spoon theory: a low-spoons-friendly summary
it’s sort of ironic that the original article on spoon theory costs so many spoons to read, so i decided to write a brief summary for people who need it
- spoon theory is an analogy
- in it, spoons = energy
- you get [x] number of spoons a day ([x] amount of energy), & doing things costs [x] number of spoons ([x] amount of energy)
- for example, you get 10 spoons today; getting up costs 1, making food costs 2, making a phone call costs 2, watching a tv episode costs 2, etc
- the purpose of spoon theory is to explain to abled/healthy people what being disabled/chronically ill is like, in a way they might find easier to understand
- it highlights how little energy disabled/chronically ill people have when compared to abled healthy people, how much more energy things can cost, & how careful they have to be in prioritising what they spend that energy on
- disabled/chronically ill people also use it as a way of talking about their energy levels
- if you say “i’m low on spoons”, you’re not just saying you’re low on energy; you’re saying you’re low on energy because you’re disabled/chronically ill
- for this reason, abled healthy people don’t get to say “i’m low on spoons”
also worth noting:
- creator of spoon theory has said it is okay to apply it to mental illness as well.
- your benchmark on whether you’re “sick enough” to use spoons is your own, so if you feel like it applies, it can apply.
I’m going to use the tag “#low on spoons” whenever I’m bitching about being in a depressive mood or actually drained. FYI.