouch® wrap :).

This simple step made all the difference on how I felt while driving to the job and while working with Reggie!!  I could feel this constant pressure that gently reminded me to stay “cool”…  and breathing more deeply became almost automatic so yes, I felt calmer and because of that I could think more clearly while I remained stress free.

I have gone back to using the wrap whenever I am feeling tired, emotionally vulnerable or when I just want to feel a bit more connected and present with the work I do with animals. One last thought, there is no reason why people could not use a TTouch® wrap under their clothes when they are going to an important/stressful meeting such as a job interview, traffic court or a first date! Just make sure the ends are secured so that they do not inadvertly “peek-out” from under your clothing… or you might have some explaining to do!