Living with Chronic Illness: The Comfort of Spoon Theory

It's taken some practice but if I'm considering doing something outside of my normal routine that I've established, I slow down and consider how many spoons it would take to do that thing and if I have spoons to spare. Having my partner in the loop helps hold me accountable too. She likes reminding me to conserve my spoons and to take rests between activities. Once I had a feel for how many spoons my usual activities cost me, it became easier to think about it automatically. I did have to keep a log in the beginning until I had it down to a science. It's taken me 3+ years to feel like it's fully integrated into my life. I think once I started making jokes about "running out of spoons" it was more of a permanent fixture because I was asked to explain what I meant a lot, which reminded me that I needed to count my spoons. But, of course, that's just my own experience! I think they may sell journals that help you track them too.