Are Cat Health Issues Making You Anxious?

• Liz Hardy
• 2 Comments

When you’re dealing with serious cat health issues, anxiety soon becomes your new best friend.

It’s with you all the time.

Before you know it, you’re thinking about cat diseases 24/7 …
Even if your cat is doing pretty well!

When my little cub Moofy was diagnosed with cat cancer, I quickly turned into a Helicopter Cat Mama.

I’d hover around her, worrying about every tiny little thing:

• Where’s Moofy?
• Why hasn’t she come home yet?
• She’s not eating much today. Is she looking skinnier?
• Is her stripy lump any bigger?
• Is she sleeping more than usual?

Eventually, I had to say ENOUGH!

This level of hand-wringing was crazy – even by my standards.

When your little furry one has cat health issues, of course you’ll be feeling some anxiety.
There’s no way around it.

As far as I can see, that’s pretty normal when you’re anywhere near the topic of cat diseases.

But you need to make sure your anxiety levels don’t skyrocket out of control.
And the last thing you need is some kind of full-blown emotional breakdown.
 
Because if you don’t keep it together, who will take care of your precious cat?
 
That was the one thought that grounded me when I was tempted to run around shrieking in panic.

When dealing with cat diseases, it’s absolutely crucial to stay as calm as possible.
Because it’s up to you to set up care and treatment for your sick cat.

Here are three practical ways to stop anxiety before it takes over your world.

How to Worry Less About Cat Health Issues

1. Remember that worrying sucks every ounce of joy out of the present
 

When it comes to cat diseases, often no-one really knows what the future holds.

But there’s one thing we do know.

If you spend every minute right now feeling overwhelming worry, you won’t have time to notice what is going right.

When you focus on all the “what-ifs” and potential pain and trauma ahead, it becomes impossible to enjoy your cat’s company right now.

So try to deliberately move your focus away from the future, and back onto the present.

Do this several times a day if you need to.

This can work as a kind of mental “re-set”.

It can help to make sure anxiety doesn’t become your default state.
 

2. Do everything in your power to help your cat
 
Taking action blows cat health anxiety out of the water.
It stops you feeling helpless.
You’re doing something concrete to address these urgent cat health issues.

Are you gathering quality medical advice and exploring a range of treatment options?
If so, great!

When you have quality information, you can make a plan to tackle most cat diseases.
That’s a lot better than sitting back and just hoping for the best.

By taking action on a massive scale to help your sick cat feel better, you know you’re doing everything you can.

So take a breath.
Smile.

Go see if your pussycat needs a snuggle.
 

3. Notice the positive
 
Part of the Anxiety Trap with cat diseases is that you’re always on the lookout for signs of impending disaster.

And of course, you should be on the alert for any changes in your cat’s behaviour or appearance which might merit another trip to the vet.

But in the meantime, how about looking for some positive signs?

Is your cat eating?
Is she clambering happily up the curtains?
Is she seeking you out for a chat?

All of these are signs that your precious cat is doing well.
She’s working on fighting off her illness, and staying with you as long as possible.

That’s a wonderful thing.

Celebrate the positive, instead of looking for reasons to worry.
 

Feeling Anxious Doesn’t Fix Cat Health Issues

 
In fact, worrying about your sick cat doesn’t help her at all.

What does help is you staying calm, and making good decisions that will help her.

So take another deep breath, and look at this objectively.

Chances are:

• If your cat sleeps a lot, so do perfectly healthy cats.
• If your cat’s not hungry right now, she may simply be adjusting to a new medicine.
• If you don’t know where your cat is every minute of the day, she may just be off having adventures in the sunshine.

Cat health issues are bound to stress you out when you’re a devoted Cat Mama (or Papa).

But you don’t have to live permanently in a heightened state of panic.

The best way to cope with cat diseases is by being strong and calm – not anxious.