When I was separated from the cat, I seemed to have separation anxiety.
After work, I wanted to rush home to pet cats, so I made an excuse to turn off a business trip in other places. I did not go to the company's team building on the grounds that I had children at home and needed care. I tried not to participate in evening dinners or activities. Sometimes when I got home late, I felt guilty and worried.
Worrying that my clingy cat will be depressed after being alone at home for a long time, I am worried that the old house I rented will have fire and gas leaks, I am worried that the cat will suddenly feel uncomfortable, I am worried that the cat will have any cat accidents, I am worried that the criminals will enter the house to hurt the kitten... When I am separated from the cat, I am always worried. There are actually many people like me who are unwilling to be separated from their pets and who feel uncomfortable once they are separated from their pets. As the name suggests, separation anxiety means that when you leave a specific person or pet, you will be overly anxious or afraid, and some people may have panic attacks. Maybe they haven't even separated yet. Just thinking about the scene where you will be separated later will make you feel bad.
In 2019, researchers from Washington State University surveyed some freshmen with pets at home and found that 75% of college freshmen had separation anxiety after separation from their pets, and one-quarter of college students had separation anxiety was moderate or even severe. The survey was conducted one month apart between the period before and after the fall of 2019 - before and after two weeks of admission. Students need to review their feelings and behaviors over the past few days and answer a series of questionnaires. During the survey, college students need to rate questions such as "I am happier after raising pets", "My pets have a very good relationship with me", "I think pets are my family members", "I am willing to do almost everything in order to take care of my pets", etc., according to "the degree to which I match me".
In addition, college students also need to provide their daily relationship with their pets (how long they have been kept, how long they spend with their pets, how often they spend with them, how often they sleep together, etc.). Questionnaire questions about separation anxiety include "feeling anxious, worried or nervous after leaving the pet", "leave a place early when separated from the pet", "avoid going to a new place when separated from the pet", etc.
The survey results show that no matter what pets the family has, college freshmen have a slight degree of separation anxiety after admission. As many as 78.6% of college students in the study believed that for them, the pet they love the most was "very important". However, what pets are specifically raised at home also affects the degree of separation anxiety. Compared with people who keep cats or other pets, freshmen who keep dogs at home have significantly higher levels of separation anxiety. Other studies have also shown that pet owners who keep dogs have higher levels of separation anxiety.
The college students interviewed used to spend an average of 7.25 hours with their pets every day, and more than half of them were talking to their pets or touching their pets. Nearly half of the students who keep cats sleep with their cats five days or more nights a week. Overall, college students who spent more time with their pets, more often sleep with their pets, and talked to them, had higher levels of separation anxiety.
Researchers speculate that separation anxiety may affect the college life of these freshmen, such as reducing their interest in developing interpersonal relationships.
However, the number of samples of this study is limited, and the researchers also emphasized that they do not recommend students to take their pets to school. After all, taking care of pets requires a lot of energy and responsibility. However, this study reminds students themselves, parents and the school that they can pay more attention to.
The owner who is sick and affected by the disaster is worried about pets at home. As the scale of pet raising increases, people's sense of loneliness increases significantly, and the time spent staying at home during the epidemic... The impact of separation anxiety on people may be stronger than before. At present, there is not enough research in this regard, but some past studies have found that the impact of separation anxiety on pet owners may be worth referring to. A 2000 study said that when a pet owner is hospitalized, both humans and dogs are seriously damaged. Researcher John F. Burnum gave several examples of patients:
Ms. E, who suffers from severe asthma, was discharged privately despite the hospital's advice because she missed the Chihuahua at home too much, and the Chihuahua at home almost turned the whole family upside down in order to find her owner.
At dying, Mr. H said little else except to talk about his dog. Without the owner, the dog at home refused to eat and died two weeks later.
When she was hospitalized, Ms. Ms. M received a flower basket with her beloved dog in it! With the visit of the puppy, Ms. M's depression and arrhythmia immediately improved dramatically.
In order to quickly see his crazy dachshund, Mr. C refused to continue hospitalization for a stroke.
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In this regard, researchers suggest that doctors should understand the patient's pet attachment level. When the condition is not optimistic and the patient repeatedly asks to be discharged from the hospital early, doctors should also consider the issue of separation anxiety. A few hospitals abroad allow pet dogs to visit patients who have been hospitalized for a long time, and some volunteer organizations help adopt elderly dogs during the elderly’s hospitalization and find ways to let both parties meet... Sometimes, "the best friend of human beings may be the best medicine." Bonan said. An earlier 1996 study also found that when encountering natural disasters, separation anxiety can affect the evacuation of pet-keeping families, thus threatening the health and safety of individuals. In the study, when a tornado swept past, 104 families living in trailer houses needed emergency evacuation, 17 of which had pets, and 14 of the pet-keeping families were affected by the evacuation and post-disaster recovery.. Dogs with separation anxiety often howl, mess up or destroy the room when they are alone, and will be particularly excited and excited when their owners come home... For pets with separation anxiety, owners can try to prepare snacks for their pets before going out every time, try to keep a low profile when going out and when going home, and make sure to enrich their homes according to the needs of pets, prepare some pheromones products to comfort cats with separation anxiety, and give rewards and caresses when their pets are calm and quiet...
Finally, if the situation does not improve, you need to consult a professional and provide some videos of cats and dogs when they are alone at home may be helpful for the diagnosis.
In the current uncertain environment, pet companionship makes people feel at ease | giphy
The global pet raising scale has been gradually growing. Data shows that worldwide, the number of pet cats has exceeded the number of pet dogs. The difficulty and impeded travel after the epidemic have also significantly increased the time many people spend with their pets. Research shows that companion animals have many benefits to human physical and mental health and can enhance the body's immune system. Playing and touching with pets can promote the body to secrete a variety of neurochemicals such as oxytocin, dopamine, endorphins, etc., making people feel comfortable and happy.
The two years of epidemic have caused many people to feel depressed and anxious, and psycho-neuroimmunology studies have confirmed that anxiety, stress and depression can damage our immune system. Changes in the immune system will make individuals more susceptible to infection, insomnia, intestinal disorders, and inflammation... At this time, if you encounter separation anxiety again, the body will release more stress hormone cortisol, which may further damage your health.
Therefore, during the epidemic, the company between people and pets is precious, and the anxiety of separation after the pet owner and his pets are separated also needs to be paid more attention to. The world is originally full of gatherings and separations, but I hope that the warmth of every gathering can soothe every sadness of parting.