At this point, you are probably wondering “what in the world does Green Eggs & Spoons mean?!”. Here is the explanation behind the name.

Green eggs is often used as a symbol for Gastroparesis. In order to be diagnosed with GP, most doctors will order a gastric emptying scan. During that test, you eat a meal of typically scrambled eggs and milk with a radioactive substance in it. They then take scans of your stomach every 15 minutes to track the digestion of your food. If you fail the test, then you probably have gastroparesis. Green is also the colour for GP awareness so it’s a win-win!

Spoons comes from the spoon theory developed by Christine Miserandio. It became hugely popular in people with chronic illness who often identify as “spoonies”. This is an analogy she came up with to explain to her friends what it was like living with lupus but really applies to any illness. Basically, spoons represent your energy source. The typical healthy person has an infinite number of spoons to use but someone who lives with chronic illness only has a finite number to use daily. Every activity like getting dressed or showering takes up spoons. When you run out of spoons, you can borrow some from the next day but then that limits what you can do the next day.

Image courtesy of mollysfund.org