How to manage your energy and avoid burnout: The Spoon Theory guide

If you haven’t already, read the blog ‘Why am I so overwhelmed all the time? Understanding burnout using The Spoon Theory’ for an explanation of The Spoon Theory.

What uses your spoons?

The Spoon Theory can help us to reflect on daily energy usage as a Neurodivergent person.

As well as daily activities like getting ready, commuting to work/school, socialising, self care etc, a neurodivergent person is also likely to be navigating ‘unseen tasks’. All of these things could be using spoons!

Without exploration and understanding, especially of the ‘unseen tasks’, these things could be underestimated or be viewed as something you ‘just have to manage’ alongside everything else:

• Sensory stimulation: Managing both overstimulation and understimulation.
• Masking: Second guessing yourself, people pleasing, self monitoring, worrying about what people think of you, overthinking or analysing after a social interaction.
• Executive Functioning: Planning, organising, transitioning between tasks and managing time.
• Managing a dysregulated nervous system: When dysregulated, everything can feel more difficult, exhausting and anxiety inducing. It also takes energy to then do the things that can help with regulation.

The amount of energy that these things take can vary from person to person and day to day. 

How to reduce the likelihood of overwhelm and burnout:

• Plan for rest and recharge time.
• Make time for the things that you enjoy or that you’re good at – maybe these things use less spoons or possibly even replenish your spoons?
• Set achievable goals and measure your expectations where possible. (You’re a human being, not a human doing)
• Ask for support – Body double, talk through what’s on your mind, tag team with your support network to share the load.
• Communicate your boundaries.
• Use time management strategies to help with executive functioning: Time blocking, list writing, setting timers or reminders.
• Experiment with sensory soothers and boosters to find what works for you.
• Therapy can also help with some of the deeper work around exploring and processing emotions, understanding sensory needs, processing past experiences, navigating relationships and anything else that is important to you.