I used to do this a lot, too. Back in the early 2000's my go-to comic was Jack which didn't really help my mindset, but I was properly addicted to it and felt all the suffering those poor characters went through. Regular non-furry work never hit me that hard and in quite the same way.

I funneled that feeling into my own artwork, and somehow I could relocate my pain into the art instead. It worked in its own way, and after doing that for a few years I was able to get all of my pain out of me and into artwork. Its still some of my best work but it hurts to look at now.

Not saying this will work for everyone, but that's been my way of dealing with it. Something about furry art makes it impact harder and I'm not sure what... maybe it is easier to see ourselves in these character's positions? I'm still not sure.