6 Tips To Help Cope The Loss Of Your Dear Pet

When your beloved pet dies, it is natural to express grief, feel sorrow, and expect family and friends to provide comfort and understanding. People consider pets members of their family. Many pet lovers also celebrate their pets’ birthdays and carry pictures of them in their wallets. So, when your dearly loved pet dies, it is not abnormal to feel besieged by the intensity of your sorrow.

Here are 6 tips on coping with your pet loss:

1. Intense grief over the pet loss is natural and normal. Do not let anyone tell you that it is crazy, silly, or overly sentimental to grieve. Further, don’t let others to dictate your feelings. Remember, you are not alone! Thousands of pet parents have gone through the same feelings.

2. Different pet parents experience anguish in different ways. Besides your sorrow, you may experience the following emotions:

• Guilt- It may occur if you believe yourself responsible for your pet’s death. It is useless and often incorrect to encumber yourself with the culpability for the illness or accident that claimed your pet’s life.

• Denial– It makes you difficult to accept that your beloved pet is really gone. It is really hard to imagine that your furry friend will not greet you when you come home, or that it does not need its evening meal. Some pet owners carry this feeling to extremes, and fear their beloved pet is still alive and suffering somewhere.

• Anger- It may be directed at the reason that killed your pet, like the veterinarian who “failed” to save its life, the driver of the speeding car, etc. When carried to extremes, the anger distracts you from other important task of resolving your grief.

• Depression- This natural consequence of grief can leave you powerless to cope with your feelings. The extreme depression robs you of energy and motivation, causing you to dwell upon your sadness.

3. The most important step to overcome your grief is to be honest about your feelings. You should not deny your pain, or your feelings of guilt and anger. Only by coming to terms with your feelings can you begin to work through them.

4. You should understand that you have a right to feel grief. Your loved one has died, and you feel bereaved and alone. You have a right to feel guilt and anger, as well. First, acknowledge your feelings, and then ask yourself whether your current circumstances actually justify them or not.

5. Locking away your grief does not make it go away. You should express your grief, and you can do this by crying, pounding the flooring. You should do what helps you the most. But, do not try to avoid your grief by not thinking about your furry friend; instead, recall about the good times with your pet. This will help you comprehend what the loss of your furry friend actually means to you.

6. Some people find it helpful to express their memories and feelings in stories, poems, or letters to the pet. Other strategies including organizing a memorial such as a photo collage; rearranging your programme to fill in the times you would have spent with your beloved pet; and discussing to others about your pet’s loss.