[Iamalioness]

I was recently in the mental health ward, and ever since i've been out I have this overwhelming sense of doom when it comes to my cat. He is my best friend, he is so sensitive to what I need and he's such a suck...I call him my puppy cat. He's 8 or 9 years old now and I can't believe how time has flown with him. I can't believe he is that old. Now I have this impending sense of doom that he's going to get sick and i'll have to put him down. K, now i'm crying just writing this. I can barely see what i'm writing.

I can't stand to think of that day. I don't know what I will do without him! I want this feeling of doom to go away so I can just enjoy him while I have him, but I don't know what to do with the fear. Can anyone relate? Anyone have anything I can try?

[spondiferous]

I can totally relate. I am sorry you're going through this. All I can say is, what works for me at this point is just to spend time with the people/places/things that I am afraid I am going to lose, think fondly of them, and try to remember that what I am experiencing is probably going to pass, maybe even soon. Fear is scary in and of itself. It's difficult to overcome. Distraction can work too. Do things that bring you joy to minimize the effects of the fear, and spend time showing your cat care and affection. I have gone through periods of intense fear, to the point of phobia, so bad I feel like I am being electrocuted, and some of these periods have literally lasted for months. And I have always come out the other side, stronger.

If it helps to know, my beloved Princess (my kitty, and our last family cat) passed away at the ripe old age of 23. So even though it's impossible to tell when your cat will pass on, it is possible for animals to live long and healthy lives. Have you ever considered or attempted a mindfulness practice? You may find it useful. I certainly do when fear gets the best of me. When you notice it creeping in, just take a deep breath. Then spend several minutes (or as long as you can) either focusing on your breath, in and out, or notice your surroundings. Notice the details of things, what is happening around you. Touch, smell, taste, hear things. Ground yourself in the present moment. One saying I have heard many times (that I cannot identify the source of) is "Fear can only live in the future." So if you are focusing on the present, you're ok.

Hope that helps. If you want to ever talk, no judgements and no advice (unless requested), please do feel free to message me.

[Iamalioness]

Thank you for your kind and helpful words. Wow, your kitty lived a long time! That's wonderful! Gives me some hope.
Some of what you suggested, like focusing on your senses to ground yourself, I have heard about before. Actually, I've used that one quite a bit. I just didn't think to use it for this. I will try and use some of the other things you suggested as well. And I have definitely been giving him more attention since this started. I'm more "in the moment" with him than I ever have been. I try not to ignore him or just brush him off now. That makes me feel better.

[Nammu]

I googled ave age of indoor cats, the average is 12-18 but the longest lived cat was 28. I've known quite a few people who had cats into their 20's.

[eeyorestail]

I can relate. I am constantly worried that something bad is going to happen to my husband and our cats (sometimes in that order) or our cats and my husband (sometimes in that order). Sometimes one of the cats will be sitting in my lap purring and instead of enjoying it I will be worrying about what will happen when she's gone.

I haven't mastered getting rid of the worry, but I would also suggest "staying in the moment" or mindfulness exercises.