I had already filled the tub with soft towels and turned a little bathroom light on for a gentle glow in the room.
My cat is in seclusion and on antidepressants.
I guess if someone was going to break down in the family, I am grateful it was her instead of me....although the last two weeks in Chicago were so stressful....I'm surprised I didn't end up in a rubber room or rubber bathtub.
My cat has never liked change and my constant arrivals and departures plus the addition of my mom's cat to our household.....tipped her fragile mental status.
She lost half her body weight....lots of fur.....and when I returned home on Monday she stopped eating and drinking.
The vet shook his head over her skeletal appearance and sighed a lot. "Her lab work is normal," he patted my hand and looked sad, " I'm afraid it's psychological." And just like a human patient, we discussed options for care. The end result: seclusion, rest and drugs. My master bath would become a mini psych ward.
For a moment or two....I wanted to join her in therapy.
But that's not in the cards right now.
And so she is sequestered and comfortable and drugged into a sleepy happiness.
Her appetite improved 1000% in just one day. She purred...just a little bit...but it's a sound I haven't heard in months.
Taking care of old cat.....made me rethink my plans for the week too....sure I could plough through a mile long to-do list ....but I'm not.
My whole psyche is drained and I've got to stop to refill.
I pared down my to-do list.
I made up a new list with things like: attending the Art Speigelman lecture at a local university....(a Pulitzer prize winning comic artist) and I've got tickets to see Robin Williams and David Sedaris in two separate concerts this weekend.
I turned my phone off for 24 hours on Wednesday and also had a 24 hour ban on checking email.
Today I went decadent...and had a facial and a massage. The masseuse must have thought I dozed off and didn't realize the session was over......because he returned to the room and reminded me I could leave...something my bones and muscles were boycotting.
In a few minutes I'm going to pour myself a nice glass of red wine...prop my feet up and watch "The Daily Show".....and then I'm going to bed....before midnight...lol...a novel thing for a night owl.
Sometimes you've got to take care of yourself......or else you'll end up like a cat in the middle of the bathtub.
Geez....too bad I didn't encourage Old Cat to watch Dr. Phil....
