Artist Illustrates How Adopting a Cat Helped Him Deal with Depression in Just 2 Months
Yash Pandit, an artist based in Mumbai, turned a rough stretch of depression into a surprisingly tender cat story. What started as a personal struggle slowly became a series of illustrations about daily life with his cat, Bagheera, and the small routines that helped him keep going.
The comic is funny and sweet on the surface, but it also shows how much work went into getting better.
Still, Bagheera clearly changed the rhythm of his days, and that is what makes these illustrations stick.
1. What a lovely
2. Kitty Exercises
3. Trust is primordial
4. They all do
5. You eventually start to master kitty language
6. Spiritual Nutrition
7. They will smell everything
8. Punctuality is important
9. It's like magic
10. They're very good listeners when they feel like it
11. That's so beautiful
Like most cats, Yash confirmed that Bagheera is definitely a weirdo:
“He will convince you that he’s sweet and calm, and then pounce on you when you look away. He’s the friendliest cat I’ve ever seen and has no problem loving and greeting anyone new. He’s smart enough to pretend that he’s fallen asleep but also thinks his shadow is another cat and starts pouncing on it. He loves to watch Fresh Prince of Bel-Air with me and won’t fall asleep until I put on Frank Ocean songs, in which case he will hug my phone and go to sleep. I love him with all my heart.” Pandit was diagnosed with Type 1 rapid cycling bipolar disorder, along with depression and anxiety. “The latter were only by-products of my primary disorder,” he explained. “I have a therapist and a psychiatrist, and I follow a strict regime of therapy and medications that I adhere to religiously to keep my disorder under control.”
Also, this mirrors the friend who pet-sat and left a new cat owner discovering underfeeding.
That is where the comic shifts from cute to personal.
“It is absolutely important to seek proper help for mental health disorders. A lot of people mistook this comic as my cat being the sole reason I’m out of my depression, which is not true. I had to work hard, get therapy, and take my medication on time. My cat helped me get out of bed, establish a workout routine, eat healthily when I feed him, and wake up on time, etc. But I attribute my improvement largely to the strict regime of medication and therapy.”
A lot of people also related to these illustrations:
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A lot of people also related to these illustrations:
Have cats helped you at any point in your life?
Bagheera clearly left a mark.
Wondering if dogs can “doctor” depression too? See what people debated in this online community thread.
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