Help with setting goals

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I am stuck in a constant loop of feeling awful, my parents recently made a decision I did not expect and since then I feel lost and down with no motivation. I feel like their ultimate decision- which I totally respect- has made my ultimate goal in life feel further away if possible at all.
The decision was not to allow me to apply for an assistance dog. Our own dog is not suitable for the training because of her ocd and my parents have decided we are simply unable to commit to another dog at the moment. The problem is I felt like having the dog would give me more independence, would have made it easier for me to move out and to have a life of my own. I know it is not the case but I feel like my chances of becoming independent are much further away now, like there's no longer a chance of me being independent within the next few years. I don't feel interested in anything at the moment, I can't think of anything other than the fact that I am not getting my dog.
I know it is still a possibility for me to live alone, I know I can get what I want in life, but I just feel so alone and hopeless right now. I need a way to get past these feelings but I don't know how.

One of my ideas is to make a book, a project for myself, where I can plan out all the ways in which I can achieve my goal of independence. Has anyone else done this. How did you create a plan for yourself, also does anyone know how I can get out of this feeling of rubbishness? Thanks

Making a goals-book is an awesome idea. I rely on my notebook for remembering what I'm aiming for & how I plan to get there. When we're feeling awful, we can forget these things--so making a book of goals, motivations, etc, when we're thinking clearly & positively is like writing notes to our "crazy"/unhappy side, to remind her of reasons to feel better & give a damn.

I've been reading "Black Hole Focus" over the summer, it gives some useful advice/exercises on how to figure out what you want to do, how to set up a big, meaningful (to you) future goal & plan backwards all the steps you'll take toward it. For example, one exercise was to list all the kinds of things you like to do regularly (not "what's your perfect day" which is tough, but "what you want to do on a daily basis"--could be: live independently, study an interest, hang out with a pet, write in your notebook, help other people somehow, do photography, whatever), then you can use that to design future goals that incorporate a lot of these littler goals. Maybe you'd get something out of reading a book on goal-setting like that?

Have you thought about maybe having a Behavioral Specialist come to your house?

I've personally been seeing one, and she's helped me a lot. Behavioral Specialists can help you reach your goals a lot easier, not to mention helping you be a lot more independent.

Mine has helped me grow out of some of my repetitive routines, and has taught me basic living skills, such as cooking and cleaning.

Of course, it's also best to just do whatever works best for you.