Life with chronic illness rarely comes with downtime—or at least, not the kind we choose. For those living with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS), ME/CFS, lupus, fibromyalgia, autoimmune diseases, or any other related condition that affects your spoons, rest is often a necessity. Author and artist Jules Machias, who lives with EDS, knows this firsthand. Their new coloring book, Out of Spoons, offers a creative lifeline to anyone forced to navigate the unpredictable rest or crash periods of chronic illness.
The 35-page collection of hand-drawn illustrations isn’t just a fun distraction. It’s a deeply personal, empathetic offering from someone who gets it—someone who’s lived the pain, fatigue, brain fog, and isolation. Machias pairs each page with quotes that feel like inside jokes or quiet reassurances for the spoonie community. Whether it’s the chronic illness metaphors or the acknowledgment of bodies that won’t cooperate, Out of Spoons is more solidarity in ink. “Pain can be turned into art in endless ways, but not many of those ways are interactive. I like the idea of starting a work—e.g., creating line art—and then someone else finishing that work, such as by giving it color, light, and shadows. Making interactive art about chronic pain and illness helps me feel more connected to my fellow spoonies, even if we’re not in the same room at the same time,” Machias says.
Machias is already well known to readers of Chronic Pain Partners for their middle-grade novel Fight + Flight, which we featured in a review and interview on Chronic Pain Partners. The book follows Avery, a teen with EDS, as she navigates not only her health but the emotional fallout of a traumatic lockdown drill at school. Fight + Flight stands out for its honest, hopeful depiction of a young person grappling with both visible and invisible challenges—without falling into inspiration tropes or pity narratives. Instead, it gives readers a multidimensional disabled protagonist whose physical limitations don’t erase their strength.
Building on the same themes of centering the lived experiences of disabled people with creativity, Machias shifts mediums with their coloring book. However, just like in their previous books, Machias’s experience with EDS shapes the tone and artwork on each page: “I have an entirely unprovable hypothesis that the reason I’m so drawn to flowing, curvy lines in art is because I’m a bendy person whose limbs and body move and curve in unexpected ways. In creating the line art for Out of Spoons, I incorporated flowing forms that inspire me, which is why you’ll see curving patterns and florals in the book. As far as the messages go, I’m an incurable meme junkie, and especially addicted to ones about chronic illness, pain, and EDS. I started weaving humorous messages into my line art, and the rest is history.”
The coloring book includes a mix of simple and intricate illustrations, designed with fluctuating energy levels and cognitive load in mind. Printed single-sided to accommodate markers or paints, the book is intentionally accessible, whether you’re in bed on a flare day or sitting upright at your favorite art table. “When you’re stuck in bed, or on the couch with a heating pad, or—shudder—in the hospital, options for filling your time are limited. Coloring books help you stay in the present moment while creating something in a non-demanding way. You can go as basic or as intricate as you want. And when you finish, you have a tangible piece of art: stick it to your wall, give it to another spoonie, turn it into your profile picture—endless possibilities!” says Machias.
The goal of Out of Spoons isn’t perfection—it’s comfort, camaraderie, and maybe a laugh. “I want people to feel seen and recognized with this book, and I want them to laugh at the absurdity of it all—because humor truly can help carry us through the tough days. I felt very alone when I was first diagnosed with hEDS seven years ago, but since then, I’ve found a wonderful community with others who share my diagnosis or who struggle with chronic pain and the associated anxiety, depression, medical gaslighting, and the incredible expense of care and treatment.”
Out of Spoons won’t make anyone’s symptoms disappear, but it offers something just as valuable: validation, visibility, and a reminder that even on low-energy days, creativity and comfort are still possible. It’s a thoughtful gift for anyone in the chronic illness community—or simply a gentle act of self-care.
As one page of the book puts it: “If you’re not having fun, it’s not laziness. It’s exhaustion. You deserve rest!”
Here are some example pages from the new coloring book:
Karina Sturm
July 2025
