Is it OK to be unhappy that you can't do things that you like at the moment?

Almost 40 years ago, a counsellor told me, "There's no hierarchy of problems."  Although that might be objectively false, problems and disappointments affect us subjectively.  The same issue might be faced by one person with equanimity but with anxiety or depression by another.  One person's triviality may be of great importance to another.  There are various reasons for this, including the ways our brains are wired.  Autistic people are more likely to be upset by the cancellation of anything - just because it's a change of plan - quite apart from the additional sense of loss from what has been cancelled.

Although feeling upset is unlikely to be a helpful reaction to anything, I think we're all entitled to feel as upset as we like, regardless of the cause (though we need to try to avoid hurting others in how we express it).  We certainly shouldn't feel guilty about being upset, just because other people appear to be suffering more.

Almost 40 years ago, a counsellor told me, "There's no hierarchy of problems."  Although that might be objectively false, problems and disappointments affect us subjectively.  The same issue might be faced by one person with equanimity but with anxiety or depression by another.  One person's triviality may be of great importance to another.  There are various reasons for this, including the ways our brains are wired.  Autistic people are more likely to be upset by the cancellation of anything - just because it's a change of plan - quite apart from the additional sense of loss from what has been cancelled.

Although feeling upset is unlikely to be a helpful reaction to anything, I think we're all entitled to feel as upset as we like, regardless of the cause (though we need to try to avoid hurting others in how we express it).  We certainly shouldn't feel guilty about being upset, just because other people appear to be suffering more.