Getting Over a Breakup Requires Lots of Support
A breakup leads to lots of hard, and often gut-wrenching emotions. If you are anything like me, you’ve searched every resource for what might ease your pain. As we’ve mentioned many times, exercise, eating and sleeping well, and maintaining a social schedule with friends and family are all super-important for emotional well-being. By all means, keep doing those.
There’s also another option that could help: a four-legged furry option.
You could get a breakup puppy!! (Or for our cat lovers, a breakup kitten!)
When it comes to awesomeness, nothing beats a pet. Animals provide unconditional love, affection, companionship, and security, to name just a few benefits.
While a breakup puppy might not be right for everyone (or in every situation), it did help me. My daughter begged me for one for years and was now old enough to be responsible for taking care of a dog. I never had pets growing up, so we did lots of research and took months to find the right kind of dog for our family. This also gave us time to really think about the commitment and responsibility that would be with us (or me) for 15+ years.
Oscar has been a wonderful addition! I’ve been distracted with walking, taking care of him, worrying about his diet. I’ve also made new ‘parent’ friends at the dog park. As my kids are now teens, it was also nice to have a ‘baby/toddler’ in the house again. We’ve also dealt with some downsides. I put away the rugs after one too many accidents. I have to rush home after work to make sure he gets his dinner in time. Traveling now requires a coordinated support system. Last but not least, breakup puppies (or any other kind of puppy) aren’t cheap. While a kitten would have made more sense for my lifestyle, it’s too late for that now. Oscar has already won our hearts! J
In some ways, this seems like a bigger commitment than getting married, so please do consider all of the pros and cons for you and your family before jumping in. In the end, getting a breakup puppy has been loving and rewarding – and this emotional support has gone a long way toward helping my family and me heal.
To get support and tips on navigating your post break up/divorce life, sign up for a workshop. You can also share your ideas/ask a question by liking and finding us on Facebook. And, make sure to sign up for our newsletter and/or contact us to stay in touch. We could feature you in our next article, podcast or video!