Spoon Theory & Psoriasis

Depending on how long you may have lived with psoriasis, you may or may not know about the spoon theory. Yep, I am talking about those same spoons you find in your kitchen. However, in this example, these spoons will simply be examples.

How can the spoon theory relate to psoriasis?

It is an interesting concept that can help describe how you are feeling with your psoriasis in terms that someone can understand. Most of us have a hard time trying to make family or friends understand what we are going through.

Maybe after you read this article you too can use the spoon theory to explain it to them. Wouldn't that be a neat trick? An explanation that most anyone can understand. Hopefully, after reading this you will no longer have someone tell you that they do not understand what you are dealing with.

What is the history of the spoon theory?

The Spoon Theory was created by Christine Miserandino in 2003. Does anyone think her name is just perfect? As soon as I saw her last name, the word misery hit my mind like a ton of bricks. Most all of us are in such misery with psoriasis.

Christine Miserandino suffers from Lupus, another auto-immune condition. It was while she was on lunch with a friend that the Spoon Theory was put into action. Her friend asked her a simple question. One most anyone would ask a friend when they know they are really sick.

That question? How do you feel living with and having Lupus? As so many of us know, explaining an auto-immune condition is anything but simple. Christine grabbed up twelve spoons to show her friend just how she was doing.

The Spoon Theory, explained

Christine took twelve spoons from near-by tables in the restaurant. She asked her friend to hold the spoons. I'm sure she probably got a confusing look from that friend at that point. Miserandino asked her friend to recount the friend's day on any given average day.

For each activity, the friend explained Miserandino took away one spoon. She then told her friend that she had to ration her spoons to get through a single day. If there were days she exceeded the daily limit of spoons it meant that she had to borrow spoons from the next day.

Thereby it would leave her short for the next day. It was a visual aide that her friend could relate to.

The birth of the spoon theory: Who could have known by her grabbing those spoons that a theory could be used to explain her condition? Who also would have known that it would strike a major chord in everyone needing to explain an auto-immune disease?

However, that is what it did for her and what it is doing for all of us still today 17 years later. All based on the simplest of questions from a friend.

Connecting the spoon theory to psoriasis

The next time a friend or relative asks you how you are feeling, go get some spoons. You can ask them to explain a typical day and take away a spoon for each activity. Maybe then they will finally understand what it is like dealing with psoriasis.

No more trying to explain something they do not understand. No more blank stares. You will have an easy way of explaining what your life is like each day. I know the next time I got to explain my daily living with psoriasis I will be grabbing every single spoon I can see at the time.

How about you? Have you heard of the Spoon Theory? Have you used it or will you use it from this point on?