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Loneliness: Why am I depressed?
Aging Well | Last Active: Feb 27, 2022 | Replies (112)Comment receiving replies
Hi. I am 70 years old also. We lost our precious emotional support dog May 30, 2021. We had a house fire when we were at a movie theater. Our cell phones were off during the movie when the fire department was trying to reach us. My neighbor called me on our drive home to tell me Belah was 'gone.' I thought she meant Belah had run away, but she died in the fire. We lost everything, but losing Belah was by far the greater loss. She was only 5 years old and loved by everyone who met her. She was my bff. I trained her myself. Our neighbors cried with us over our and their loss. We put a memorial on the property and laid her to rest on the property. My husband said burying her was the hardest thing he has ever had to do. He is 70 yrs old also. I thought I was dying from a broken heart. My heart shutdown--to keep from breaking, I think--but the emotions were raw and we were so vulnerable. I cried day after day, I couldn't sleep at night. We were homeless which actually was a blessing because we had no home without her anyway. She was our 'child' and our life. She kept us active and kept us exploring life. I could not take the grief and pain so after 2 weeks of going from motel to motel, I called the breeder that we had gotten Belah from and told her what happened. She said she had some 6 week-old puppies that would be ready for a new home. We bought one and named her Emma. Emma is not Belah and she 'weathered' the homelessness and riding in the car a great deal extremely well. Although I still grieve for Belah, Emma has done so much for me and my husband, as if she knew we were in grief. It took me awhile to not feel guilty about caring for another dog and since she is not Belah it took time but I am so much better emotionally and dealing better with life and my depression having Emma in our life. We have no regrets about getting Emma.
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I'm so very sorry for your loss. .at least I had finally made it home from the hospital. Maybe Harley waited for me? Not a lot of people understand losing a pet, how hard it is. I just now received Harley's remains from the vet. They included a little clump of hair that I will treasure til the day I die. Also a little blue plaque with his footprint that I don't really recognize.
When I found Harley I was just driving down the street with my daughter. I saw the Pet Shop and had to turn in. I had a dog at home that was already dying, my Maggie May. Sweetest Golden Retriever ever and my little helper. She was the first one to run outside and help bring in the groceries, the one to bring in the paper even if it wasn't ours. And.she had to carry the mail. Those were her jobs. She woke us up in the mornings by jumping on our bed and trying to get under the covers with us. That was exciting, my squealing and laughter and Maggie's snuffling. I was losing her and I knew it but I wasn't in the market for new dog. No dog could ever replace Maggie. But we walked in to the shop and in the back was a small fenced area. I got butterflies in my stomach and I knew they had something over there. I love dogs. So I went over, and the first little guy to come over was Harley. I looked down, he looked up and showed me his beautiful, chocolate brown eyes, and I was reeled in like a trout. I picked him up, he didn't like to be picked up ever. He turned into Superman always. Anyway, he was so soft and beautiful. I took him right home. It was serendipitous that I had the money bc that little one was expensive. Never for one day have I ever regretted getting my boy and bringing him home with me. From that day he was my baby and bff. We did everything together. Now I'm supposed to wait however many years until we can move to someplace with a yard. Well, I've lived with my kids for 8 years and we haven't moved yet. Honestly, at our age we dont know.how much time we have left. I need to fill my arms back up. What would you do Linda?