Life has a way of knocking us down when we’re least prepared. And when you’re a Spoonie, a crisis hits even harder.

I withdrew from my online life when my dad was dying. Between being with him in his last days and handling what came after, I was living on borrowed spoons. Cooking—something I usually enjoy—felt impossible.

I even stopped eating and drinking enough.

Not good. I needed a plan. Fast.

The Spoonie Survival Guide

With no spoons to spare, I unashamedly turned to ChatGPT to help me create a survival plan. After some back and forth, I actually managed to figure out a system that worked. One that focused on just the essentials of life:

• Hydration and calories to keep me going

• Allergy-safe food to prevent flares

• Easy, affordable(ish) grab-and-go food and drink
  

Survival Basics

Wen you’re out of spoons, anything that needs prep or thinking is out. Even easy meals become a struggle. This guide strips everything back to the bare basics:

• Safe, familiar, ready-to-eat

• Single portions (in a crisis, packaging waste is NOT a priority)

• Shelf-stable or frozen

• Forget Instagram-pretty food. It just has to work.

Grab-and-Go Drinks

Staying hydrated is your number one priority. While tea is fine, drinking only tea gets boring fast. And if your system hates cold or fizzy drinks, your choices may feel limited. That’s where single-portion cartons and bottles come in: grab, sip, done.

Categories I relied on:

• Chocolate drinks: comfort + calories

• Yoghurt drinks: gentle, filling protein

• Fruit drinks: flavour and quick energy

• Optional protein shakes: useful if tolerated (I hate them!), but not essential

🥄 Spoonie Tip: Always check labels for hidden ingredients. Apples (one of my allergens) sneak in more often than you might expect.

Grab-and-Go Foods

I relied on what I could eat straight from a packet or nuke in the microwave.

Pantry / Shelf-stable:

• Corn cakes or GF biscuits

• Tinned fish (salmon, tuna)

• Peanut butter

• Tinned legumes

Fridge:

• Cheese cubes

• Yoghurt

• Hummus (store-bought this time, no shame)

• Boiled eggs (prep in bulk if possible)

Freezer:

• Frozen fish fillets

• Frozen veg (peas, carrots, broccoli)

• Frozen mash pellets or oven chips

Snacks:

• Nuts and seeds

• Crisps or tortilla chips

• Chocolate (comfort food is a must)
  

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Shopping When You’re Out of Spoons

Shopping trips drain spoons, even on my best days, yet I still needed to get my crisis food in the house—and delivery was not an option this time.

These are some tips that helped me survive grocery shopping when I was already drained:

• Go with a friend for emotional support and to handle the heavy lifting

• Make a shopping list and stick to it. (Also, don’t make your list longer than it needs to be.)

• Lidl and Aldi often have fair selection of single-portion drinks at lower cost than big supermarkets

• Forget variety—repeats are fine, and single portions save spoons
  

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Spoonie Permission Slip

If you’re anything like me, you’ll probably feel guilty. And while guilt is normal, it does you no favours.

More importantly: you actually have ZERO reason to feel guilty. Survival comes first. Here’s your permission—just in case you need it:

• Meals can repeat

• Ready-made food and single-serve drinks are fine

• Your bins may fill with packaging, and that’s okay

• Comfort food over ‘healthy’ meals is allowed

Remember: This isn’t forever.

In a crisis, your most important job is to stay fed, hydrated, and safe.

Survival is gourmet enough.

Thank you for being here. Please ❤️ (below) if you enjoyed this piece. It really helps others find it.

From my kitchen to yours,
Daan👨‍🍳
Your friendly spoonie chef