Sudden Spurts Of Grief, Dealing with grief in public Options

[Chandanimane]

Hi,

I have a question to those of you who may have gone through the same thing. I just had to euthanize Zena, my dog of 11 years, because she had liver cancer and her liver was failing. It was a very traumatic experience for me, well, for the both of us, because the vet couldn’t come out here until after a day of her being in pain. I feel guilty over that, but also relieved that she is finally free from the pain. Anyway, I’m at work as I write this. Something just happened where there was a slight misunderstanding or confusion or…I don’t know what to call it. But you know when you say something and someone just doesn’t get you? It wasn’t anything major, but it’s something that can happen from time to time between people. Suddenly an overwhelming grief overtook me because the thought entered my head that Zena never misunderstood me or didn’t accept me for who I was, and then I could barely stop myself from crying. I had to leave my desk and run to the restroom because I thought I would lose control. Has that ever happened to anyone here, where the grief will suddenly and unexpectedly rise up in the middle of the day when you were around people? What did you do about it? I know this is normal. I’m not worried that I’m peculiar over this, it just was unexpected and took me by surprise. I have to work an event late into Thursday evening, and I’m concerned that I’ll have difficulty with being around people for about 12 hours.

Hugs to all,

Laura

[Lindsey]

Laura,

I am so sorry for your loss. My boss thankfully is an animal lover and was incredibly supportive when I lost Penny. I ended up going back to the work the day after we had to put her to sleep but only because I couldn't stand to be at the house alone. I travel a lot in my job and I had to pull over several times the first few weeks because the sobbing would start. I'm lucky that I can hide behind my office door when it comes. It's such a blessing to find one person who understands and there are so many that don't. I just wanted you to know you aren't alone. It's been 8 weeks to the day that I lost Penny and although it's gotten easier my heart still feels like it is shattering some days.

Zena was a gorgeous girl and you can tell from that photo and her eyes that she was very loved and loved you very much in return.