My Cat Alice

Question
Greetings.  I have a cat named Alice, she is a 4 year old short haired Tabby.  She is healthy and up to date on vaccines etc.  My concern with her is she has a behavioural problem.  I recently moved with her to a new apartment (small) and had to work 9 hour days 5 days a week.. and also was out of the house here and there on the weekends.  I was single, lived alone.  This definitely affected her so that whenever I was home she would meow at me loudly and incessantly.  (She used to live with 1 other cats and also 1 extra person in and out of the house.)  I would give her lots of attention when I was at home but the meowing just wouldn't stop... especially when I was sleeping!  She was constantly asking to go in and out, so I would let her out to escape the constant meowing then within minutes she would want back in .. then want back out again in minutes.  She was eating and drinking fine... also always had food available.. never overate and was a healthy weight.  2nd part of the story, Due to another move I had to bring her back to her old house and let my mom take care of her.  Honestly, when I brought her home she immediately returned to her normal state.. never did the incessant meowing around my mom.. was back to normal and happy.  Now.. when I go home to visit her she is honestly scared of me.. I know she loves me .. but I think she is afraid I am going to take her to a small little apartment again.  Anyways,  I do want her back.. In my small apartment she had access to food, water, toys, litterbox, and also a window to look out of.  Also I let her out in the backyard so that should of given her some excitement.  I can't take the 2nd cat with me because she is my mom's but Alice is my responsibility so the next place I move into (current place doesn't allow pets) I need to take Alice with me.  However,  I am afraid she will start acting neurotic again with me in our new home.  Any advice on how I can make her happy?  She lived with me in the small apt for almost about 9 months but she had not settled by the end of the 9 months.. Anyways,  I guess I am just looking for advice on how to keep her happy when she has to be by herself in a small apt.

Answer
It sounds like you didn't just move Alice into a small apartment, but you took her from everything that had been familiar to her for four years. My daughter did the same thing when she got her own place. Her cat was just as bad, only she showed her neurosis by hiding all day and night and being terrified of everything. She was also 4 yrs old at the time. Needless to say, the cat now lives with me and is happy, healthy and safe. My daughter moved up north to attend Humboldt State and she sees her cat when she visits.

Cats just don't always do well with moving Emily. Cats stress as it is in a new situation but most of them adapt. Some, however, never do. Nine months is too long to be that way. She would have never adapted to being there.
Moving is very hard on cats. You need to settle into one place before you attempt to bring her with you and you just may need to get another cat to keep her company. Cats always do better in pairs. They keep each other company and have a calming influence on each other- once they get to know each other.

So you need to think long and hard about uprooting her again. There is no simple answer to this. It is not a behavior problem as much as it is just the nature of a cat.