The price of a medication goes up, your rent or property taxes increase, maybe you suffer an injury or develop some kind of chronic condition.
New burdens are not fun, and they’re even worse when they’re all downside: new costs without new benefits.
When the price on a product or service we rely upon goes up without offering fresh upgrades, that stings even if the higher price is justified (to keep the product or service operating, to pay for new tariffs, to account for inflation, etc).
When we have to take pills just to maintain our health status quo, or have to heavily ice (or heat) our legs or backs or whatever else, just to recover from activities that were previously easy—that stings, too.
We’re forced to do more, perform more upkeep, pay a higher price for what we had yesterday at a lower cost. Which feels unfair.
It’s like we’re being told to run faster just to stay put and not fall behind. It feels strangely punitive, but it’s also often the nature of things.
Something that helps me cope with these sorts of (unfair, stupid, not cool) costs is introducing my own, new benefits into these situations.
I can’t eat dairy anymore, so I decided I would invest in learning to make a lot of really delicious, dairy-free foods, and would seek out previously unfamiliar, dairy-free snacks to bring to events I attend.
Similarly, if I want my body to function properly (and without persistent pain), I have to regularly stretch and strengthen and rest my joints and muscles and viscera in the proper order and proportions. This is not a small task, but I’ve (slowly, shamblingly) developed a routine that helps me accomplish these (un-asked-for) tasks, and each workout, ritual, and rest period has been optimized so that it feels like something I get to do, rather than something I have to do.
I can’t do dairy anymore, but look at all these cool new vegan recipes and snacks I wouldn’t have discovered had that change not been forced on me!
I get random, age-related aches and pains, but look at how fit and healthy I get to feel most of the time, and all these new, healthful activities I get to enjoy!
Results will vary, and obviously some downsides will be more difficult to temper than others.
In some cases you may have to counter a metaphorical punch to the gut with a metaphorical slice of cake or trip to the park; asymmetric rebalances rather than attempts at like-for-like equilibria.
But for me at least, this reframing helps redirect my brain so that it focuses on the beneficial aspects of these new realities (latent or invented), rather than fixating on the stupid, unfair, not cool components that would otherwise ruin my day.
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