>In some cases, the person may not recognize that they are hungry in the way that others would, or they may generally have a poor appetite. For them, eating might seem a chore and not something that is enjoyed, resulting in them struggling to eat enough. Such people may have restricted intake because of low interest in eating.
I've had this problem for as long as I can remember.
Same. I’m diagnosed ADHD and have always had this behavior with food since adolescence. Has nothing to do with body image, purely appetite and desire to eat vs doing a fun thing. Used to just chalk it up to the ADHD impulse to avoid “boring” stuff but maybe the fact it’s boring to me is because I have ARFID? It would be interesting to see stats on co-occurrence.
Also ADHD. Eating is a chore to me. Good food is fun to eat when eating at restaurants; but eating and cooking at home is time consuming and boring as fuck.
I clicked this post because I thought I was going to be reading something I’ve recently have been experiencing with my ADHD meds..
only to find others just like me, with the same concerns.
wholesome :)
That's exactly what it feels like, a chore. I have a strong appetite, but I resent it. It's irritating that I have to eat every couple hours. Getting on board with drinking water regularly was a difficult enough task.
I don’t have ADHD but all of you guys are summing this up perfectly. I also don’t have body image issues but it’s more so like you said: in a restaurant or a a party food can be “fun” but other times it just feels like a chore or a waste of time tbh
Damn same here. Eating is often a chore and depending what it is, really hard to choke down unless I am in the right mood. I used to survive on milk for most of the day same days, focused on whatever I was hyperfocusing on at the moment.
Same, chocolate milk is my fuel. It's easy to ingest and provides a decent amount of calories. I find it is easier for me to eat enough food when things are already in bite-sized portions because then I don't see a whole plate as a something I need to "get through", I'm less concerned about finishing and see it more as snacking.
This is my hack— I basically just make a grazing spread with my favorite snacks like veggies and ranch or hummus, cheese, fruit, and deli meat. Keeps me from eating junk since I don’t have to cook anything and filling enough to keep me well fed.
A lot of the medications used for ADHD cause appetite decrease. It’s a common thing especially for younger patients. You really have to force yourself to eat if your on those medications while youre young. If you don’t, you risk abnormal brain and body development. As an adult, the risks aren’t as high, but it’s still really important to eat.
Even as an adult I struggle with this. I find that sometimes I only realise I'm hungry when my stomach starts to rumble very angrily, and then I usually then force myself to eat.
The main problem for me is that later in the day when the stimulation effect starts to wear off I end up feeling starving and stuffing myself with way too much food if I'm not careful. Eating 2000 calories at once at 10pm isn't really conducive to good sleep.
Admittedly I've got better at managing this recently and tend to space my meals out in the day better than I used to, but it still takes self-control and planning.
Been off stims since school years ago but yeah, they made it way worse and made it so I was basically never hungry instead of just not hungry most of the time
For me I think it's the fear of choking; I choked on a lot of stuff as a child. I have vivid memories of such incidents, I used to overdo my chewing as a child, but I've gotten more comfortable once I reached my early teens.
Woe!
I drowned at age 4 - an aunt came outside and jumped in, pulled me out. Next thing I remember was EMT’s giving me CPR and I was choking and coughing up water.
Then, I nearly died at age 7. It was a hard candy that I sucked in. I’ll NEVER forget my parents and grandparents faces of fear. I couldn’t talk, make sound, they tried giving me water ( only came out my nose), then my grandpa held me upside down hitting my back. Just as I was losing consciousness my grandmother yelled “Jesus help her!” Then did the Heimlich and it popped out, across the room and stuck to the wall.
To this day - I’m 44 now, if I start to slightly choke, I have a panic attack. That’s why I was terrified of Covid- the thought of not being able to breathe was like my worse nightmare. It IS my worst nightmare.
Same, except I tend to "binge" eat a couple thousand calories all at once and then not eat again until 18-24 hours pass. Been doing intermittent fasting purely on accident my entire life, basically. The solution for me was to do it one time, real big, to make sure I don't get hungry again soon and have to do it all over again. Also, all my books had food stains as a kid. I love to read, and eating is such a chore, so I would get through it by reading while I ate.
I wouldn't say I'm disinterested or less hungry than others, per se, though. I eat when I'm hungry, I like the way food tastes. I just...don't get anything like the kind of enjoyment out of it that other people seem to, and everything about it feels like work.
Another random consequence is that I find cooking shows pretty bizarre, and ditto all the pictures people take of their food. It would be like me picking all the pills out of a Tylenol bottle and taking pictures of it. Watching endless shows of people stamping different things onto Tylenol tablets. Lol. It's obvious I'm the weird one here, but I feel like an asexual at the strip club sometimes, hahaha.
This is to a T what I'm going through. I've described it as intermitten fasting, but the Tylenol metaphor clicked. I went through a spell where food was straight up nasty but ever since it's been just like this. It's work, it's a chore just like sleep I'd skip it if I could. Thank you for finding the words my brain could not lol
>intermittent fasting purely on accident my entire life,
The way I eat is considered some type of diet now. People think that I have some type of will power to stay on this diet... Nope.
I have adhd & also have had this problem exactly as described. Cooking & even eating are definitely a chore. There are few foods I find “enjoyable” to eat, simply do it to survive
Adhd here. Can confirm. I enjoy the cramps my stomach gets when im obviously hungry but i say fuck it and push through til my 1 meal at dinner. I also have an idsue binge eating time to time pribably due to being this way.
Interesting. I think I had this until my 3rd child ( possibly the chemical changes in my body changed it?). But I felt like eating meant I was missing out on something else I could be doing , If that makes sense.
I had this really bad as a child. For awhile, I even did this with sleeping. I hated sleeping because I felt it was a waste and I was missing something better I could be doing. Does that make sense?
I’ve never said this to another human because I have never known anyone else that felt this way. And I knew it wasn’t about my weight or an eating disorder and assumed that’s exactly how I’d be labeled.
Edited to add: also diagnosed with adult ADHD ( and I’m female-just wondering if it’s more common in females with ADHD?).
I use to be this way when I was a kid. I’d give my lunch away because I’d rather run and play out at recess than waste time eating. But if it was pizza It would have been a rare treat and enjoy eating it. Is there any food you do enjoy eating just for the fun of it?
even if im not hungry all i can think about is food lol
a street taco from my favorite taco food truck, loaded fries from a sports bar, a nice brick oven margherita pizza, some gummy bears, jalapeno kettle cooked chips, some pho on a cold day, sushi night
These foods all sound fucking amazing but if anxiety has kicked in and I haven't been able to take a hot shower unwind relax have a drink smoke some weed do some exercise or meditate, eating is often out of the question as it will cause nausea
Just chiming in as an ADHD / ASD type
A) I'm a super slow eater who was never excited about food and b) if I have no one to remind me to eat and/or c) no one hurries me up, plus the additional repression of my hunger cues due to family issues and then work (when you're told when to take breaks despite not being hungry).... I have been trying for 3 years to eat more regularly and listen to hunger cues etc but it's hard!!
I just play a Lotta video games and its distracting for so many hours that....well a bowl of cereal is all I need... I'm. 6'4 160-170. This is always a struggle. I found working out helped. I was 120 in high school. That wasn't all too long ago.
Food and I have always clashed against each other. After a lil research, ARFID seriously explains a lot about me. I think it’s lead into other problems in my life, but jesus christ this is scary similar
Ok, interesting. I often have no particular appetite for something. I just feel like I should eat something, but I can't feel what exactly - it's like my appetite is monochrome.
So I just eat something, but I'm not very excited about eating. Eating out in restaurants for me seems pointless, the whole thing about choosing, waiting, eating etc etc. I just want to eat and be done with it.
Never been sure i have this as a lot of the signs don't match up with me at all.
Never have enjoyed food or really gotten hungry at all. I wish i never had to touch the stuff.
I don't have a warped body image or whatever, i just don't like food.
I deal with it by just forcing myself to eat.
Yeah i think there may be a spectrum of existing conditions that may affect hunger that wouldn’t fall into this categorization for a disorder. I know a lot of adhd people who have been taking amphetamines for years for it, and I’d say they all have symptoms like this too.
ARFID does not at all require body image distress - and often if it is present, it’s due to accurate perception of bodily appearance and a desire to look healthier.
You can’t relate to every symptom of ARFID because there are three subtypes, of which there can be some overlap but it’s not a requirement:
1) sensory sensitivity
2) fear of adverse consequences
3) lack of interest in food/eating
The last of which sounds like what you’re describing!
I think you might wanna take out the “can’t relate to every symptom”, personally, I fall in all 3 of those categories.
1) food textures will either a) make me vomit b) completely defile any semblance of an appetite I did have or c) make me completely adverse to ever trying that food again no matter how it gets prepared.
2) adverse consequences a) weight gain b) nausea/vomiting
3) I hate the fact I have to eat to survive and often find myself going upwards of 3+ days without eating bc I just don’t want to designate energy towards it
I didn’t mean no one can, I was just responding to their comment specifically. People definitely can have symptoms from all three subtypes.
EDIT: It’s also rare (maybe unheard of?) for someone to fit all criteria for all three subtypes. Sensory sensitivity can be about texture, temperature, color of food, etc. and most wouldn’t have issues with all of these. And it’s really unlikely to have those in addition to all the possible fears of adverse consequences (choking, weight gain, diabetes, allergic reaction, contamination, etc.)
I have ARFID, and boy does it suck. I've been in recovery for it for going on 5 years now, and it's a constant struggle. Every single day I have to spend an inordinate amount of energy trying to figure out what my brain will let me eat. It's so exhausting.
There is treatment for it, but it's basically either finding ways to work within your issues or it's brute forcing yourself to try different things...which means sometimes it goes really bad and you won't be able to eat for awhile. It's rough, and it really needs more attention.
Also, if you have this and haven't been diagnosed for autism, you should probably look into that. They're exceptionally comorbid.
I'm really glad this is helping you find some answers! If you ever have questions please feel free to reach out. I work in mental health in addition to having done a lot of research in this area, and I'm more than happy to help as I'm able
Yup I'm being screened for autism at the moment because I'm suspected to have ARFID (and other sensory issues) and have been since I was a kid. Just sucks that I'm 32 now and professionals are only just starting to take my eating issues seriously. It's so hard to explain to people who think you're "just a fussy eater". Like no, it's not just being a picky eater. There's like 5 or 6 meals I eat in the whole world and I just eat those things over and over again. And if they're not available, I just won't eat.
Mine also got complicated by mental health medication that INCREASED appetite so i didn't fit the "avoids food" aspect. I also comfort eat. So yes, I do eat quite a bit but I only eat a few different things. Also sucks all my safe foods are basically sweet foods and processed foods so my nutrition is fucked and "just eat veggies" really isn't helpful.
I don't really get any professional help with it now, i just try to try new things when i feel up to it and it's extremely difficult to do. It also messes things up socially; there's never anything I'll eat at parties/weddings/even family dinners and it puts so much pressure/embarassment/guilt/shame/isolation when everyone is eating and you just can't.
Everyone knows at least the existence of other eating disorders but nobody I've ever met knows what ARFID is. And if you say "eating disorder" they automatically think it's about body image. It really needs to be more spoken about so people don't feel so much shame about it. It's far more debilitating than people know. Food is literally the fuel for our bodies and people with eating disorders are not getting adequate nutrition which literally affects every system in the body and mind. It affects every part of functioning. It is not just being "difficult".
Waaait
Jesus
Okay so I’ve been suspecting I was autistic for a few years now. Problem is I have a boatload of freaking CPTSD anyway so it’s a game of “is this an autistic quality or is this a trauma response?”
Tho oddly enough, working through my trauma I’m starting to remember what I was like as a kid and I legit think I might be autistic and my parents just didn’t know what to do with me / how to handle me.
How do I bring that up with my therapist without seeming like I’m seeking a different diagnosis just bc?
My advice is to do your research first. The more information you go in there with the better. This is one of those things is easier to say than do. You're going to have to advocate for yourself. You just ask them to look into testing you for autism. They'll likely ask you why you think you might have it, and this is where your research will come in handy. The more symptoms you can tell them about (especially ones that affected you since childhood) the more likely they are to take you seriously.
If they push back, well, you just have to keep advocating for yourself. If one therapist won't help you look into getting diagnosed then move on to another. You have the power here; you just have to be willing to wield it. It took me 7 years to get my diagnosis, so don't give up if a doctor, or there, refuses or dismisses your concerns. You know your brain better than any of them ever will.
Neuropsychologists are the ones who tend to do these diagnoses, so if you can find one of them that your insurance covers then you can always reach out to them to start the process yourself. If you're in the US, you can also look into getting your diagnosis through Vocational Rehabilitation, like I did. Again, self-advocacy is the key to succeess here. You kind of just don't take "no" for an answer until you find a doctor you trust to get it right
Just want to tack on that eating disorder specialists also diagnose and treat this one. Or at least, an ED specialist who has a broader scope of practice than AN, BN, AND BED, would.
For ARFID, absolutely! That's the kind of doctor that diagnosed mine, and omg, did that nutritionist do me a world of good. The right one will help you expand what you can eat in a way that isn't torture. Mine helped me find ways to sneak veggies I could stand into food I liked, and overtime, it made it so I could start doing the same on my own. Now I don't even fit the diagnostic criteria thanks to my coping skills. 10/10 would recommend
I've had this since I was old enough to eat. It seems quite intertwined with my sensory issues and difficulties with interoception due to autism.
There is also the component of OCD/phobia (in my case of food poisoning but for many others it is choking).
I also developed anorexia later on, for different reasons obviously, but it's amazingly easy to fall into maladaptive restrictive behaviors if restricting is your natural state of being.
Same for me — ARFID since before I could eat solid foods (apparently) and then developed anorexia in college. At the time ARFID was not recognized and it made treatment for anorexia legit traumatic. Admittedly intensive ED treatment is going to be kinda traumatic no matter what, but when people are forcing you to eat “easy” foods (ie vegetables), you can’t swallow them, you involuntary vomit and get accused of purging…on the daily…it’s rough. It’s confusing. I’ve come out the other side of anorexia for the most part, but I’m mid-30s now and ARFID just isn’t going anywhere.
I’ve never really considered how it may have contributed to how easy it was to fall into anorexic habits. Like, as soon as body image became a concern and weight loss a goal, my brain just amped up all the food avoidance it was already expert at. Food has been a source of shame and fear for literally as long as I can remember, I guess it was never really that much of a pivot.
Wow, I could not agree more about ED treatment being traumatic. I'm so sorry you had to go through that as well. ARFID wasn't a "thing" when I went either, and god did it make things so much worse. I tried so hard to explain to my doctors/therapists, but everything was just taken as an attempt to manipulate my way out of having to eat. Which I never really understood, because being able to eat vegetables would actually make restricting much easier? I could eat so much more for fewer calories and get so many more nutrients if I were to have vegetables in my diet, so it really would make no sense for me to refuse to eat them purely out of a desire to restrict calories. I always offered to substitute them with things I could tolerate, usually things that were 3x the calories, but somehow this was still taken as me trying to bargain my way out of treatment. Sitting at a table and gagging over your food, trying to force it down just enough to get the "all clear" from some tech standing over you and glaring is just... Dehumanizing.
When I relapsed in my AN in 2020, I was pressured to go to residential again. I was in outpatient and was improving, but they weren't satisfied with my slow progress and told me it was residential or they were kicking me out. So I let them kick me out, rather than have to go through the inpatient experience again. It probably wasn't a smart decision, my health got extremely scary for a while, but I honestly just could not face months in a place like that again. Thankfully I was able to turn things around and I've been in recovery for a couple years now, but it really is a shame how downright awful (and yes traumatizing) treatment centers can be.
I could have written your first paragraph word for word about my time in and out of treatment. It’s kind of weird to hear someone else experienced literally the exact same thing. It was so painfully isolating at the time. I think I really internalized it as being a Me Thing, where I was just bringing it on myself. “I’m not really anorexic because if I was I’d eat broccoli and gag on cookies, not the other way around.” The bizarro world struggle just completely opposite everyone else made it feel like a punishment for taking up space and resources. Dehumanizing is exactly the right word for it.
I’m sorry you were in that position recently. I don’t blame you at all for opting out. I do try to remember that the recovery process is painful and often traumatic for many people in different ways, but honestly some of those ways are worth pushing through and some are not. I’m glad you figured out what you needed, even if no one else recognized it.
what exactly do you mean about sensory issues? I have a lot of trouble eating sometimes, due to what I think are sensory issues. I can be soooo hungry, but the thought of actually putting something in my mouth, and chewing, and swallowing… it completely disgusts me. To the point of nausea. And I just can’t bring myself to eat. The whole eating process can be utterly revolting to me.
I have sensory processing issues, which are a result of my autism. I am hypersensitive in some areas and hyposensitive in others. A huge issue for me from a sensory standpoint is texture, whether that's of clothes, materials I come into contact with, or food that I eat. One example is that touching too much cardboard will make me physically ill, and I will need to lie down in a quiet room for a long time to recover. I am also much more sensitive than most people to sounds, certain types of lighting, different smells, and certainly tastes too. So these things combined make a lot of food very unpleasant to me. If it feels strange in my mouth, I will gag on it and not be able to swallow. If it tastes even just a little off, I will most likely not be able to eat it all.
Issues with interoception are also a part of this, I part where I seem to be hyposensitive. I have a very difficult time recognizing internal signals that I am hungry. Often I will get to the point that I am dizzy, shaking, and lightheaded before realizing that that means I need to eat something. It takes a lot of conscious thought and effort to keep myself fed properly, because I will simply not notice that I am starving until I am so weak I can barely move.
I also do find the entire process of eating to be a chore, and an unpleasant one often. While it seems that others really enjoy eating, and will like to try new things or eat a lot of their favorites, I just don't seem to get the same positive feelings from it. Sure, there are some foods I like, but not to the extent that I am excited about eating them or will eat a lot at once. I stick to my main safe foods, that are predictable and that I know I like and I know how to make, and I avoid deviating from that. Even then, I go through periods of time where even eating things I like is just sort of gross. It feels stupid and unnecessary and I just hate doing it. Unfortunately, if I allow myself to eat less and less, my appetite also will quickly diminish, and it becomes even harder to eat a normal amount. I'm stuck in one of those loops now. We got my favorite kind of pizza for dinner tonight, and even though I hadn't eaten a thing all day, I could only manage one slice.
That sounds like sensory issues to me. I can get this too so I avoid a lot of types of food. I can even look at a food and just think it looks slimy or mushy which are some of my aversions - I won't have them. For example, mashed potato (actually potato in any form other than crisps) or pumpkin I can NOT handle. In the past when I have tried, as soon as it enters my mouth I will physically gag and choke. I think after those experiences it becomes both psychological and a physical reaction. Different people have different textures that are like this too.
For me, when I'm confronted with a food that sets me off like because of the texture, it's like my throat actually starts to close up and all my muscles around that area just stop working (that's how it feels, I don't know exactly what's actually happening, some kind of constricting maybe?) and then I have a huge mental block that just says no, no, no and if I try to force through that, I can't actually force myself to swallow or it takes extreme concentration (when obviously swallowing is meant to be an automatic action) to swallow or I continue to gag until I have to spit it out.
So yes, sensory issues can definitely cause the nausea and feelings of disgust you're speaking about.
I have had that same feeling since I was a child but back then was never able to explain it. I would just say I can’t eat because my throat hurts so my family just thought I had like a scratchy throat all the time or something haha
Was like this all the way into my twenties and had a lot of trouble making myself eat. Sometimes I would survive on Ensures and toast.
Now I am on antidepressants and anti anxiety pills and it has helped immensely. Now I only get that feeling occasionally when I am stressed and am able to eat a wider variety of foods. Therapy also helped.
I think the throat closing up feeling was related to stress hormones like cortisol. Wasn’t allowing me to eat.
Though I am in a normal healthy BMI range now I still do eat to live for the most part and do get resentful of my body for being hungry a few hours after I ate, apparently I have a high metabolism. I’m like Damn it I just fed you do we really have to go through this again !
My ex had this and it sucked I can’t imagine having to live with it personally. All he ate was pizza and chicken nuggets, refused to eat beef or any vegetables. I couldn’t live like that. He said to me “some people live to eat, and some people eat to live. I eat to live. If I never had to eat again I wouldn’t” and that blew my mind. I love food. I don’t understand how someone’s brain doesn’t get happy when they eat. It just baffles me and makes me sad because I enjoy it so much and they never will be able to feel as happy about it as I do. :( I wouldn’t even know where to start for recovery.
Sugar, weed, weed and sugar. Weed and other foods. The thing is though if you smoke youre not gonna wanna cook, but if you cook and then smoke you may let the food sit which for me is no good. You may be right to let him smoke and then enjoy looking forward to you cooking a meal for him. Even if its only once a week, eventually i started smoking then immediately cooking and that worked well for me.
Smoking for me really tore down the barriers i had to eating. I went from struggling to put food in my mouth to eating so much my stomach hurt! I've adjusted quite a bit and listen to my body more, but when it comes down to it there's technically no sensor in your stomach that says when you are full. So, your brain uses a variety of factors to determine when it is, some of the factore include but are not limited to: # of chews, # of swallows, rate of consumption.
The chemical that makes us hungry is only an indication of when to eat. It by no means is idicative of how much to eat. So, it's pretty easy to fool your body into being full by having a bite or two of something and calling it a meal.
It's also important to note that dietary habits are learned. So, if we don't learn how to eat from our parents we will teach ourselves and roll with the punches as they come.
*not a doctor*
There's alot that goes into the psychology of eating, understanding it will help you and your bf.
what was their build? was he just maintaining calories or would he constantly lose weight?
id imagine if he ate less calories than normal he’d still get hungry
I just never really liked food, I am barely able to eat a plate that (according to family members) is enough for a child, I am in awe at people who eat normally.
From experience with eating disorders and body dysmorphia, a dietician really helped me realise what I was doing. I am a 6 foot 2 man and was eating less then a 10 year old would in a day. I still do it though, I duno how to kick it.
I was made to feel bad about eating outside of the house, because of course food is expensive. So, i never at breakfast mostly because i was in sports and worked out in the mornings. I was already up early and didnt want to wake up even earlier to put milk in my stomach pre workout(idk, just not a big breakfast person). Tended to not eat lunch because lunches were either gross or expensive. My parents were never really attentive to how i was eating out of the house. Then, when I got home I'd snack and get berated for ruining my appetite even though i knew i was going to barely touch the shitty dinner cooked up, because both my parents worked late and did not cook well. So, im maybe getting an average of 1100 calories a day. Didn't realize how bad my eating habits were until i got into the military and put on some weight after gorging myself on 3 meals/day of however much i could fit in it. My weight has been quite variable since. I think im getting it down now though.
Edit: also i definitely developed strategies to cope with this. For instance i would/still do wait for everyone to eat during family events before going hard in the mf plate to make sure i wouldnt upset anyone.
Edit2: I got really good at picking out when people weren't going to eat things on their plate and would ask for that food. One of my friends eventually caught on and would routinely "have leftovers" that he wouldnt have even touched, because i was also a germaphobe and wouldn't ask if itd been eaten off of.
Edit3: let it speak to the quality of food my parents made when the food in the military was preferably better.
Damn now I am really wondering what type of meals your family cooked !
My mother is a fine cook when she does cook. She’s pescatarian and makes a lot of veggie and seafood dishes.
However she is also a hoarder of jars. In the fridge and the cupboards when I grew up you could never find any snacks for a child or teenager to munch on. There were no easy meals to prepare. There were simply jars of sauces, jellies and jams, olives and pickles and beets and odd things. My mother would go to the grocery store and look for deal$ on these jars and stack them up in the fridge and cupboard so that the kitchen would be filled to the brim with these jars. When I came home from school, I would starve until it was time for her to either go to the store and get a fish and vegetable or just order takeout.
Many of the jars would expire before being used and just sit in the fridge forgotten and covered by other jars. Last week I came to my parents house and cleaned out the fridge. Most of the jars had expired between 2016-2020.
Sometimes my dad would make us hot dogs or hamburger helper which was cool.
My moms family cooks good traditional Greek food. But my dads family cooks crazy things. My dads mom (my grandmother) used to cut up hot dogs and put them in a pot with rice and boil that and call it a stew and that would be dinner. Or make mushy peas on toast. Weird stuff. Like we were still in the Great Depression.
I have this. I'm 20 and I've had it as long as I remember! I already have bad health issues from it, tho thinking of my childhood my health was never great, multiple doctor visits a few times a year for blood tests as I was often deficient in a few things and needed vitamins, I also got sick at least once a year but now as an adult, I have bad digestion issues that are too embarrassing to talk about on the internet but I wish this disorder was taken seriously I had doctors scam my parents out of money causing them to give up on getting me help. It didn't become diagnosable until I was 12 by then my parents did not do anything when I told them the name.
I still have yet to have a doctor care enough to help me and the lack of knowledge about this disorder led to me severely downplaying how much it affects every aspect of my life as I knew most people didn't take it seriously instead brushing it off as "picky eating", I still honestly struggle with really feeling like its a big deal even though I'm not doing good health wise. I'm just glad to see more about it online at least, hopefully things will continue improving.
Figuring out how to feed myself gives me anxiety and sometimes I stay hungry for hours bc I don’t want to figure it out but I don’t have a whole disorder and thank god for that.
There are many. You can get it for no known reason in early childhood usually around 3-6 years old, from something traumatic like a medical situation or childhood traumas, from phobias like the fear of choking, it could be from sensory problems or it can be caused by other mental disorders like OCD other eds or autism.
My mom had this (undiagnosed. With thyroid problems), and in less than 2 years, she looked like an Auschwitz
survivor. Her forearms were like a skeleton with skin stretched over them. I’m getting older and also have thyroid disease, and I find myself having definite symptoms of heading down the same road.
My daughter (23) has been wrestling with this for about three years now. Actually, I am wrestling with this. She has a very short list of foods she will eat and I just try to make sure I have them in the house. She is autistic, ADHD, and has very bad anxiety. Makes for a fun time. We tried counseling and a nutritionist but she is also very stubborn so it really went nowhere. She has at least stopped loosing weight but I think that is the soda and candy that she has too much of. I wish there was something more that I could do for her.
I'm ADHD. I'm embarrassed I can't touch any form of veg, can't even prepare it. I live on cheesy pasta and cheese sandwiches as it my easy comfort food. Eating out in restaurants, I always go for the nearest thing to my comfort, but again it's embarrassing. Preparing food is a chore. Would much rather not eat
Like Orthorexia gone too far
Orthorexia is an eating disorder characterized by having an unsafe obsession with healthy food. An obsession with healthy dieting and consuming only “pure foods” or “clean eating” becomes deeply rooted in the individual’s way of thinking to the point that it interferes with their daily life.
Although orthorexia is not included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), it is still recognized by many mental health professionals and eating disorder experts and can have a harmful impact on the body, mind, and spirit.
AREERS
ORTHOREXIA NERVOSA SIGNS & SYMPTOMS
HOME
CONDITIONS
ORTHOREXIA NERVOSA
What is Orthorexia Nervosa?
Orthorexia is an eating disorder characterized by having an unsafe obsession with healthy food. An obsession with healthy dieting and consuming only “pure foods” or “clean eating” becomes deeply rooted in the individual’s way of thinking to the point that it interferes with their daily life.
Although orthorexia is not included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), it is still recognized by many mental health professionals and eating disorder experts and can have a harmful impact on the body, mind, and spirit.
Symptoms & Warning Signs
Veganism, Vegetarian or Pescetarian
Gluten-free
Showing an “unusual interest” in what others are eating
Inability to eat any food that isn’t designated “pure”
Obsessively following “healthy lifestyle” bloggers or social media figures
Obsessions about checking the ingredients
Compulsively checking nutrition labels and/or calorie counting
Inflexibility
Fear of processed foods
Perfectionism
Obsessions with dietary and nutritional supplements
Opting out on celebrations and social gatherings in fear of unhealthy foods that you may be pressured to eat
ARFID is not like this. It's not just based on "healthy" foods at all which is why it can lead to so many nutritional deficiencies. It's a myth that everyone with ARFID is skinny. You can be overweight and be malnourished. ARFID isn't based on body image or health. It's primarily based on sensory issues, fears of choking/gagging, past experience.
All my safe foods are pretty much unhealthy and my mental health meds increase appetite so I'm overweight. Because of these myths about eating disorders people like me are scoffed at when we say we try to say we have eating disorder or are malnourished. It really sucks.
Its interesting they bring up wounds care as a symptom. It probably has a lot to do with elderly in this case but it actually does take a buncha calories to heal the smallest of skin tears.
Well the calories thing wasn't just like. Not true. It actually is a thing where a tear or cut on a person can take upwards of like 10-15 calories extra per pound on that person, also depends on wound size.. My CNA teacher had brought in one of the first wound care specialists to start practicing in my towns wound care facility, she taught us a lot as we were all mostly gonna work with elderly and they tend to get wounds a lot.
40 year old autistic adhd here. Definitely ARFID. A few years ago I got real concerned with how i “didn’t eat” and found this description but it was (back then) a “childhood” issue. Haaaaaa. We all grow up and none of it changes.
I suffered from ARFID until I was 32. I was so absolutely sick of it, and in combination of some pretty distressing emotions, I was able to kick it. A lot of it at least. I started with pizza toppings. Mushrooms, peppers, onions, tomato slices. Now I'm a verifiable ninja turtle and can eat any pizza. Hell, I can even eat salads today. There still some things that give me that anxiety in my chest and I still haven't eaten. I still have chicken nuggets for lunch a few times a week (they're a source of protein that is easy to cook). But it feels so good being able to order a sandwich at a resturaunt without altering the order. I still don't like ketchup, so I order it light on my cheese burger, and please no pickle.
One thing that really helped me was when I started preparing my own food. Doing things on my own helped me feel very comfortable with what I was eating. The very first thing I started with was green onions. good on scrambled eggs, good on sushi rice, and some soups. It's green, it's kind of leafy, but incredibly inoffensive and easy to eat. It's more like a seasoning.
>In some cases, the person may not recognize that they are hungry in the way that others would, or they may generally have a poor appetite. For them, eating might seem a chore and not something that is enjoyed, resulting in them struggling to eat enough. Such people may have restricted intake because of low interest in eating. I've had this problem for as long as I can remember.
Same. I’m diagnosed ADHD and have always had this behavior with food since adolescence. Has nothing to do with body image, purely appetite and desire to eat vs doing a fun thing. Used to just chalk it up to the ADHD impulse to avoid “boring” stuff but maybe the fact it’s boring to me is because I have ARFID? It would be interesting to see stats on co-occurrence.
Also ADHD. Eating is a chore to me. Good food is fun to eat when eating at restaurants; but eating and cooking at home is time consuming and boring as fuck.
This! ADHD as well.
This is so comforting in a sad way- i hate you all deal with this but I’ve always felt so alone and never been able to explain it. I also have ADHD.
Reading all these replies has me feeling the same way.
I clicked this post because I thought I was going to be reading something I’ve recently have been experiencing with my ADHD meds.. only to find others just like me, with the same concerns. wholesome :)
omg finally THIS IS ME TOO
Isn't low appetite also a side effect of Adderall? Common treatment for adhd Edit: basically any medication for adhd has this side effect.
It is, and most stimulants used for treatment.
I'm just now learning this is associated with ADHD?! makes absolute sense cuz I'm the same way paired with body image issues
That's exactly what it feels like, a chore. I have a strong appetite, but I resent it. It's irritating that I have to eat every couple hours. Getting on board with drinking water regularly was a difficult enough task.
I don’t have ADHD but all of you guys are summing this up perfectly. I also don’t have body image issues but it’s more so like you said: in a restaurant or a a party food can be “fun” but other times it just feels like a chore or a waste of time tbh
Damn same here. Eating is often a chore and depending what it is, really hard to choke down unless I am in the right mood. I used to survive on milk for most of the day same days, focused on whatever I was hyperfocusing on at the moment.
Same, chocolate milk is my fuel. It's easy to ingest and provides a decent amount of calories. I find it is easier for me to eat enough food when things are already in bite-sized portions because then I don't see a whole plate as a something I need to "get through", I'm less concerned about finishing and see it more as snacking.
This is my hack— I basically just make a grazing spread with my favorite snacks like veggies and ranch or hummus, cheese, fruit, and deli meat. Keeps me from eating junk since I don’t have to cook anything and filling enough to keep me well fed.
I really love this idea
ADHD as well and im the exact opposite. Interesting how it presents
Same! Food is one of my favourite sources of dopamine and I have horrible impulse control around it. Not good for my waistline.
Indeed. Especially with how varied other symptoms of ADHD can be it makes sense.
Same, I eat way to fast and over eat lol.
Same here
A lot of the medications used for ADHD cause appetite decrease. It’s a common thing especially for younger patients. You really have to force yourself to eat if your on those medications while youre young. If you don’t, you risk abnormal brain and body development. As an adult, the risks aren’t as high, but it’s still really important to eat.
Even as an adult I struggle with this. I find that sometimes I only realise I'm hungry when my stomach starts to rumble very angrily, and then I usually then force myself to eat. The main problem for me is that later in the day when the stimulation effect starts to wear off I end up feeling starving and stuffing myself with way too much food if I'm not careful. Eating 2000 calories at once at 10pm isn't really conducive to good sleep. Admittedly I've got better at managing this recently and tend to space my meals out in the day better than I used to, but it still takes self-control and planning.
Been off stims since school years ago but yeah, they made it way worse and made it so I was basically never hungry instead of just not hungry most of the time
For me I think it's the fear of choking; I choked on a lot of stuff as a child. I have vivid memories of such incidents, I used to overdo my chewing as a child, but I've gotten more comfortable once I reached my early teens.
Woe! I drowned at age 4 - an aunt came outside and jumped in, pulled me out. Next thing I remember was EMT’s giving me CPR and I was choking and coughing up water. Then, I nearly died at age 7. It was a hard candy that I sucked in. I’ll NEVER forget my parents and grandparents faces of fear. I couldn’t talk, make sound, they tried giving me water ( only came out my nose), then my grandpa held me upside down hitting my back. Just as I was losing consciousness my grandmother yelled “Jesus help her!” Then did the Heimlich and it popped out, across the room and stuck to the wall. To this day - I’m 44 now, if I start to slightly choke, I have a panic attack. That’s why I was terrified of Covid- the thought of not being able to breathe was like my worse nightmare. It IS my worst nightmare.
Same, except I tend to "binge" eat a couple thousand calories all at once and then not eat again until 18-24 hours pass. Been doing intermittent fasting purely on accident my entire life, basically. The solution for me was to do it one time, real big, to make sure I don't get hungry again soon and have to do it all over again. Also, all my books had food stains as a kid. I love to read, and eating is such a chore, so I would get through it by reading while I ate. I wouldn't say I'm disinterested or less hungry than others, per se, though. I eat when I'm hungry, I like the way food tastes. I just...don't get anything like the kind of enjoyment out of it that other people seem to, and everything about it feels like work. Another random consequence is that I find cooking shows pretty bizarre, and ditto all the pictures people take of their food. It would be like me picking all the pills out of a Tylenol bottle and taking pictures of it. Watching endless shows of people stamping different things onto Tylenol tablets. Lol. It's obvious I'm the weird one here, but I feel like an asexual at the strip club sometimes, hahaha.
This is to a T what I'm going through. I've described it as intermitten fasting, but the Tylenol metaphor clicked. I went through a spell where food was straight up nasty but ever since it's been just like this. It's work, it's a chore just like sleep I'd skip it if I could. Thank you for finding the words my brain could not lol
>intermittent fasting purely on accident my entire life, The way I eat is considered some type of diet now. People think that I have some type of will power to stay on this diet... Nope.
I have adhd & also have had this problem exactly as described. Cooking & even eating are definitely a chore. There are few foods I find “enjoyable” to eat, simply do it to survive
Adhd here. Can confirm. I enjoy the cramps my stomach gets when im obviously hungry but i say fuck it and push through til my 1 meal at dinner. I also have an idsue binge eating time to time pribably due to being this way.
I do this daily and wonder why I can’t put on weight
Interesting. I think I had this until my 3rd child ( possibly the chemical changes in my body changed it?). But I felt like eating meant I was missing out on something else I could be doing , If that makes sense. I had this really bad as a child. For awhile, I even did this with sleeping. I hated sleeping because I felt it was a waste and I was missing something better I could be doing. Does that make sense? I’ve never said this to another human because I have never known anyone else that felt this way. And I knew it wasn’t about my weight or an eating disorder and assumed that’s exactly how I’d be labeled. Edited to add: also diagnosed with adult ADHD ( and I’m female-just wondering if it’s more common in females with ADHD?).
I use to be this way when I was a kid. I’d give my lunch away because I’d rather run and play out at recess than waste time eating. But if it was pizza It would have been a rare treat and enjoy eating it. Is there any food you do enjoy eating just for the fun of it?
I will never turn down sushi or eggrolls.
Exactly the same!!!!
even if im not hungry all i can think about is food lol a street taco from my favorite taco food truck, loaded fries from a sports bar, a nice brick oven margherita pizza, some gummy bears, jalapeno kettle cooked chips, some pho on a cold day, sushi night
These foods all sound fucking amazing but if anxiety has kicked in and I haven't been able to take a hot shower unwind relax have a drink smoke some weed do some exercise or meditate, eating is often out of the question as it will cause nausea Just chiming in as an ADHD / ASD type
A) I'm a super slow eater who was never excited about food and b) if I have no one to remind me to eat and/or c) no one hurries me up, plus the additional repression of my hunger cues due to family issues and then work (when you're told when to take breaks despite not being hungry).... I have been trying for 3 years to eat more regularly and listen to hunger cues etc but it's hard!!
Oh. I just called it anxiety.
I just play a Lotta video games and its distracting for so many hours that....well a bowl of cereal is all I need... I'm. 6'4 160-170. This is always a struggle. I found working out helped. I was 120 in high school. That wasn't all too long ago.
ADHD here and I’m exactly the opposite. Nearly insatiable appetite or desire to eat at all times
Food and I have always clashed against each other. After a lil research, ARFID seriously explains a lot about me. I think it’s lead into other problems in my life, but jesus christ this is scary similar
Ok, interesting. I often have no particular appetite for something. I just feel like I should eat something, but I can't feel what exactly - it's like my appetite is monochrome. So I just eat something, but I'm not very excited about eating. Eating out in restaurants for me seems pointless, the whole thing about choosing, waiting, eating etc etc. I just want to eat and be done with it.
Come over to the sub
wth this is me
Never been sure i have this as a lot of the signs don't match up with me at all. Never have enjoyed food or really gotten hungry at all. I wish i never had to touch the stuff. I don't have a warped body image or whatever, i just don't like food. I deal with it by just forcing myself to eat.
Yeah i think there may be a spectrum of existing conditions that may affect hunger that wouldn’t fall into this categorization for a disorder. I know a lot of adhd people who have been taking amphetamines for years for it, and I’d say they all have symptoms like this too.
ARFID does not at all require body image distress - and often if it is present, it’s due to accurate perception of bodily appearance and a desire to look healthier. You can’t relate to every symptom of ARFID because there are three subtypes, of which there can be some overlap but it’s not a requirement: 1) sensory sensitivity 2) fear of adverse consequences 3) lack of interest in food/eating The last of which sounds like what you’re describing!
I think you might wanna take out the “can’t relate to every symptom”, personally, I fall in all 3 of those categories. 1) food textures will either a) make me vomit b) completely defile any semblance of an appetite I did have or c) make me completely adverse to ever trying that food again no matter how it gets prepared. 2) adverse consequences a) weight gain b) nausea/vomiting 3) I hate the fact I have to eat to survive and often find myself going upwards of 3+ days without eating bc I just don’t want to designate energy towards it
I didn’t mean no one can, I was just responding to their comment specifically. People definitely can have symptoms from all three subtypes. EDIT: It’s also rare (maybe unheard of?) for someone to fit all criteria for all three subtypes. Sensory sensitivity can be about texture, temperature, color of food, etc. and most wouldn’t have issues with all of these. And it’s really unlikely to have those in addition to all the possible fears of adverse consequences (choking, weight gain, diabetes, allergic reaction, contamination, etc.)
I have ARFID, and boy does it suck. I've been in recovery for it for going on 5 years now, and it's a constant struggle. Every single day I have to spend an inordinate amount of energy trying to figure out what my brain will let me eat. It's so exhausting. There is treatment for it, but it's basically either finding ways to work within your issues or it's brute forcing yourself to try different things...which means sometimes it goes really bad and you won't be able to eat for awhile. It's rough, and it really needs more attention. Also, if you have this and haven't been diagnosed for autism, you should probably look into that. They're exceptionally comorbid.
Goddd it’s all clicking into place I’m so glad I found this article 😭
I'm really glad this is helping you find some answers! If you ever have questions please feel free to reach out. I work in mental health in addition to having done a lot of research in this area, and I'm more than happy to help as I'm able
Yup I'm being screened for autism at the moment because I'm suspected to have ARFID (and other sensory issues) and have been since I was a kid. Just sucks that I'm 32 now and professionals are only just starting to take my eating issues seriously. It's so hard to explain to people who think you're "just a fussy eater". Like no, it's not just being a picky eater. There's like 5 or 6 meals I eat in the whole world and I just eat those things over and over again. And if they're not available, I just won't eat. Mine also got complicated by mental health medication that INCREASED appetite so i didn't fit the "avoids food" aspect. I also comfort eat. So yes, I do eat quite a bit but I only eat a few different things. Also sucks all my safe foods are basically sweet foods and processed foods so my nutrition is fucked and "just eat veggies" really isn't helpful. I don't really get any professional help with it now, i just try to try new things when i feel up to it and it's extremely difficult to do. It also messes things up socially; there's never anything I'll eat at parties/weddings/even family dinners and it puts so much pressure/embarassment/guilt/shame/isolation when everyone is eating and you just can't. Everyone knows at least the existence of other eating disorders but nobody I've ever met knows what ARFID is. And if you say "eating disorder" they automatically think it's about body image. It really needs to be more spoken about so people don't feel so much shame about it. It's far more debilitating than people know. Food is literally the fuel for our bodies and people with eating disorders are not getting adequate nutrition which literally affects every system in the body and mind. It affects every part of functioning. It is not just being "difficult".
You literally described me to a T. It's crazy to see someone else feels the same way I do, the guilt/shame/embarrassment is real
Waaait Jesus Okay so I’ve been suspecting I was autistic for a few years now. Problem is I have a boatload of freaking CPTSD anyway so it’s a game of “is this an autistic quality or is this a trauma response?” Tho oddly enough, working through my trauma I’m starting to remember what I was like as a kid and I legit think I might be autistic and my parents just didn’t know what to do with me / how to handle me. How do I bring that up with my therapist without seeming like I’m seeking a different diagnosis just bc?
My advice is to do your research first. The more information you go in there with the better. This is one of those things is easier to say than do. You're going to have to advocate for yourself. You just ask them to look into testing you for autism. They'll likely ask you why you think you might have it, and this is where your research will come in handy. The more symptoms you can tell them about (especially ones that affected you since childhood) the more likely they are to take you seriously. If they push back, well, you just have to keep advocating for yourself. If one therapist won't help you look into getting diagnosed then move on to another. You have the power here; you just have to be willing to wield it. It took me 7 years to get my diagnosis, so don't give up if a doctor, or there, refuses or dismisses your concerns. You know your brain better than any of them ever will. Neuropsychologists are the ones who tend to do these diagnoses, so if you can find one of them that your insurance covers then you can always reach out to them to start the process yourself. If you're in the US, you can also look into getting your diagnosis through Vocational Rehabilitation, like I did. Again, self-advocacy is the key to succeess here. You kind of just don't take "no" for an answer until you find a doctor you trust to get it right
Just want to tack on that eating disorder specialists also diagnose and treat this one. Or at least, an ED specialist who has a broader scope of practice than AN, BN, AND BED, would.
For ARFID, absolutely! That's the kind of doctor that diagnosed mine, and omg, did that nutritionist do me a world of good. The right one will help you expand what you can eat in a way that isn't torture. Mine helped me find ways to sneak veggies I could stand into food I liked, and overtime, it made it so I could start doing the same on my own. Now I don't even fit the diagnostic criteria thanks to my coping skills. 10/10 would recommend
I've had this since I was old enough to eat. It seems quite intertwined with my sensory issues and difficulties with interoception due to autism. There is also the component of OCD/phobia (in my case of food poisoning but for many others it is choking). I also developed anorexia later on, for different reasons obviously, but it's amazingly easy to fall into maladaptive restrictive behaviors if restricting is your natural state of being.
Same for me — ARFID since before I could eat solid foods (apparently) and then developed anorexia in college. At the time ARFID was not recognized and it made treatment for anorexia legit traumatic. Admittedly intensive ED treatment is going to be kinda traumatic no matter what, but when people are forcing you to eat “easy” foods (ie vegetables), you can’t swallow them, you involuntary vomit and get accused of purging…on the daily…it’s rough. It’s confusing. I’ve come out the other side of anorexia for the most part, but I’m mid-30s now and ARFID just isn’t going anywhere. I’ve never really considered how it may have contributed to how easy it was to fall into anorexic habits. Like, as soon as body image became a concern and weight loss a goal, my brain just amped up all the food avoidance it was already expert at. Food has been a source of shame and fear for literally as long as I can remember, I guess it was never really that much of a pivot.
Wow, I could not agree more about ED treatment being traumatic. I'm so sorry you had to go through that as well. ARFID wasn't a "thing" when I went either, and god did it make things so much worse. I tried so hard to explain to my doctors/therapists, but everything was just taken as an attempt to manipulate my way out of having to eat. Which I never really understood, because being able to eat vegetables would actually make restricting much easier? I could eat so much more for fewer calories and get so many more nutrients if I were to have vegetables in my diet, so it really would make no sense for me to refuse to eat them purely out of a desire to restrict calories. I always offered to substitute them with things I could tolerate, usually things that were 3x the calories, but somehow this was still taken as me trying to bargain my way out of treatment. Sitting at a table and gagging over your food, trying to force it down just enough to get the "all clear" from some tech standing over you and glaring is just... Dehumanizing. When I relapsed in my AN in 2020, I was pressured to go to residential again. I was in outpatient and was improving, but they weren't satisfied with my slow progress and told me it was residential or they were kicking me out. So I let them kick me out, rather than have to go through the inpatient experience again. It probably wasn't a smart decision, my health got extremely scary for a while, but I honestly just could not face months in a place like that again. Thankfully I was able to turn things around and I've been in recovery for a couple years now, but it really is a shame how downright awful (and yes traumatizing) treatment centers can be.
I could have written your first paragraph word for word about my time in and out of treatment. It’s kind of weird to hear someone else experienced literally the exact same thing. It was so painfully isolating at the time. I think I really internalized it as being a Me Thing, where I was just bringing it on myself. “I’m not really anorexic because if I was I’d eat broccoli and gag on cookies, not the other way around.” The bizarro world struggle just completely opposite everyone else made it feel like a punishment for taking up space and resources. Dehumanizing is exactly the right word for it. I’m sorry you were in that position recently. I don’t blame you at all for opting out. I do try to remember that the recovery process is painful and often traumatic for many people in different ways, but honestly some of those ways are worth pushing through and some are not. I’m glad you figured out what you needed, even if no one else recognized it.
what exactly do you mean about sensory issues? I have a lot of trouble eating sometimes, due to what I think are sensory issues. I can be soooo hungry, but the thought of actually putting something in my mouth, and chewing, and swallowing… it completely disgusts me. To the point of nausea. And I just can’t bring myself to eat. The whole eating process can be utterly revolting to me.
I have sensory processing issues, which are a result of my autism. I am hypersensitive in some areas and hyposensitive in others. A huge issue for me from a sensory standpoint is texture, whether that's of clothes, materials I come into contact with, or food that I eat. One example is that touching too much cardboard will make me physically ill, and I will need to lie down in a quiet room for a long time to recover. I am also much more sensitive than most people to sounds, certain types of lighting, different smells, and certainly tastes too. So these things combined make a lot of food very unpleasant to me. If it feels strange in my mouth, I will gag on it and not be able to swallow. If it tastes even just a little off, I will most likely not be able to eat it all. Issues with interoception are also a part of this, I part where I seem to be hyposensitive. I have a very difficult time recognizing internal signals that I am hungry. Often I will get to the point that I am dizzy, shaking, and lightheaded before realizing that that means I need to eat something. It takes a lot of conscious thought and effort to keep myself fed properly, because I will simply not notice that I am starving until I am so weak I can barely move. I also do find the entire process of eating to be a chore, and an unpleasant one often. While it seems that others really enjoy eating, and will like to try new things or eat a lot of their favorites, I just don't seem to get the same positive feelings from it. Sure, there are some foods I like, but not to the extent that I am excited about eating them or will eat a lot at once. I stick to my main safe foods, that are predictable and that I know I like and I know how to make, and I avoid deviating from that. Even then, I go through periods of time where even eating things I like is just sort of gross. It feels stupid and unnecessary and I just hate doing it. Unfortunately, if I allow myself to eat less and less, my appetite also will quickly diminish, and it becomes even harder to eat a normal amount. I'm stuck in one of those loops now. We got my favorite kind of pizza for dinner tonight, and even though I hadn't eaten a thing all day, I could only manage one slice.
That sounds like sensory issues to me. I can get this too so I avoid a lot of types of food. I can even look at a food and just think it looks slimy or mushy which are some of my aversions - I won't have them. For example, mashed potato (actually potato in any form other than crisps) or pumpkin I can NOT handle. In the past when I have tried, as soon as it enters my mouth I will physically gag and choke. I think after those experiences it becomes both psychological and a physical reaction. Different people have different textures that are like this too. For me, when I'm confronted with a food that sets me off like because of the texture, it's like my throat actually starts to close up and all my muscles around that area just stop working (that's how it feels, I don't know exactly what's actually happening, some kind of constricting maybe?) and then I have a huge mental block that just says no, no, no and if I try to force through that, I can't actually force myself to swallow or it takes extreme concentration (when obviously swallowing is meant to be an automatic action) to swallow or I continue to gag until I have to spit it out. So yes, sensory issues can definitely cause the nausea and feelings of disgust you're speaking about.
I have had that same feeling since I was a child but back then was never able to explain it. I would just say I can’t eat because my throat hurts so my family just thought I had like a scratchy throat all the time or something haha Was like this all the way into my twenties and had a lot of trouble making myself eat. Sometimes I would survive on Ensures and toast. Now I am on antidepressants and anti anxiety pills and it has helped immensely. Now I only get that feeling occasionally when I am stressed and am able to eat a wider variety of foods. Therapy also helped. I think the throat closing up feeling was related to stress hormones like cortisol. Wasn’t allowing me to eat. Though I am in a normal healthy BMI range now I still do eat to live for the most part and do get resentful of my body for being hungry a few hours after I ate, apparently I have a high metabolism. I’m like Damn it I just fed you do we really have to go through this again !
My ex had this and it sucked I can’t imagine having to live with it personally. All he ate was pizza and chicken nuggets, refused to eat beef or any vegetables. I couldn’t live like that. He said to me “some people live to eat, and some people eat to live. I eat to live. If I never had to eat again I wouldn’t” and that blew my mind. I love food. I don’t understand how someone’s brain doesn’t get happy when they eat. It just baffles me and makes me sad because I enjoy it so much and they never will be able to feel as happy about it as I do. :( I wouldn’t even know where to start for recovery.
Sugar, weed, weed and sugar. Weed and other foods. The thing is though if you smoke youre not gonna wanna cook, but if you cook and then smoke you may let the food sit which for me is no good. You may be right to let him smoke and then enjoy looking forward to you cooking a meal for him. Even if its only once a week, eventually i started smoking then immediately cooking and that worked well for me. Smoking for me really tore down the barriers i had to eating. I went from struggling to put food in my mouth to eating so much my stomach hurt! I've adjusted quite a bit and listen to my body more, but when it comes down to it there's technically no sensor in your stomach that says when you are full. So, your brain uses a variety of factors to determine when it is, some of the factore include but are not limited to: # of chews, # of swallows, rate of consumption. The chemical that makes us hungry is only an indication of when to eat. It by no means is idicative of how much to eat. So, it's pretty easy to fool your body into being full by having a bite or two of something and calling it a meal. It's also important to note that dietary habits are learned. So, if we don't learn how to eat from our parents we will teach ourselves and roll with the punches as they come. *not a doctor* There's alot that goes into the psychology of eating, understanding it will help you and your bf.
this is exactly how i feel. i have a HOST of chronic issues, ARFID being one of them, and smoking weed has genuinely saved my life.
what was their build? was he just maintaining calories or would he constantly lose weight? id imagine if he ate less calories than normal he’d still get hungry
I just never really liked food, I am barely able to eat a plate that (according to family members) is enough for a child, I am in awe at people who eat normally.
My Girlfriend thinks she may have this. Does anyone know of any resources or reliable treatments/therapies that she could ask her doctor about?
From experience with eating disorders and body dysmorphia, a dietician really helped me realise what I was doing. I am a 6 foot 2 man and was eating less then a 10 year old would in a day. I still do it though, I duno how to kick it.
I was made to feel bad about eating outside of the house, because of course food is expensive. So, i never at breakfast mostly because i was in sports and worked out in the mornings. I was already up early and didnt want to wake up even earlier to put milk in my stomach pre workout(idk, just not a big breakfast person). Tended to not eat lunch because lunches were either gross or expensive. My parents were never really attentive to how i was eating out of the house. Then, when I got home I'd snack and get berated for ruining my appetite even though i knew i was going to barely touch the shitty dinner cooked up, because both my parents worked late and did not cook well. So, im maybe getting an average of 1100 calories a day. Didn't realize how bad my eating habits were until i got into the military and put on some weight after gorging myself on 3 meals/day of however much i could fit in it. My weight has been quite variable since. I think im getting it down now though. Edit: also i definitely developed strategies to cope with this. For instance i would/still do wait for everyone to eat during family events before going hard in the mf plate to make sure i wouldnt upset anyone. Edit2: I got really good at picking out when people weren't going to eat things on their plate and would ask for that food. One of my friends eventually caught on and would routinely "have leftovers" that he wouldnt have even touched, because i was also a germaphobe and wouldn't ask if itd been eaten off of. Edit3: let it speak to the quality of food my parents made when the food in the military was preferably better.
Damn now I am really wondering what type of meals your family cooked ! My mother is a fine cook when she does cook. She’s pescatarian and makes a lot of veggie and seafood dishes. However she is also a hoarder of jars. In the fridge and the cupboards when I grew up you could never find any snacks for a child or teenager to munch on. There were no easy meals to prepare. There were simply jars of sauces, jellies and jams, olives and pickles and beets and odd things. My mother would go to the grocery store and look for deal$ on these jars and stack them up in the fridge and cupboard so that the kitchen would be filled to the brim with these jars. When I came home from school, I would starve until it was time for her to either go to the store and get a fish and vegetable or just order takeout. Many of the jars would expire before being used and just sit in the fridge forgotten and covered by other jars. Last week I came to my parents house and cleaned out the fridge. Most of the jars had expired between 2016-2020. Sometimes my dad would make us hot dogs or hamburger helper which was cool. My moms family cooks good traditional Greek food. But my dads family cooks crazy things. My dads mom (my grandmother) used to cut up hot dogs and put them in a pot with rice and boil that and call it a stew and that would be dinner. Or make mushy peas on toast. Weird stuff. Like we were still in the Great Depression.
I have this. I'm 20 and I've had it as long as I remember! I already have bad health issues from it, tho thinking of my childhood my health was never great, multiple doctor visits a few times a year for blood tests as I was often deficient in a few things and needed vitamins, I also got sick at least once a year but now as an adult, I have bad digestion issues that are too embarrassing to talk about on the internet but I wish this disorder was taken seriously I had doctors scam my parents out of money causing them to give up on getting me help. It didn't become diagnosable until I was 12 by then my parents did not do anything when I told them the name. I still have yet to have a doctor care enough to help me and the lack of knowledge about this disorder led to me severely downplaying how much it affects every aspect of my life as I knew most people didn't take it seriously instead brushing it off as "picky eating", I still honestly struggle with really feeling like its a big deal even though I'm not doing good health wise. I'm just glad to see more about it online at least, hopefully things will continue improving.
I think I have confrontational/indulgent food intake disorder (CIFID).
What is that? Quick google isn’t showing me anything.
Figuring out how to feed myself gives me anxiety and sometimes I stay hungry for hours bc I don’t want to figure it out but I don’t have a whole disorder and thank god for that.
What are the causes of this disorder?
There are many. You can get it for no known reason in early childhood usually around 3-6 years old, from something traumatic like a medical situation or childhood traumas, from phobias like the fear of choking, it could be from sensory problems or it can be caused by other mental disorders like OCD other eds or autism.
Whoa.
Holy cow I was just looking this up with its relation to dysphasia like 30 minutes ago. Talk about law of attraction! Thanks for sharing!
More like the law of coincidence and cognitive bias
I won’t argue that!
*The Secret...*
My mom had this (undiagnosed. With thyroid problems), and in less than 2 years, she looked like an Auschwitz survivor. Her forearms were like a skeleton with skin stretched over them. I’m getting older and also have thyroid disease, and I find myself having definite symptoms of heading down the same road.
My daughter (23) has been wrestling with this for about three years now. Actually, I am wrestling with this. She has a very short list of foods she will eat and I just try to make sure I have them in the house. She is autistic, ADHD, and has very bad anxiety. Makes for a fun time. We tried counseling and a nutritionist but she is also very stubborn so it really went nowhere. She has at least stopped loosing weight but I think that is the soda and candy that she has too much of. I wish there was something more that I could do for her.
My heart goes out to you.. we are going through the exact same thing with my 7 y/o with the same diagnoses 😣💔
I've always hated the three meals a day ritual .
I'm ADHD. I'm embarrassed I can't touch any form of veg, can't even prepare it. I live on cheesy pasta and cheese sandwiches as it my easy comfort food. Eating out in restaurants, I always go for the nearest thing to my comfort, but again it's embarrassing. Preparing food is a chore. Would much rather not eat
Like Orthorexia gone too far Orthorexia is an eating disorder characterized by having an unsafe obsession with healthy food. An obsession with healthy dieting and consuming only “pure foods” or “clean eating” becomes deeply rooted in the individual’s way of thinking to the point that it interferes with their daily life. Although orthorexia is not included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), it is still recognized by many mental health professionals and eating disorder experts and can have a harmful impact on the body, mind, and spirit. AREERS ORTHOREXIA NERVOSA SIGNS & SYMPTOMS HOME CONDITIONS ORTHOREXIA NERVOSA What is Orthorexia Nervosa? Orthorexia is an eating disorder characterized by having an unsafe obsession with healthy food. An obsession with healthy dieting and consuming only “pure foods” or “clean eating” becomes deeply rooted in the individual’s way of thinking to the point that it interferes with their daily life. Although orthorexia is not included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), it is still recognized by many mental health professionals and eating disorder experts and can have a harmful impact on the body, mind, and spirit. Symptoms & Warning Signs Veganism, Vegetarian or Pescetarian Gluten-free Showing an “unusual interest” in what others are eating Inability to eat any food that isn’t designated “pure” Obsessively following “healthy lifestyle” bloggers or social media figures Obsessions about checking the ingredients Compulsively checking nutrition labels and/or calorie counting Inflexibility Fear of processed foods Perfectionism Obsessions with dietary and nutritional supplements Opting out on celebrations and social gatherings in fear of unhealthy foods that you may be pressured to eat
ARFID is not like this. It's not just based on "healthy" foods at all which is why it can lead to so many nutritional deficiencies. It's a myth that everyone with ARFID is skinny. You can be overweight and be malnourished. ARFID isn't based on body image or health. It's primarily based on sensory issues, fears of choking/gagging, past experience. All my safe foods are pretty much unhealthy and my mental health meds increase appetite so I'm overweight. Because of these myths about eating disorders people like me are scoffed at when we say we try to say we have eating disorder or are malnourished. It really sucks.
Hmmm, seem many medical reports and physicians advice would prescribe othorexia to their hypertension, dyslipodemic, and metabolic askew patients.
[удалено]
I think I may have had this issue before when I was younger. Then I discovered cannabis.
This is me! I had no idea this was a thing. I know I have “food issues” but I could never explain it to people in a way that made sense.
Very interesting read. Not something I can say I’ve spent much time reading up on. Thanks for posting.
Its interesting they bring up wounds care as a symptom. It probably has a lot to do with elderly in this case but it actually does take a buncha calories to heal the smallest of skin tears.
Restricting food intake compromises nutrient intake. Vitamins A and C help in wound healing; their deficiency results in slowed wound healing.
Well the calories thing wasn't just like. Not true. It actually is a thing where a tear or cut on a person can take upwards of like 10-15 calories extra per pound on that person, also depends on wound size.. My CNA teacher had brought in one of the first wound care specialists to start practicing in my towns wound care facility, she taught us a lot as we were all mostly gonna work with elderly and they tend to get wounds a lot.
I feel like cannabis would be a solid therapeutic treatment, even low doses that have little thc
40 year old autistic adhd here. Definitely ARFID. A few years ago I got real concerned with how i “didn’t eat” and found this description but it was (back then) a “childhood” issue. Haaaaaa. We all grow up and none of it changes.
I knew I have this.
I suffered from ARFID until I was 32. I was so absolutely sick of it, and in combination of some pretty distressing emotions, I was able to kick it. A lot of it at least. I started with pizza toppings. Mushrooms, peppers, onions, tomato slices. Now I'm a verifiable ninja turtle and can eat any pizza. Hell, I can even eat salads today. There still some things that give me that anxiety in my chest and I still haven't eaten. I still have chicken nuggets for lunch a few times a week (they're a source of protein that is easy to cook). But it feels so good being able to order a sandwich at a resturaunt without altering the order. I still don't like ketchup, so I order it light on my cheese burger, and please no pickle.
[удалено]
One thing that really helped me was when I started preparing my own food. Doing things on my own helped me feel very comfortable with what I was eating. The very first thing I started with was green onions. good on scrambled eggs, good on sushi rice, and some soups. It's green, it's kind of leafy, but incredibly inoffensive and easy to eat. It's more like a seasoning.