The Spoon Theory

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It may be more practical to reduce the number of spoons you need for various activities.

For instance, instead of wasting three spoons on finding your keys, switch to keyless locks!
Bothered by a noisy clock, toss it and get one that doesn't generate any sound.
Wear protective gear like ear defenders.
Find a job that lets you work in a quiet office rather than a noisy cubicle.
Find activities you can do at work to recover from stressful situations.

That's true, too.

Something normal people can relate to is card counting and betting on Black Jack--normally people can't memorize decks of cards as they are played--so they use counting systems instead. A skilled card counter will stick to the system, even though they might "know" that can do better. The point is, statistically over the long haul, the system works.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Card_counting

Having found The Spoon Theory on tumblr, it automatically clicked for me. At the time, I thought I felt overwhelmed by most things due to Hishimoto's Thyroidious ( an autoimmune disease that is linked to an under active thyroid) & learning disabilities. Now I'm thinking it has to do with being an aspie, but back to the subject at hand...

For me, I can understand having a limited number of things to get stuff done. My girlfriend and I run rp groups on tumblr, along with both working, and I am in college at the moment. More often then not, I find myself unable to do everything on my plate, feeling like I've used up all my spoons by going to work and focusing on my work, to the point I'm laying in bed, watching Netflix and playing solitare as that's all I can do.

I think using the spoon theory to explain why some Aspies and Autistic people or other people with chronic diseases and disabilities have issues functioning like NTs some days

A person alive with chronic illness or disability only has a assured number of spoons in their possession each day, and every small action a person takes can result in a lost spoon. Once a person loses a spoon, it is very tough to get that back until after a full night’s sleep. I read this in an article.

That's my view as well. For those with a disability, things "normal" people take for granted involve more "work" for the disabled, and it can be very exhausting just doing typical daily routines.

I feel this way about my anxiety. It's about how much I can handle from the stress and how much I can tolerate before I get anxious. Sometimes one thing can take away all my spoons and I am in a grumpy mood and hard to be with so that is when I try and stay away from everyone because interrupting me makes me grouchy. I need to relax and be alone to try and get back all my spoons. Having kids will use more of my spoons.

How do you guys become more aware of how many spoons you have? I keep finding myself crashing and burning, so to speak...

Today, I was literally out of spoons at 10 AM. I had to get help from someone to get Gatorade to even stand up, much less make it home. It was sort of a turning point for me. I need to be a little more aware.

Does anyone else have trouble knowing their limits? How do you become more aware?

I don't think people live by the spoon theory. It's just an analogy to explain to well people how we chronically ill people feel.

I have chronic fatigue syndrome so I don't have as much energy as a well friend. If they want to do x,y and z today. I can't do all that. Spoons are a visual way of explaining I only have enough energy for x and y. I can't do z because I will run out of spoons.

No kraftiekortie you can't build up to more spoons. That's like saying hopefully a diabetic can will themselves to produce more insulin today, then a bit more tomorrow and then a bit more the day after that.

I'm stubbornly trying to build up my spoon allotment...

Why can't I? I mean, theoretically, if I took better care of myself, perhaps I could get a smidgen more here and there...

And the fitter I get, the better things will be. I have a yearlong PT protocol thr could significantly decrease pain and injury I'm about to embark on (once I graduate from the I can walk again PT).


I mean, it would be a far cry from adding a spoon a day...

But, I'm stubbornly going to believe my actions do affect it.

That's a good attitude to have screen_name. And you are right. If I stay up playing video games I'll obviously be wiped out tomorrow. Or if I eat chips and pizza I won't feel as good as if I eat a more healthy meals. So we do have a measure of control.

I was just trying to explain to kraftiekortie who isn't ill as far as I know, how I feel physically. Amd it's worse when I have insomnia. I want to sleep, I need to sleep, but I can't sleep and I know I'm gonna be burned out tomorrow through no fault of my own. I can't control that allotment of spoons.

This is possible for some people, but not for others. It depends on the nature of the disability or illness, and also on the individual and their circumstances.

I personally can't do anything to increase the maximum number of spoons it's possible for me to have. I did a lot of damage to myself physically and mentally, and completely derailed my life, as a result of clinging to the belief that I could. So my goal is to make peace with the fact that I have a limited number of spoons, and to use the spoons I do have as effectively as I can.



I have trouble with it, too...I think the only way you can become more aware is by looking for patterns over time -- looking back through your memories, and keeping a mental or written/drawn log going forward.....looking for stuff like:

When you crash, what activity were you doing right before? Does this happen every time you do that activity or just sometimes? If only sometimes, what other stuff did you do on crash-days? What about earlier that week? What else was happening on the days/during the weeks you crashed -- were you sick, tired, stressed (good or bad stress)?

What about the days you don't crash -- what are those days like? What activities do you do those days? What about earlier in the week? What else was happening in your life?

I don't get the spoon theory.
How do empty spoons symbolise energy?
And why do you magically get the spoons restored at the start of each day?

Did you read the original article? It's not on the first post here, but it's somewhere on the first page. I can find the link for you if you need.

I've never heard of that theory, but I think it's just a fancy way of saying: "Prioritize, and get the things you need done before you run out of energy!"

I don't know if any of you have depression/low energy, but this TedTalk helped me. The speaker describes her way of living through low-energy times - like assigning all activities numbers or stars to determine which will be the most draining, and which are more important. A number system seems less restrictive and more practical than The Spoon Theory.

I've not heard of it before so I don't use it specifically, but it's a great way to describe how our family deals with sensory issues. When we are planning say, a Saturday, my spouse and I mentally go through the day ahead and try to calculate how much sensory input our kids and we can take and adjust our plans accordingly. We do something similar any time we are about to encounter a sensory defensive environment, too, so we can keep a running tab on how much is left.

I do something much closer to the actual spoon theory with depression; it's something like units on a scale or some other abstract representation of what I think I can do that day. Getting up might be one unit & everything else is some multiple of it. Breakfast is a two. Showering and getting dressed is a ten. And so on. I've been really lucky and have not had to use it this year so far.

[update: And then I read Bicarbonate's post; that is exactly what I mean. ]

Last edited by Edenthiel on 09 Jul 2016, 10:44 pm, edited 1 time in total.