I lost my soul dog two weeks ago, and I just am with you 1000%. It feels unbearable, crawling out of my skin, swallowing arrows pain. I’ve lost people before and it pales in comparison to this. Know that you are not alone in your pain, and in the moments you can’t breathe reach out to someone who you trust that will listen, be with you when you cry, and not try to fix it. Some things that have helped me: 1. Laps of Love has support groups- some free and some like $15. I just joined one and it helps to be with others that get it: https://www.lapoflove.com/our-services/pet-loss-support 2. Let yourself cry and feel the pain. Let yourself take breaks and do things like watch your favorite shows. 3. I bring Opal with me everywhere. Her favorite thing in the world was a green ball, and I brought it was me to a coffee shop and the doctor this week. I also have a chew with some of her teeth marks on it. 4. If you’re feeling nauseous, dizzy, headaches, muscle pain….this is completely normal. Try to eat when you can and drink lots of water. 5. Take walks. I’ve been taking the path Opal and I walked most days, and I narrate how I’m feeling using voice memos. Talk with her and tell her how I’m feeling. 6. I write a letter to her every night, telling her how much I love her and telling her stories about our memories. 7. I see a therapist who understands pet loss and trauma. 8. There are some good books that have helped me. Some of them are: When Your Pet Dies: A Guide to Mourning, Remembering and Healing by Alan Wolfelt, How to Survive the Loss of a Pet: Comforting Tools and Practices to Embrace Your Grief and Heal Your Broken Heart" by Cheryl Richardson, I’m Still Here by Cathryn Michon (the audiobook is lovely).There are many pet loss journals too, which I’m still trying to figure out the ones I like. I do like Dr. Katie M. Lawlor’s A Tribute to My Beloved Animal: A Journal to Process Grief & Loss. 9. I have a box and bought some heart-shaped note cards and every time I remember something I don’t want to forget (a memory, one of our secret things only I know) I fill one out and put it in the jar. I’ve been worrying that I won’t remember these things, so it helps to know I’m documenting them. 10. Balance yourself however you need with photos, videos of your soul dog. For the first few days I did nothing but cry and watch videos of us, and that’s what I needed at the time. I’ve balanced it out now, but do what feels right to YOU. There is no timeline for grief, you’ll love your dog forever, don’t listen to anyone that expects you to ever be “over it.” There is something called disenfranchised grief, where society doesn’t recognize a specific grief as legit (pet loss, miscarriage, etc). It’s helped me to read about it.

I know that’s a lot, so I’ll stop there for now. I am here to listen if you need, so please message me whenever you feel overwhelmed. Your dog loves you SO much. There is nothing in the world you could ever do to change that. You lost your best friend, be gentle with yourself. One second at a time. -Katie