So grateful that I found this community which led me to finding God, because without that I dont know how I would have gotten through today.
First I found out my cat passed away, which already hurt...but then minutes after that, my grandfather ive taken care of for 12 years took his last breath and I lost him too. The only thing that kept me from shattering was knowing hes been suffering for a long time and now that suffering is over. I really wanted to numb the pain with a bottle - but i went to an AA meeting instead.
It still doesnt feel real. 😔
Edit - just want to add since several people have already said get another cat - we have other cats, 3 actually, and 1 is with me now (the brother of the one that passed actually) so getting another one isn't really what I need. But thank you for the suggestion.
As weird as it sounds, sometimes I think pets will carry an illness load for a human the pet loves. I saw that with a cat in my Dad's household. He took care of that cat which came with his wife when they married. He worked 3 12-hour nights per week so he was nocturnal like the cat so it just worked that way. When he got sick, she suddenly got sick and it was like she was trying to share the burden with him. He always acted like he didn't care about that cat, but when she died, he buried her and told me on the phone that he couldn't keep from crying. (His exact words were, "I buried Simey today. That fucking cat. And I couldn't keep from crying. That fucking cat.") He was only a few months behind her. I expect she was waiting for him when he got Home.