jiggeredUNDERSTANDING ENERGY
Spoon Theory and your personal energy budget.
Spoon Theory is a metaphor created by Christine Miserandino to explain the limited energy available when living with chronic illness. “Spoons” stand for a finite daily resource: ordinary tasks can draw on it, and what is available can vary.
Read Christine Miserandino's original Spoon Theory essay on But You Don't Look Sick. This guide explains how that vocabulary can relate to Jiggered's log; the metaphor belongs to its creator, and no endorsement or affiliation is implied.
Start with your experience, not somebody else's scale
The same task can feel different for different people, or on different days. If thinking in spoons helps you describe that experience, you can use it when reflecting on your own activities. There is no universal spoon scale. Jiggered also offers an optional Spoons display theme: choose Account → Profile → Energy language → Spoons, then Save profile. Within that display, one spoon represents one point. This changes the labels and daily budget visual, not your estimates or the underlying calculations.
How Jiggered records an energy budget
Jiggered uses a configurable starting points budget, a daily green/amber/red check-in, and activity entries with personal costs. Positive costs spend points; negative costs record your own estimate of recovery; zero-point entries record an activity without changing the balance.
A fictional, personalized example
Riley chooses a 10-point budget, records a household task as 3 points, and has 7 points left in the log. On a day when Riley chooses an amber check-in, the starting budget is reduced by the amount Riley configured. These are Riley's estimates; another person's numbers could be different.
Rest entries are observations, not promises
Recording rest does not guarantee restored energy. A points balance does not tell you what activity is safe, predict a symptom episode, or measure your health. Your balance can go below zero or above the starting budget; it describes your log rather than a goal to meet.
Look back with context
You can review energy entries alongside symptom episodes. Missing entries leave gaps, and apparent patterns do not establish causes. Use the log to record and communicate your experience, not to diagnose yourself or change treatment.
Learn how personal energy points work or follow the getting-started guide. If the metaphor does not fit your experience, leave the default Points language selected. You can switch between Points and Spoons without changing past records.