HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) — Huntsville Hospital Health System provides a variety of therapies, but one in particular helps children navigate the grief that comes with losing a parent or loved one.
Paxton is their four-legged friend with a big heart and calming presence.
“He is a golden retriever, he is almost four years old, and a facility dog,” said Cammie Payne. She is a child life specialist and facility handler at the Caring House.
When Paxton is working, you can find him at the Caring House. It’s a place that offers a special form of therapy for kids dealing with grief.
“We provide individual sessions for children and families, as well as family sessions and group support,” said Payne. “That way children and teens can understand the death of their loved one as well as gain the coping skills to be able to process what happened.”
Jill Falling is a grief and trauma therapist and manager at the Caring House.
She shares the story of one of their 7-year-old patients, Olivia, who had a hard time opening up after the death of her father.
“She did not want to interact with us,” said Jill Falling. Falling is and grief and trauma therapist and the manager at the Caring House. “She did not want to talk to us. She barely would mark on the chalkboard yes or no to answer questions, so we decided, ‘What happens if we bring Paxton into the equation and see if we could kind of use him as an ice breaker?’”
Falling said she started answering her therapy questions to the dog, and the bond changed everything.
“She bounces into the door,” Falling said. “She is beaming, and she is a completely different child, and that is because of the relationship between Paxton and the handler and the work that they do to help our children.”
When kids can’t see Paxton directly, they are pen pals.
“We decided to come up with a mailbox that was just for Paxton,” Falling said. “This became a great tool that we have used with other children as well, where they can write letters to Paxton and then he will write them back.”
And it isn’t just within the walls of Caring House that Paxton helps. This year, he’ll head to schools across Madison County as well.
“We’re excited about our school groups through Huntsville City, Madison City and Madison County schools,” she said.
If you would like to help Huntsville Hospital and its mission, you can donate to The Caring House on Huntsville Hospital’s website.
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