As the Digital Artist for Onyx Therapy I was recently asked to create a comic book style visual aimed at 4-10 year olds that would help explain Spoon Theory. It’s a standard process within the company to sit and discuss thoughts and ideas about what is required, but to also have theory of the topic explained to you to ensure you fully understand what it is you’re trying to illustrate. During this meeting I asked what the relevancy of the spoons were.

I was told that the spoons represent how different people have different amounts of physical, mental, emotional, and sensory energy each day. Every activity uses up some of that energy and once it has been used there may be little left for other tasks.

I fully understood the concept and think it’s a great way to describe it to people, but it didn’t answer my question. Why spoons? I became transfixed! I thought there were so many other analogies that would be better suited. Batteries drain, water can overflow or leak, money or tokens can be spent………………but you can’t spend spoons! You eat with spoons, you may sometimes play music on spoons and if you are Uri Geller you bend spoons.

I was told the story behind the theory is that the lady who come up with the term was at dinner with a friend and used the spoons on the table to explain it to her. Once again, I understood that in that moment she used what was available to her to help convey her point, but once out of that environment, they become irrelevant to the explanation.

My own neurodiversity was at play and had constructed a mental and creative block, and more frustratingly, no one else could see why it was such a big deal. I was feeling like a victim to my own literal thinking and as a result, I was losing spoons of my own, and fast! The irony. I guess what I’m trying to say is that some support strategies don’t work for everyone. What makes perfect sense to one can create confusion and frustration for another. 

By Dean, Digital Artist for Onyx Therapy