"Service dogs play a vital role in the lives of people with disabilities, ranging from autism to muscular dystrophy. These loving animals help their owners perform day-to-day tasks, and some are specially trained for people with diabetes, epilepsy, or PTSD. Service dogs play an important practical role in the lives of their partners, but they also become loving friends," according to the website of United Disabilities Services.

Yes, service dogs are a great help in improving the quality of life of people with disabilities. In fact, they can even save their owners' lives with their ability to detect dangerous levels of blood sugar (hyperglycemia and hypoglycemia), seizures, and other conditions.

Photo: Pexels/Marcus Christensen

Here are the types of service dogs:

• Allergy Detection Dogs
• Autism Service Dogs
• Diabetic Alert Dogs
• Guide Dogs
• Hearing Dogs
• Mobility Assistance Dogs
• Psychiatric Service Dogs
• Seizure Alert Dogs

In this story on Reddit's r/AmItheA--hole forum, a young woman with a seizure alert dog almost lost her life after heeding the words of a friend who didn't care about her illness, much less her companion animal.

Photo: Pexels/Samson Katt

Posting about the scary experience under the username u/throwaway9876402, she related the following: "I (24 f) have epilepsy. I have a service dog (fully certified) who is trained to help me with my seizures. I have been diagnosed since a child, and I have had my current dog Bailey for 4 years now, and she is the bestest girl around. (Before Bailey, I had a previous service dog who we had to retire due to age… but having a service animal is by no means new for me). With her being a service dog, she is obviously always with me."

OP further related about having a core friend group with whom she often hangs out. They have this one friend named Anna who has the habit of making negative comments about her and Bailey, like how she causes discomfort to other people because of her dog, who accompanies her even inside a restaurant. Anna couldn't seem to understand that OP truly needs Bailey for her safety and well-being and not to put on a show.

According to OP, her seizures happen regularly, and there are different kinds of them. She described these seizures in her post: "My 'small ones' are petit Mal seizures. This essentially just looks like I’m zoning out and staring into space. Quite often people who don’t know me wouldn’t even connect this. My 'big ones' are my main concern; these are focal seizures where I fully lose consciousness. This can happen a couple times a day for me, so it’s obviously really important that I manage it to the best of my abilities."

Photo: Pexels/Pavel Danilyuk

One day, their friend Anna said she wanted to host a game night at her house. However, when OP and her dog came, Anna confronted her and bluntly told OP that she was being disrespectful for bringing Bailey without asking for permission. OP shouldn't be assuming that it would always be fine for people to have her dog constantly around. If she couldn't manage without Bailey for just a few hours, then she shouldn't have come at all, according to Anna.

How did OP respond? She wrote, "I tried apologizing and pointing out that I assumed she knew I was bringing her since I’ve never gone anywhere without her. That set her off more. The guys were finally able to calm her down, but her 'compromise' was I had to put Bailey in the backyard. I was an idiot and said fine because I didn’t want to inconvenience anyone more or continue stirring the pot. Bailey went outside, and I returned inside with my friends."

True enough, it was foolish of her to leave Bailey in the backyard, because OP ended up having a major seizure. She blacked out and hit her head on the floor rather too hard. Due to it, she had to be taken to a hospital.

Photo: Pexels/cottonbro studio

Because of what happened, OP's friend group called Anna toxic, hateful, and a jealous witch. Anna had tried to tell them that it was just "acting" on OP's part to attract attention, but what their friends did was cast her out of their group.

OP ended her post with this concern: "Since this happened her, her sister and mom have been blowing up my phone, calling me the a-hole and demanding I fix this situation, and it’s honestly getting to me...so Reddit. AITA?"

It's easy to guess to which side the majority of the AITA community has shown favor.

Photo: Pexels/Samson Katt

From Putrid_Performer2509: "Seriously. These sound like the sorts of people who complain about strangers using mobility aids because they have invisible disabilities. My fiancee needed a cane for a while and hated using it because her disability was invisible and people kept side-eyeing her. Meanwhile, she could barely walk without the cane."

From maccrogenoff: "If the original poster is in the US, it’s highly likely that she will need to put in a claim against Anna’s homeowner insurance to pay for the hospital bills. I know two people who fell in others’ houses, and this was the protocol. Anna’s insurance premium will likely increase, and it can be difficult to sell a house when there’s been a claim against the homeowner insurance. Anna richly deserves any and all negative consequences of her actions."

From Consistent_Charity49: “'When someone shows you who they are, believe them.' OPs friends all saw what happened and have made up their own minds, without any encouragement from OP."