Still struggling with my emotions after losing a pet

I lost my cat last October, and every now and then my emotions spill over. This time it was after seeing a cartoon on Facebook about a person who lost her dog to old age.

I don't even know if I'm grieving my cat, or if I'm just sad about the themes of happiness turned to sadness, grief, the inevitability of death, the loss of an animal which provided support, which were brought up in the video. These are thoughts that came to mind when I lost my cat, so I am probably thinking of my cat as well.

I think this video also just made me feel lonely, and that's where a lot of the sadness comes from. Normally I'm ok with being a loner, but at times like this I feel very sad about it, and feel like I need friendship.

I saw my mother's dog today and he was happy to see me, but I started thinking about the inevitability of his death as well, and how that will affect me and others.

On the other hand, I feel that pets maybe just live in the moment, and it's really mostly their owners that suffer. If we can realise that our pets just take life as it comes, maybe we can let go.

Losing our pets is so hard! It sounds to me like you are figuring out your feelings about your grief. Do you feel like that is making sense to you?

I don't want you to feel obligated to answer my question if you don't want to. I respect your choice.

Yes I'm trying to figure out why I am feeling so sad about this video. Sometimes I get obsessed over things, and it's disorienting.

Right now I am feeling ok. I watched a Buddhist video about accepting impermanence as a path to happiness and that has calmed me down significantly.

Weird thing is that I wasn't even that close to my cat, it was just a cat that was part of my routine and I enjoyed spending some time on the couch with her, and I enjoyed spoiling her a bit.

I think it's basically about loneliness, and dealing with overwhelming emotions when I'm so isolated and without purpose in my life.

Do you have a therapist? Do you have experience dealing with emotions that overwhelm you?

I’m so very sorry for the loss of your cat. My pets are my babies and I’m devastated when I lose any of them. You are right that they live in the moment. They bring us so much unconditional love and brighten our lives so much. The grief you feel for your cat is real - just as real as the grief you would feel for a person.

I am considering speaking to a therapist about this or at least researching it

I encourage you to do that; find a therapist or research this topic. You are managing an area of your life you need information on to manage it to help you.

May I share with you my own personal favorite among the articles on the subject of grief & loss that are in Psych Central's archives? Here's a link:

What My Dog Taught Me about Grief and Loss

I am sorry for the loss of your pet friend. It sounds like your grief is just as intense as losing a person.

A therapist is a good resource. I found support groups are great also. A google search showed many options by searching for pet grief support groups online

@CANDC

when I lost the family dog, it took me ages to accept it.

for days afterwards I thought I could hear her in the kitchen moving the stairgate or eating her food from the bowl

I miss roxy the dog..

I wonder why pets are happy and beautiful one minit, and the next they are dead at the bottom of a cage.

it doesn't seem right. but suppose it's the circle of life..

I know EXACTLY how you feel!!! My wife and I had to take our Darling little Dog (Sasha) to the Vet, to have him put down, on the 21st of January, 2019: It was the worst and saddest day of my life!! My wife and I both had tears streaming down our faces, as the young female Vet. put our little baby boy (he was 15 years old) to sleep forever!!!

It was awful!! I cried more for our baby boy, then I did when my little brother and only sibling died!!

And I still want our little baby boy back!!! Sometimes I still feel like I'm going to lose my mind!

Losing our pets is horrible. They love us unconditionally. They are our family.

There is nothing in life that has been more frightening and painful for me as losing a pet. A dog, many cats, and a very many rats. Their lives seem to go so quickly. The grief is agony. Yet, would I have traded away the love for no grief? No.

sorry for your loss. My son is 12 and has lost 12 pets in his life. His dad has like 6 dogs and 5 cats 2 bearded dragons, 2 hamsters i think. When one dies over there, his step mom rescues another. It is so hard on my son. He gets into states of being sad for no reason, only to find out that is why he is sad, thinking of his pets. He often even talks about worried thoughts about lossing me or his brother. Has had nightmares of us being lost. and he cant find us. Setting up an appointment with a therapist soon,

I'm very sorry for your loss