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My cat.


15 years ago 0 477 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Hi Diva,
I'm glad you got to accomplish things, but sorry you are still feeling blue. But it's ok, let yourself take all the time. No need to rush. You are doing a great job though! 
Hugs!!
 

15 years ago 0 2101 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Hello Breanne and Miki,
 
Thank you for your support and encouragement. Yesterday I did not feel like much of anything but I did make sure to eat three good meals. I also made supper for two. My husband, bless his heart, did all the lunches for the next day and the dishes. He got the raw end of that deal. He has been very helpful the last few days which is immensely helpful to me at this time. I also went for a walk. I spent the whole time thinking of my cat and feeling pretty down. Every song in my MP# players sounded depressing to me. I kept on though and did my one hour walk. I cried part of the way and had an ache in my chest the whole time but I kept walking. I took some time to read. Had trouble concentrating but it still helped relax me. Also, for the first time since Friday I managed to sleep in my bed, had been sleeping on the couch.
 
Today I woke up feeling pretty low. ended up staying in bed most of the day (till 2 pm about). Am feeling pretty numb and tired and nothing feels quite right. Oh well at least I am not panicky! I might go to Yoga later.
 
Since Friday I have been feeling lightheaded and dizy non-stop. That is getting annoying and at times it is anxiety inducing. Not sure what that is about but am sure ithas to do with my anxiety and grief.
 
Anyway, that is that for me now. Later.
15 years ago 0 477 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Hello Diva,
I'm glad you are seeing some progress with your steps at a time. That's the spirit! I think it is contageous(sp) and I feel motivated too. Thanks so much for posting encouragement. And great job on your successes. 

15 years ago 0 1693 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Diva,
 
I am so glad that you made that decision. I definitely think it was the right one
You seem to be in much brighter spirits, which is so great. Try to keep focusing on the positive, and all of the good that is in your life.
You know no matter what, we're always here for you
 
Breanne, Bilingual Health Educator
15 years ago 0 2101 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Hello DM,
 
Yes much has happened since we last corresponded. I do hope your time was better then mine. Thank you for your kind words of support. And yes Oscar was like a person to me. I kept calling him my baby. Sp thank you for understanding that and for your condoleances.
 
Yes, my days have been long and hard but I am getting better at getting from one hour to the next. As you saw, yesterday did being a few positive moments. Today I had a few moments of peace too. I think it is a good sign. But yes, hard long days are part of my exoerience right now a I am learning to accept it and do like you said, live with the ebb and flow of my grief. The fact that I am communacting better with my husband since yesterday really is quite helpful.
 
As for being patient, yes I have decided to stop resisting my relaity and accept what I am going through and be patient with myself. And boy did you ever put it in the right words when you said this is unchartered territory. Most of the time I don't know what to do with myself and all I can do is let go and trust that I will live through it.
 
I have mde a decison though. I know this will sound obvious or maybe even silly but yesterday I made a decision that was very important for me. I decided to go on living. I decided that Oscar (who by the way knew how to live the good life) would want me to be okay and to go on living instead of just barely getting by or surviving. So that is it, I decided that in his honor I will go on living and I will learn how to live the good life and I will make full use of what he tried to teach me by example in his life. I will learn how to play more, relax more, love more...So much I can learn from his life. Who says animals can't teach us?
 
So now, with that decision having been taken I have decided to make myself eat whether I am hungry or not because not eating will not do. If I have to eat many many little meals to get sufficient food in I will. Also, I will stop binging, that won't do either. Lately I am not hungry and starve myself and then I binge eat enough to exceed recommended food amounts for a day... None of that now, I will make myself eat properly until I actually FEEL like doing it again. Sleep has also been an issue for me but I will do my best to go to bed and get up at reasonable hours. I am not so good at that one though. I will make sure I bathe everyday and that I go out a bit everyday. I will journal. I will take the time to grive and rest though as I feel I need it. I am still going through al sorts of shocks and tremors at the moment and I know I need time to get through it. But now that I decied to go on living I will make sure I take good care of myself in the process. I know Oscar would want me to.
 
I will also try to let my cats be closer to me again. For some reason I still take good care of them (litter, food, brushing, etc..) but I know I am not with them the way I used to be. I can tell they see a difference. I don't think it is fair to them to be abandonned that way. As such today I am trying to be more there for them.
 
It is still hard though and I feel tired and sad and anxious and doubtful and guilty and angry all the time. Some times I could swear I heard him miaowing...but it is all in my head. I miss him and as I go to sleep I ache everywhere and I feel empty and scared. I put my hand where he used to lay next to me purring and I cannot breathe.I wake up and realize yet again that he is gone.
 
Anyway, thank you for making me feel so supported and welcome here. Thank you for the big hugs, right back at you. Right now I can use all the hugs I can get.
 
P.S: To end on a lighter note, I did have some moments of Peace today, like watching a ray of sunlight hitting the counter through the blinds) and I at least felt like drinking my cofffe (decaf of course) which is an improvment on yesterday. I managed to go out to go buy said coffee also. Finally, my anxiety symptoms are there but under control and I have not felt like panicking yet today. I figure it is a good way to end this post, by trying to recap what went well in my day.
15 years ago 0 313 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Hi Diva..
 
Wow.. so much has happened since I was last on.  I'm very sorry to hear of your loss and to hear how you've been suffering.  Being that pets are often thought of as children (and I have 2 of those :)) my heart breaks for you. 
 
It seems as though your days have been long and hard but I think those are all part of the grieving process.  Your day today had some up sides which is a good sign.  The communication with your husband being the most important.
 
Be patient with yourself Diva... this is one of those life experiences that falls into
unchartered territory.   You can only go with the ebb and the flow of the tides...
 
NEVER feel bad for posting.  That's why we're all here.  To support eachother.
 
Take care Diva...
 
Big Hugs.
 
DM
15 years ago 0 2101 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Today I manged to take care of some administrative business and also I spoke to my boss. She said I could finish up my contract in September and I should take time to grive and get better for now. She is great. Who wouldn't want a boss like her?
 
Today was rough in parts but a bit better in others. On top of everything else the wooden base of my futon which I had propped up while cleaning up fell on my head. The barrette that was in my hair actually broke! Now I have to be on concussion watch...Felt so daft when it happened. I guess it did distract me from the fact that I was cleaning Oscar's favorite place to sleep during his last days. I am going to have to find better ways to distract myself from the hard stuff though. But cleaning out that place was soooo hard. That was my one big brave act of the day. That room, that spot is where I spent my last moments at home with him. I miss him. I did manage to do some laundry. I also forced myself to eat which is an improvement. I still do not feel hungry though.
 
I had a relatively good evening. I managed to stay calm. I pretty much kept myself distracted. I played some video games with my husband part of the evening. I had a very good talk with him and he apologized for making me feel like I had to move on faster then I was ready to. He said if he ever makes me feel like that again to please let him know and he will be more careful. He says he was just surprised by the scope of my grief and kinda not sure what to do about it but he did not mean to pressure me.
 
Tonight I feel a dizzy and anxious and blue. My throat likes to contract on me and my mouth is dry al the time. I feel on edge and very sad. But at this moment I am ok, in one piece. One moment at a time....
 
Hello Breanne,
 
Thank you for your kind words and thank you for your thoughts on the shirt. I really felt kinda stupid about the whole thing. I also have the same reaction to putting away his food dish. As such it is still there. I know eventually I will have to deal with all that but I do not feel up to it at the present time. And I hope that one day remembering him will be a joyful thing, not something as sad as it is now because he was a happy cat. Thank you again for your support it means a lot to me.
 
Hello Cornish-Dee,
 
Thank you for the kind words, for your lovely reply. Your support through all this and all weekend had been so valuable to me. Thank you for your friendship. As i mentionned before at the begin of this post, I have had a very good chat with my husband earlier and it helped.
 
Thank you for reminding me that I have a right to take the time I need to grieve. sometimes I feel pressured to do well. It is good to have people to remind me I am allowed to take the time I need to really feel better. And yes, doing things around the house did take a lot and I am proud of myself for managing it, even if I only did a little. Some parts were harder to do then others... As for the shirt, I will leave it alone till I am ready to deal with it.
 
At this point in the day I still have more anxiety symptoms then usual but I am not panicking which is so much more bearable. I am proud of myself though as I handle the panic well. Much better then I would have in the past. Am also proud of myself as I realize that I am not even anticipating another one.  As for being brave, I don't know how brave I am but I am taking it one day at a time.
 
I hope your little one feels better soon and that your eldest's asthma settles down soon. Let me know when they feel better.
Thank you again friend for everything. .
 
Hello Koneko,
 
Thank you for your reply and for reassuring me that I am not a burden or overreacting. I know you are right. We all deal with grief in different ways. I will take the time I need to deal with this. Thanks for reminding me I am allowed to do so. I have already taken steps to have that time (i.e. Spoke to my boss, my husband, etc...). I am doing my best to take good care of myself and give myself the space to grieve. I felt very close to Oscar and I know I need to take the time to grieve for him.
 
Thank you again for your support and your kindness. It really means a lot to me.
 
Hello Miki,
 
No need to apologize for not being on much. Thank you for dropping in and replying to me now. Thank you for your kindness and support. Thank you for sharing your experience with me and I see how my situation can echo with you. You too felt like your house was a place that reminded you constantly of what you were sad and anxious about. I am very sorry that you had to live through that. Thank you for sharing with me. As for my husband we did have a good talk as stated earlier in this post. I know this is hard on him too. He loved Oscar too. We just grieve differently.
 
I agree with you that Oscar would want me to be happy again when I am ready for it and that he would be proud of me for doing well for myself. He was such a happy cat. He knew how to live the good life! And yes, even knowing this I will still take the time needed to deal with my grief. Does one really ever stop grieveing or missing a loved one though? I think it gets easier but I am not sure it goes away completely. Who knows, what do I know anyway. I guess only time will tell. But I am trying to take care of myself and take whatever baby steps I can to take care of myself.
 
As for the letter to Oscar, for now, I do not feel ready but it sounds like a lovely idea and I think I will do that. Thank you for the suggestion. It will most likely help me find closure.
 
Thank you for your support and love. You take care also and let me know how it goes with your husband.
15 years ago 0 477 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Hello Diva, 
I'm sorry I wasn't on much this weekend and I'm sorry to hear you had a rough one. I know the situation is totally different but similar parts of your situation reminds me of mine. Especially the husband parts! But just like Cornish Dee has said, I think they are helpless. There is a quote that says "Behind a strong man there is a strong woman" and I feel that is naturally true. If us women are a bit unstable I think the men don't really know how to deal with it (no offense to all you wonderful men out there.. us girls can just be really difficult to understand). Right now I feel out of place because I feel so disconnected to my husband, and everything in this room reminded me of him and it just hurt so badly. But I feel the best things to do is to be someone Oscar or in my situation, my husband can be proud of. I'm not saying to just stop grieving... we must grieve forever for the one's we loved and lost... but at your own small steps and pace, move forward. If Oscar is in heaven I'm sure he's hoping you would show a smile again. But please take your time though, it is still early! Maybe it will help you to write a letter to Oscar. And at least you tried to move forward by doing things... just keep them small steps. I hope you find your peace.
Much love.

15 years ago 0 76 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
I don't think you're a burden or that you're overreacting!  Everyone deals with grief in their own ways, I don't think anyone has a right to tell you when you should be over the loss of your kitty.  Take all the time you need and don't let others tell you when you should be back to normal again.  Like CD said, it hasn't been that long at all.
 
Glad that you're doing ok though but take the time you need, losing a pet can be very hard especially if you were close to that pet.

15 years ago 0 778 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Hello Diva , just popped in to see how you are today . After reading your post i can see  . Dont ever think of yourself as a burden because i definately do not see you as one !
Are you sure your husband thinks you are ? Because he might just feel very helpless , and maybe even a liitle afraid of you getting poorly .
You are still grieving and it hasnt been that long at all , so i wouldnt expect you to 'be over it' for goodness sake .
What i will say to you is bravo for trying to do things , that did take something you know it did . Can understand the shirt and quite agree with the lovely Breanne the wise lady .
I hope your panic symtons have settled down for you . You are being brave , well i think you are its you who has to believe it .
 
I have to get my little girl to bed now shes not so good and im all hurty plus my eldest daughters asthma is through the roof atm  , i will be checking on you tommorrow .
 
Take care friend CD x

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