the MIND less FULL

Love Cats

Friday 11th September 2020

A little guest blog this week from the fabulous psychology teaching-feline loving-cheese scone baking-goth extraordinaire-Sarah ❤️

“The ideal of calm exists in a sitting cat.” – Jules Renard

I was sitting outside in my back yard in the fresh air and sunshine yesterday thinking about what my new year’s resolution could be. I know it sounds strange to be pondering this in early September , but as I am a teacher my natural new year falls at the start of the glorious –ber months rather than January. My eyes fell on my two cats, Lilly and Archie, who were out enjoying the backyard with me. Lilly was intent on trying to catch a small buzzing flying creature that was just out of her reach while Archie was lying flat on his back on a warm patio slab basking in the sun. My resolution came to me – I’m going to try and live more like my cats.

I know that this sounds even stranger than coming up with new year’s resolutions in late summer, but think about it. We can learn a lot from cats.
Firstly, my cats – indeed, all cats – devote pretty much their whole lives to ensuring their own well-being. They sleep, eat, play and groom. If they have a particularly soft owner like me they can even get hand fed cooked chicken.

Now, I am not for one moment saying that we should all just lounge around and indulge our every whim, but we do need to make sure that we take care of ourselves, both physically and psychologically. We all have our own needs that we must take care of so we can flourish in our lives.

Secondly, cats are masters of being present in the moment. I love watching my cats as they sit in silence and take in the world around them, fully aware of the here and now, as evidenced by a sweet little tail thump when you say their name. They are experts at using their senses to notice their world around them, from their eyes to their ears to their noses to their whiskers. Even when they sit and close their eyes they are still present, enjoying the moment. We would do well to make the time to press pause and take this mental break from our past and future worries and concerns.

This brings me on to my next point – cats don’t multitask. I am hugely guilty of playing with my cats with a wand toy in one hand while also scrolling on my phone with the other. But then I look at my cats and they are giving their complete and undivided attention to the mouse on a string. There is a lot of new research showing that multitasking and the constant bombardment of information it subjects us to can be detrimental to our health and well-being, with frequent multitaskers exhibiting memory problems, increased stress, decreased productivity and a higher likelihood of reporting symptoms of depression and social anxiety.

As any cat owner will also know, cats will also let you know when they want or need something, whether that is feeding, to go outside or to cuddle on you. As humans, we often try to battle on alone due to shame or vanity or pride. But cats rightly know that asking for help is not a weakness – they ask and we help. Like our cats, we should not be hesitant in asking those in our lives for help and support when we need it.

And finally, a cat lets you know when they are happy. They purr, head bunt, weave in and out of your legs, run around, meow and bring you presents. You know they are feeling happiness and joy at that moment. Are we as good at feeling and expressing our happiness?

So as I come to the end of my year and reflect on the strangest and uncertain year I have ever had in my life, one thing I can be clear on of is that time spent with cats is never wasted and that next year I am going to strive to ‘be more cat’.