How Caring for Pets and Plants Impacts Your Health and Happiness

Thrive • February 20, 2022

From dogs and cats to window boxes of succulents and gardens full of green beans, caring for both pets and plants has the power to uplift your mental and emotional health. Below, we explore the ways caring for pets and plants can benefit your well-being.

ENVIRONMENT

Your environment affects your mood. By enhancing air quality and adding aesthetically pleasing elements to your environment, plants can make any space feel more welcoming and alive. Scientists continue to compile evidence that supports that exposure to nature can lower stress, increase focus, raise spirits, increase empathy, and even reduce the risk of psychiatric disorders. Whether you’re bringing the outdoors indoors or getting your hands into the earth in a backyard garden, you’re inviting nature to nurture you.

Additionally, having a friendly furball by your side or loving pet underfoot can welcome positive energy to your entire home. 

COMFORT AND COMPANIONSHIP

“Pets and plants can elevate a person’s mood by decreasing cortisol levels, serving as a source of comfort, and increasing feelings of support,” said Thrive Reno’s Eating Disorder Program Clinical Lead and Therapist Mollie Pierce, MA, LCPC, NCC.

The love between pets, plants, and their caretakers is uncomplex and unconditional. This kind of companionship, most notably between pets and their owners, can help individuals cope with feelings of stress, anxiety , loneliness, and depression .

PURPOSE

Both pets and plants offer their caretakers a sense of purpose. Knowing your cat is waiting for you to pour kibble into its dish gives you a daily reason to rise and shine every morning. As for plants, watering them regularly and tending to their soil offers a similar sense of caregiving. Guarding your garden from critters and winterizing your roses can make you feel essential to their protection. 

“By providing you with an added sense of meaning, pets and plants can keep you from feeling listless, increase your energy levels, and boost your overall productivity. Additionally, taking care of your pets and plants can be a reminder to care for yourself ,” Pierce explained.

MINDFULNESS

Practicing mindfulness can help reduce stress, improve focus, and regulate your emotions , among other benefits. Mindful moments spent with plants and pets encourage you to practice awareness and allow you to collect your thoughts. Breathing in the scent of lavender or eucalyptus, noticing the tilt of your elephant ear plant’s leaves, or taking your dog on a stroll around the park can allow you to arrive in and embrace the present moment. 

SOCIAL

Upon becoming a plant or pet owner, you’ll be more likely to meet new people on dog walks and make new friends at plant exchanges. By connecting with other plant enthusiasts and pet lovers, you can foster a community that can broaden your sense of belonging, support, and purpose .

SYMBOLISM 

Caring for your plants can inspire you to trim off elements of your life that aren’t serving you, like pulling the weeds of negative self-talk and planting seeds of positivity in their place. Gardening can also encourage you to pay attention to your own surroundings and adjust your environment as needed for continued growth. As for pets, afternoon cat naps can remind you that it’s okay to relax, playful pups can persuade you to indulge your inner-child, and all cuddly pets can encourage you to keep your heart open. 

A PLACE TO GROW

At Thrive, we’re all for the flourishing nature of plants, growing where you’re planted, and thriving instead of settling for just surviving. We also love furry friends and the way their distinct personalities can give us joy. Healing and maintaining your mental and emotional health involves more than just caring for plants and pets, however. 

If you’re seeking to cultivate a greater sense of happiness in your life, our therapists can help. We believe thriving means nurturing your mental, emotional, and physical well-being. Reach out to learn more about our therapeutic services .  

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By Erin McGinty Fort, MS, MHA, CPC, LPC-S, CEDS-C December 18, 2025
Sometimes, people need more support, structure, and monitoring than the typical outpatient setting can provide. When this happens, the treatment team will usually recommend that someone be "stepped up" to a different level of care, or program, that can better meet their needs. I like to think of it as being similar to medication dosages; people need different strengths of medications, or dosages, to get better when they're sick. Stepping someone up to a higher level of care is like increasing the dosage of a medication to match the severity of their symptoms. How Are Higher Levels of Care Different from Standard Outpatient Care? At the core of differentiating higher levels of care from standard outpatient care is the intensity and structure of the treatment. Higher level of care programs tend to offer more days of treatment each week and more hours of treatment per day than in the outpatient setting. Those in higher level of care programs may also meet with their treatment team members more frequently each week. There are more staff present to support someone at or after meals and snacks, or to help those who are having urges to engage in compulsions or other harmful behaviors. Clients in our HLOC programs get access to an assortment of treatment modalities tailored to their individual needs, including personalized therapy sessions, group support, medication management, medical nutrition therapy with a dietitian, and check-ins with our primary care providers. We support clients with personalized treatment plans and regular assessments to monitor and tweak interventions as needed. Higher levels of care also offer increased peer interaction and support. Intensive programs incorporate additional group therapy sessions, which can help those in treatment feel less alone as well as create a greater sense of community. For some people, it can be difficult to devote the time and energy needed to recover while also balancing other responsibilities like school or work. Stepping up to more intensive levels of care allows people to fully dedicate themselves to recovery. As they get better and make progress, a person may be stepped back down to a less intensive level of care to start practicing their recovery in their usual home, school, or work settings while also receiving professional support from their treatment team. What Levels of Care are Available? At Thrive Wellness, we offer four different levels of care to help clients step up (or down) in their treatment when needed: -  Outpatient Treatment - weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly meetings with a therapist, psychiatrist, primary care provider, and/or dietitian. - Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) - A minimum of three hours per day, three days per week. - Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP) - A minimum of six hours per day, five days per week. - Residential Treatment - Coming soon in 2026, The Greenhouse at Thrive will offer residential treatment for eating disorders, anxiety disorders, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. This level of care offers 24-hour support for those aged 12-24 living in our residential treatment center. How To Decide Which Level of Care is Right for You If you're unsure which option is right for you or your loved one, we offer a free assessment that can be completed with our admissions team. In this initial assessment, we'll gather information from you about what you're struggling with, speak with our team of providers, and then make a recommendation for what level of care we feel is the best fit for you and your needs. If you’re experiencing symptoms of an eating disorder, anxiety disorder, or other behavioral or mental health challenges, don’t hesitate to reach out. To get started with our intake process, give us a call at 775-525-8103 or fill out this form . We can’t wait to help you Thrive.
December 2, 2025
Like the fir tree, a symbol of endurance rooted in hope, our Family Inclusive Recovery (FIR) approach reflects the strength that grows when families face challenges together. At our new residential center “The Greenhouse”, FIR is more than a treatment model, it’s a philosophy of healing that places families at the heart of recovery for adolescents and young adults navigating eating disorders, anxiety disorders, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). We believe lasting healing doesn’t happen in isolation; it’s built with the support of families through perseverance, hope, and compassionate care. What Is Family Inclusive Recovery (FIR)? Family Intensive Recovery (FIR) is a specialized and immersive approach that actively engages caregivers as central agents in their child’s healing process. Rather than seeing families as contributors to a problem, we view them as essential partners in recovery. Drawing from two evidence-based frameworks, Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions (SPACE) and Family-Based Treatment (FBT), FIR helps families cultivate resilience, confidence, and connection throughout the journey to recovery. Grounded in SPACE and FBT Through the SPACE model, parents learn how to recognize and reduce well-intentioned but unhelpful behaviors known as accommodations that can reinforce anxiety and OCD symptoms. By shifting from rescuing to supporting and challenging, parents develop the confidence to guide their child through discomfort, helping them build distress tolerance and self-trust. Simultaneously, Family-Based Treatment (FBT) empowers families to take an active, compassionate role in their child’s nutritional and emotional recovery. Parents learn how to support weight and nutritional restoration, disrupt the eating disorder’s patterns, and reestablish boundaries that promote health and growing autonomy. Together, these approaches strengthen both the individual and family system, allowing recovery to take root within an environment of empathy and optimism. From Blame to Collaboration A cornerstone of the FIR model is removing blame. At Thrive, parents are not viewed as the cause of their child’s struggles, but rather as key partners in recovery. Treatment focuses on joining forces to create a safe, supportive environment where: Families learn to sit with their child's discomfort alongside them without rushing to fix or control it. Parents practice compassionate firmness, setting boundaries grounded in care and safety. Teens and caregivers rebuild trust through open, honest communication. This collaborative framework helps families reestablish a sense of connection and confidence, fostering long-term resilience and open communication that extends beyond the treatment setting. Why Family Matters in Recovery Recovery from eating disorders, OCD, or anxiety isn’t a one-person job, it requires integrated care including the family. When families learn to navigate challenges together, they can model emotional regulation, reinforce healthy boundaries, and create conditions for sustained recovery. Through FIR, we aim to strengthen attachment bonds, reshape family interactions, and empower every member of the family to grow. The result is not only symptom reduction but also a deeper sense of unity, hope, and shared endurance, just like the steadfast fir tree that stands resilient through every season. Moving Toward Hope Family Inclusive Recovery invites caregivers and loved ones to become active participants in change. It’s a journey of learning, letting go, and leaning into love and acceptance. Together, families and clinicians can cultivate the courage in clients to face uncertainty, and in doing so, help them discover that recovery is not just possible, but enduring. If you’d like to learn more about Family Intensive Recovery at The Greenhouse or how we support families in eating disorder and OCD treatment, reach out to our team today.
November 14, 2025
The Greenhouse at Thrive Wellness A New Chapter of Hope and Healing in Nevada On Friday, November 14 , we gathered with our partners at Molina Healthcare to share an important moment for our community. Together, we celebrated Molina’s generous $50,000 grant , an investment that is helping bring The Greenhouse to life. Their support is not only a financial contribution—it’s a statement of belief in the young people and families of Nevada who deserve access to compassionate, evidence-based mental healthcare close to home. This gathering marked the beginning of something we’ve dreamed about for years: a place designed specifically for adolescents and emerging adults to receive the care, connection, and support they need during some of the most vulnerable moments of their lives. Something New Is Growing In early 2026 , Thrive Wellness will open The Greenhouse , Nevada’s first residential treatment center devoted to adolescents and emerging adults navigating eating disorders, anxiety, and OCD . For too long, families have faced a heartbreaking dilemma—send their child far from home for treatment or go without the specialized care they need. The Greenhouse is our answer to that gap. It will be a place where young people can settle into an environment built for healing, where they are understood, supported, and surrounded by a team that believes in their capacity to recover. The Greenhouse represents a natural extension of our mission. It’s a living expression of our belief that recovery is possible—and that with the right support, families can find their footing again. 
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