The effects of cognitive restructuring (CR), emotional processing (EP), and their combination were compared after a depressing life event. Individuals at risk for depressive symptoms secondary to the death, injury, or illness of a pet completed 3 days of expressive writing in one of the three conditions: CR, EP, or the combination. One month later, participants in the combined condition showed the greatest recovery from depressive symptoms, followed closely by those in the EP alone condition. For those whose pets had died, CR alone led to increases in depressive symptoms. Content analysis of CR and emotional arousal confirmed significant between group differences. Results suggest that EP might be important in the early stages of reaction to a negative event.