Thank you for this...My son has literally just gone from eating anyhing and everything in sight since he was weaned, to having developed a massive fear of choking in the last few weeks. He has no idea why this has become a fear (he's not seen or experienced it), but it's been a lot of tears and frustration from all of us. The sad thing is he knows he is hungry and wants to ''eat like a normal person'. You have given me a lot of empowerment as a parent to help him and to just go with what he feels he can eat and to build it up. Thank you x
This has been my life for a year now. My daughter is now 9.5. It started a year ago. She's always been a bit scared of throwing up, but after an illness last winter where she threw up a couple times it became a HUGE problem. She had only thrown up once and while she still had a low fever and didn't seem well, we pushed her to eat thinking she was just weak from not eating for so many days. However, when we practically made her drink gatorade it made her throw up. She was fearful of eating coming out of that illness but seemed to bounce back. Then randomly a few weeks later she suddenly panicked again and would not eat. Of course it's always hard to tell if your child really is sick, or if it's just anxiety. We often thought she had reflux too, which wasn't helping. But finally got a scope done and it showed no sign of any physical issues, so we know it's her anxiety. She would live on pediasure alone happily if I let her. I have to pretty much make her try solids...and even then it's like basic basic stuff and she won't eat things like pizza or hot dogs that she used to wolf down at all anymore. She has a panic attack over ingesting almost anything. Even gummy vitamins or melatonin. It's a total head game. People tell me to just make her eat. Or oh she'll eat when she's hungry. No....she won't....and no that doesn't work. I can't tell you how lonely and frustrating and horrible it makes you feel. We've been doing OT and play/talk therapy and some ERP for almost a year now. She is now on anxiety meds, but I think she needs an increased dose. She is also highly sensitive, and has super sensitive hearing, touch, taste, smell etc. So she feels everything more deeply than your average kid. She has anxiety and OCD. We have always seen tendancies, even when she was two! But overall we kind of just kept moving with life. It wasn't until she was panicking spitting food out and having full blown panic attacks that we started to freak out too. We start to make progress, but then we lose it. Germ season isn't helping. I feel like the ROOT of the problem is fear of throwing up. But it is so hard to overcome. It's been close to a year and I just feel like we are so far from where I'd like her to be still. She used to love school and now hates it and barely eats all day at school. I often find spit out food into her thermos if she panics when trying to eat she spits it down the straw. I feel like we are never going to get over it. We did feeding therapy for a while, but even that very little has stuck. It is so hard. And no one understands. It makes it hard to travel, we can't go out to eat, we can't go to a party and just expect she'll find something she likes. It affects every day life. I just want my girl back. I want her to eat pizza and popcorn and be a kid again.
Thank you! Omg my 3 yr old this has been such a struggle for over a year and getting worse not better. The doctor was like well he isn't malnourished so I wouldn't worry. I do. He runs screaming if you recommend something he doesn't want even if he liked it yesterday.
My 10 year-old son has been diagnosed with severe anxiety, mild depression, and OCD tendencies. His list of "go-to" foods has been consistently shrinking. Things he once enjoyed are no longer acceptable to him. I don't know why this never occurred to me as a product of his anxiety. Thank you for making this video. I have been watching all your videos, and subscribed to your channel. You have such a great way of explaining things, and making them easy to understand! I;m so glad I found your channel!
Sorry to hear about your son’s struggles Katherine. Restrictive eating along with anxiety and OCD symptoms can be a sign of PANDAS/PANS. You might want to read more about that possibility. www.pandasnetwork.org
My 10 year old brother fears food and no one around seems to understand, even the consultant and doctors don't. Until now, i know that he fears the texture, for example, if it's grainy, or contains many colors or flavors, or those 'dots' from seasoning, or food like rice that isn't a whole lump. It's also the toughest to convince him try new food if he cant relate it to any of his favorites. He also fears swallowing. We once had a sit-down talking session with videos and all about munching, and how we have different capable teeth and saliva to make it work, after that he was able to try chicken and beef and that was a HUGE progress, even though we still struggle to make him eat them each time. this isn't a desirable method, but some time we get desperate to make him try a specific food that looks tough to him, so we resort to tempt him with things he likes to do, for example i'd say that i will let him use my laptop for half an hour of he ate this one meatball. lately i noticed how he becomes more acceptant when he's sick, i believe he's gets scared that it's the result of his eating anxiety. I think the current struggle is to get him to add these new foods to his 'favorites' and be able to eat them any time, because even when we succeed in making him test new food, he won't choose to eat it willingly later on. What a long comment. Thank you for sharing this video.
I think you are on the right track. Hopefully he is seeing a therapist who understands this issue. I will often set up prizes for when kids take a food “challenge” and eat something they are anxious about. This helps motivate kids.
Yes this is my daughter she is 4 and has had anxiety she wont eat fruit and hardly any vegetables I just scheduled her with a therapist. My 2 year old son eats everything I know nutrition is showing a big difference. Pediatricians have not been helpful because they say there isn't food therapists for her specific issues. I have recently purchased a chew neckless for her and that has allowed her to get the courage to try a new food but that's it she still won't eat more than one bite and the next week it's the same long process for her to try it again. She has to bite the chew neckless for a while have a cup of milk ready a paper towel ready in case she gags and all this stuff. But maybe it's making a difference now because her process is all new like a month ago. So hopefully it works. Thanks for the helpful video glad to know I'm not alone with a fear food child!
Ohh my dear!! Where were you. I finally can give a name to my 7 uesrs old daughter's problem. I have lost count of how many doctors I went to and all would just say that leave her alone and she will eat when hungry....it never happened. Her eating is deteriorating...she can't swallow...she says that she can't swallow...she just keeps the food in her mouth and thats it...doesn't chew, doesn't swallow...gets scared at food time. We ga e stopped going to family functions as everyone judges her and us. She is a gifted child with ocd and focus issues. This is really going to help me. Cant thank you enough.
I do have a fear of eating because. All foods gets me to Throw up. So what should I do. That’s my serious fear since last year. What do you think I should do? Justin Television 📺.
My son is autistic and after he threw up he stopped eating. H drinks only milk and chips im so lost you cannot explain it to him. I dont know what to do
Hi, thank you so much for this information. My son is 2 years and 9 Months and has had problems with food since weaning. I mentioned my concerns to my midwife at the beginning but she said not to worry as it could be a phase and he would grow out of it. But 2 years later he is still extremely fussy and will only eat what he likes - I can literally count 6 foods he will eat without a fuss. I feel like I have to force him to eat anything different or nutritious. He will always gag before the first bite, he will make himself sick and cry every meal time. I am truly at a loss as to what to do. I have tried introducing him to new foods through play, even had him “help me cook” - this morning we made pancakes and added his favourite chocolate and guess what he refused it ! What kid doesn’t like chocolate pancakes? I just don’t understand why he is so fearful of new food. Do I need to seek a child therapist?
Hi Shelly, My daughter had the same issue. It is called ARFID (Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder). You can learn more about it here www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/learn/by-eating-disorder/arfid/overview. I recommend finding a feeding therapist who specializes in this issue. I eventually got my child a feeding therapist. She is now 14 and eating fine.
Thanks you for your video. It makes me feel better about my situation. My 3 year old has bever been the greatest eater. He goes through stages where he will est better than other stages. The last 6 weeks have been a nightmare. Before that, he ate okay, maybe 5 or 6 foods (pasta, cheerios, milk, pbj's, sweets). Then he got a cold and his apetite changed. It also happened that I found out I am pregnant. Maybe he senses something? Like I said, his apetite changed in the last 6 weeks. But this week has been the worst. He is afraid of eating because he doesn't want to "break" his food, he won't eat cookies or candies because he is afraid of breaking them. Sometimes he looks hungry but his fear or anxiety is bigger. It is heartbreaking. I noticed he is doing better with liquid foods. (We still take too long to feed him those but at least he doesn't show as much anxiety as with solids). I am desperate. I want help for him and for us parents. We are so stressed out and it's just draining our energy every day. We want to be able to help him and understand him. Same as you Doctor and family say not to worry but REALLY? the kid is throwing up almost from not having food in his system and his weight and height always have been in the lowest numbers of the growth chart. This goes beyond being picky. Anyway, he definitely is an anxious kid. He will have behaviours like: sleeping with 20 stuffed animals and if we take one off the bed he will notice it in the middle of the night and make a big deal out of it. He likes things in a certain way, he hates new things, he hates if we touch his food. He hates (freaks out) if we take off his socks, etc. I wish we could find a way to help him. Me (mom) have anxiety problems myself and I am probably not the best example or influence around him. Thanks
Sounds rough :-( I would definitely get him into a child therapist who specializes in anxiety. The earlier you can treat anxiety the better. Restrictive eating can cause ARFID - a disorder that causes severe anxiety and weight loss. A good therapist can give you tools to help address those issues and empower him. You can also find tools to help on my site anxioustoddlers.com or in my book How to Parent an Anxious Toddler. I am raising three anxious kiddos and they all started off that way. I wish you the best!
My son is 4.5 years old and has started not eating lunch or dinner. He says that he is scared that the food is going to make him sick or unwell. It all started when he was unwell and was sick on his plate. We think he has sensory processing disorder because he doesn't like loud noises, food, I have to cut the edges or skin off sausages. I don't like this because its squidgy etc. I am waiting to see the health visitor who is coming to visit me on 10th June and then hopefully she can refer him to the doctor or specialist. He keeps saying that he is scared in his bedroom of the dark lately and have to keep the light on until he falls asleep. I am not to worried about the sensory side it's the not eating. He is only eating custard, yoghurts at the moment.
My 3yr has basically gradually stopped eating at 15 months. He was considered failure to thrive. He has been in therapy after therapy. They think its might be sensory but they are not completely sure. . Nothing has helped he is 3 now and on formula! Drs are stumped, therapy has not helped...we don't even know our next step and have no idea where to turn anymore. Im feeling more and more lost.
@@jagriticreates4536 he has maybe 4 safe foods he will eat. He is 5 now still on formula. We had him recently reevaluated for autism. He now has been diagnosed with ocd,adhd, arfid, autism. The autism diagnosis blind sided us because he didn't seem to fit criteria for that to and untrained eye. He is about to start intense aba therapy. He has a iep in place for school for how they are allowed to approach him about foods so things are moving forward. But I think this will be a life long struggle.
@@jagriticreates4536 also has yours ever eaten any food? Or has he just stopped? Mine used to eat then slowly starting having issues with food. After ruling out all medical possibilities like cheek,tounge, and lip ties. Get a swallow study done. Then I would continue to keep searching for a dr that listens to you to get to to the bottom of it. Wr went through pediatricians, gi drs, ent drs until we finally got referred to psychology.
My son has OCD aniexy. It is a real thing, he's even thrown up cuz I forced him before I knew what he was going through. He's been in food therapy about a year now gain some new foods.
Hello. I'm so glad and thankful I found your video!!! How did you reframe your son's thinking about food? Can you give me some examples? I have 6 years old daughter who has really big eating issues which started when she was about 3 years old. She gradually stopped eating basically all animal products ( except eating yogurts and drinking milk) because of what they come from. She also stopped eating other food because of how it looks, feels, smells, and is made from ( e.g. Are French fries made of potatoes? I don't want to eat it anymore). She basically only eats most fruits, couple of vegetables, buns, bread, snack food like some crackers, some cereal bars, Cheerios, sometimes sims nuts or seeds and that's it. She doesn't eat any cooked food and looks at it with real fear and disgusted. My doctors are no help because they think she will grow out of this and there is no problem. I know that with time it's worse and worse. I'm really not sure who could help us. Ps- she is also very sensitive girl and she might have some anxiety because she worries about everything too much. I think her eating disorder is connected with her anxiety. Her younger sister, thanks God, is eating normal. Thank you for your response in advance
Sorry to hear about your daughter’s struggles. It is too bad that so many doctors don’t understand this issue. Unfortunately that sounds like it could be ARFID (Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder). You can read more about that here: www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/learn/by-eating-disorder/arfid. The best thing to do is get her into therapy, as ARFID can be very serious over time, as kids don’t gain weight. Typically an anxiety or OCD specialist can help the best with this issue. You can look for someone here: www.iocdf.org/find-help.
We're at a bad point right now. So I'm trying to absorb all of your content. My daughter has recently developed an aversion to all of her go-to foods and is trying to only have liquids.
Sorry to hear that Adam. This podcast episode might help. I walk through how to handle ARFID (restrictive eating): www.anxioustoddlers.com/arfid-and-ocd/
What about a 2 year old that can’t communicate verbally and is afraid to eat ANYTHING and hasn’t for a month and a half now other than milk and yogurt or ice cream sometimes frosting from the cookie dip cups but avoids the cookies. It all stemmed from choking due to tonsils and choking. Having to rip him out of seat and flip him over to save his life. We had to beg the ENT Surgeon to take them out but that’s not for another 3 months and he’s already lost 4 pounds in the last month and a half. He is and was a big boy, not fat but at the top of the charts. He took a KitKat yesterday but only licked the chocolate off of it..!! We finally have a meeting with a speech/food therapist this coming week but after finding your video I wanted to see if you had any ideas. We’ve done the shakes, drinks, apple sauce etc. and they all work for a day or two but then he gives up on it. Any ideas or thoughts would be more than helpful. And yes we’ve heard the same thing from doctors, “ don’t worry about it he still looks healthy and is still healthy “ all the labs known to man kind done etc. clearly not because now he’s losing LB. It kills my wife and I to see him go each day without eating.
Thank you for this...My son has literally just gone from eating anyhing and everything in sight since he was weaned, to having developed a massive fear of choking in the last few weeks. He has no idea why this has become a fear (he's not seen or experienced it), but it's been a lot of tears and frustration from all of us. The sad thing is he knows he is hungry and wants to ''eat like a normal person'. You have given me a lot of empowerment as a parent to help him and to just go with what he feels he can eat and to build it up. Thank you x
Glad you found this helpful. I know first hand how scary food issues can be.
This has been my life for a year now. My daughter is now 9.5. It started a year ago. She's always been a bit scared of throwing up, but after an illness last winter where she threw up a couple times it became a HUGE problem. She had only thrown up once and while she still had a low fever and didn't seem well, we pushed her to eat thinking she was just weak from not eating for so many days. However, when we practically made her drink gatorade it made her throw up. She was fearful of eating coming out of that illness but seemed to bounce back. Then randomly a few weeks later she suddenly panicked again and would not eat. Of course it's always hard to tell if your child really is sick, or if it's just anxiety. We often thought she had reflux too, which wasn't helping. But finally got a scope done and it showed no sign of any physical issues, so we know it's her anxiety. She would live on pediasure alone happily if I let her. I have to pretty much make her try solids...and even then it's like basic basic stuff and she won't eat things like pizza or hot dogs that she used to wolf down at all anymore. She has a panic attack over ingesting almost anything. Even gummy vitamins or melatonin. It's a total head game. People tell me to just make her eat. Or oh she'll eat when she's hungry. No....she won't....and no that doesn't work. I can't tell you how lonely and frustrating and horrible it makes you feel. We've been doing OT and play/talk therapy and some ERP for almost a year now. She is now on anxiety meds, but I think she needs an increased dose. She is also highly sensitive, and has super sensitive hearing, touch, taste, smell etc. So she feels everything more deeply than your average kid. She has anxiety and OCD. We have always seen tendancies, even when she was two! But overall we kind of just kept moving with life. It wasn't until she was panicking spitting food out and having full blown panic attacks that we started to freak out too. We start to make progress, but then we lose it. Germ season isn't helping. I feel like the ROOT of the problem is fear of throwing up. But it is so hard to overcome. It's been close to a year and I just feel like we are so far from where I'd like her to be still. She used to love school and now hates it and barely eats all day at school. I often find spit out food into her thermos if she panics when trying to eat she spits it down the straw. I feel like we are never going to get over it. We did feeding therapy for a while, but even that very little has stuck. It is so hard. And no one understands. It makes it hard to travel, we can't go out to eat, we can't go to a party and just expect she'll find something she likes. It affects every day life. I just want my girl back. I want her to eat pizza and popcorn and be a kid again.
Hy, How is your Daughter now? I am facing the same path with my 8 years old and I am so terrified…
My son is 11 and his menu is a list of 5-7 foods. Same here, we can't travel, go to a restaurant, to a party... Even his friends birthday party
Thank you! Omg my 3 yr old this has been such a struggle for over a year and getting worse not better. The doctor was like well he isn't malnourished so I wouldn't worry. I do. He runs screaming if you recommend something he doesn't want even if he liked it yesterday.
My 10 year-old son has been diagnosed with severe anxiety, mild depression, and OCD tendencies. His list of "go-to" foods has been consistently shrinking. Things he once enjoyed are no longer acceptable to him. I don't know why this never occurred to me as a product of his anxiety. Thank you for making this video. I have been watching all your videos, and subscribed to your channel. You have such a great way of explaining things, and making them easy to understand! I;m so glad I found your channel!
Sorry to hear about your son’s struggles Katherine. Restrictive eating along with anxiety and OCD symptoms can be a sign of PANDAS/PANS. You might want to read more about that possibility. www.pandasnetwork.org
Thank you. I'll definitely look into it!
My 10 year old brother fears food and no one around seems to understand, even the consultant and doctors don't.
Until now, i know that he fears the texture, for example, if it's grainy, or contains many colors or flavors, or those 'dots' from seasoning, or food like rice that isn't a whole lump. It's also the toughest to convince him try new food if he cant relate it to any of his favorites.
He also fears swallowing. We once had a sit-down talking session with videos and all about munching, and how we have different capable teeth and saliva to make it work, after that he was able to try chicken and beef and that was a HUGE progress, even though we still struggle to make him eat them each time.
this isn't a desirable method, but some time we get desperate to make him try a specific food that looks tough to him, so we resort to tempt him with things he likes to do, for example i'd say that i will let him use my laptop for half an hour of he ate this one meatball.
lately i noticed how he becomes more acceptant when he's sick, i believe he's gets scared that it's the result of his eating anxiety.
I think the current struggle is to get him to add these new foods to his 'favorites' and be able to eat them any time, because even when we succeed in making him test new food, he won't choose to eat it willingly later on.
What a long comment. Thank you for sharing this video.
I think you are on the right track. Hopefully he is seeing a therapist who understands this issue. I will often set up prizes for when kids take a food “challenge” and eat something they are anxious about. This helps motivate kids.
Yes this is my daughter she is 4 and has had anxiety she wont eat fruit and hardly any vegetables I just scheduled her with a therapist. My 2 year old son eats everything I know nutrition is showing a big difference. Pediatricians have not been helpful because they say there isn't food therapists for her specific issues. I have recently purchased a chew neckless for her and that has allowed her to get the courage to try a new food but that's it she still won't eat more than one bite and the next week it's the same long process for her to try it again. She has to bite the chew neckless for a while have a cup of milk ready a paper towel ready in case she gags and all this stuff. But maybe it's making a difference now because her process is all new like a month ago. So hopefully it works. Thanks for the helpful video glad to know I'm not alone with a fear food child!
Ohh my dear!! Where were you. I finally can give a name to my 7 uesrs old daughter's problem. I have lost count of how many doctors I went to and all would just say that leave her alone and she will eat when hungry....it never happened. Her eating is deteriorating...she can't swallow...she says that she can't swallow...she just keeps the food in her mouth and thats it...doesn't chew, doesn't swallow...gets scared at food time. We ga e stopped going to family functions as everyone judges her and us.
She is a gifted child with ocd and focus issues.
This is really going to help me. Cant thank you enough.
Thank you! This helps me, as a mom, to decode meal time 🙌😄
I do have a fear of eating because. All foods gets me to Throw up. So what should I do. That’s my serious fear since last year. What do you think I should do? Justin Television 📺.
My son is autistic and after he threw up he stopped eating. H drinks only milk and chips im so lost you cannot explain it to him. I dont know what to do
Hi, thank you so much for this information. My son is 2 years and 9 Months and has had problems with food since weaning. I mentioned my concerns to my midwife at the beginning but she said not to worry as it could be a phase and he would grow out of it. But 2 years later he is still extremely fussy and will only eat what he likes - I can literally count 6 foods he will eat without a fuss. I feel like I have to force him to eat anything different or nutritious. He will always gag before the first bite, he will make himself sick and cry every meal time. I am truly at a loss as to what to do. I have tried introducing him to new foods through play, even had him “help me cook” - this morning we made pancakes and added his favourite chocolate and guess what he refused it ! What kid doesn’t like chocolate pancakes? I just don’t understand why he is so fearful of new food. Do I need to seek a child therapist?
Hi Shelly, My daughter had the same issue. It is called ARFID (Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder). You can learn more about it here www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/learn/by-eating-disorder/arfid/overview. I recommend finding a feeding therapist who specializes in this issue. I eventually got my child a feeding therapist. She is now 14 and eating fine.
Thanks you for your video. It makes me feel better about my situation. My 3 year old has bever been the greatest eater. He goes through stages where he will est better than other stages. The last 6 weeks have been a nightmare. Before that, he ate okay, maybe 5 or 6 foods (pasta, cheerios, milk, pbj's, sweets). Then he got a cold and his apetite changed. It also happened that I found out I am pregnant. Maybe he senses something?
Like I said, his apetite changed in the last 6 weeks. But this week has been the worst. He is afraid of eating because he doesn't want to "break" his food, he won't eat cookies or candies because he is afraid of breaking them. Sometimes he looks hungry but his fear or anxiety is bigger. It is heartbreaking. I noticed he is doing better with liquid foods. (We still take too long to feed him those but at least he doesn't show as much anxiety as with solids).
I am desperate. I want help for him and for us parents. We are so stressed out and it's just draining our energy every day. We want to be able to help him and understand him.
Same as you Doctor and family say not to worry but REALLY? the kid is throwing up almost from not having food in his system and his weight and height always have been in the lowest numbers of the growth chart. This goes beyond being picky.
Anyway, he definitely is an anxious kid. He will have behaviours like: sleeping with 20 stuffed animals and if we take one off the bed he will notice it in the middle of the night and make a big deal out of it. He likes things in a certain way, he hates new things, he hates if we touch his food. He hates (freaks out) if we take off his socks, etc. I wish we could find a way to help him.
Me (mom) have anxiety problems myself and I am probably not the best example or influence around him. Thanks
Sounds rough :-( I would definitely get him into a child therapist who specializes in anxiety. The earlier you can treat anxiety the better. Restrictive eating can cause ARFID - a disorder that causes severe anxiety and weight loss. A good therapist can give you tools to help address those issues and empower him. You can also find tools to help on my site anxioustoddlers.com or in my book How to Parent an Anxious Toddler. I am raising three anxious kiddos and they all started off that way. I wish you the best!
My son is 4.5 years old and has started not eating lunch or dinner. He says that he is scared that the food is going to make him sick or unwell. It all started when he was unwell and was sick on his plate. We think he has sensory processing disorder because he doesn't like loud noises, food, I have to cut the edges or skin off sausages. I don't like this because its squidgy etc. I am waiting to see the health visitor who is coming to visit me on 10th June and then hopefully she can refer him to the doctor or specialist. He keeps saying that he is scared in his bedroom of the dark lately and have to keep the light on until he falls asleep. I am not to worried about the sensory side it's the not eating. He is only eating custard, yoghurts at the moment.
My son is 6 and it started last year in school because he Seen a kid vomit at school so now he thinks he will so now he's nervous to eat
My 3yr has basically gradually stopped eating at 15 months. He was considered failure to thrive. He has been in therapy after therapy. They think its might be sensory but they are not completely sure. . Nothing has helped he is 3 now and on formula! Drs are stumped, therapy has not helped...we don't even know our next step and have no idea where to turn anymore. Im feeling more and more lost.
You might need to look into autism
Hey , did he started eating? My son is also 3 year old and he can not eat any solid food unable to chew anything.
@@jagriticreates4536 he has maybe 4 safe foods he will eat. He is 5 now still on formula. We had him recently reevaluated for autism. He now has been diagnosed with ocd,adhd, arfid, autism. The autism diagnosis blind sided us because he didn't seem to fit criteria for that to and untrained eye. He is about to start intense aba therapy. He has a iep in place for school for how they are allowed to approach him about foods so things are moving forward. But I think this will be a life long struggle.
@@jagriticreates4536 also has yours ever eaten any food? Or has he just stopped? Mine used to eat then slowly starting having issues with food. After ruling out all medical possibilities like cheek,tounge, and lip ties. Get a swallow study done. Then I would continue to keep searching for a dr that listens to you to get to to the bottom of it. Wr went through pediatricians, gi drs, ent drs until we finally got referred to psychology.
@@jamiesoares7108 Thanku so much for your quick reply . I wanna know more can you please tell me your Insta handle or something where we can talk
My son has OCD aniexy. It is a real thing, he's even thrown up cuz I forced him before I knew what he was going through. He's been in food therapy about a year now gain some new foods.
Does therepy help?
Hello. I'm so glad and thankful I found your video!!! How did you reframe your son's thinking about food? Can you give me some examples? I have 6 years old daughter who has really big eating issues which started when she was about 3 years old. She gradually stopped eating basically all animal products ( except eating yogurts and drinking milk) because of what they come from. She also stopped eating other food because of how it looks, feels, smells, and is made from ( e.g. Are French fries made of potatoes? I don't want to eat it anymore). She basically only eats most fruits, couple of vegetables, buns, bread, snack food like some crackers, some cereal bars, Cheerios, sometimes sims nuts or seeds and that's it. She doesn't eat any cooked food and looks at it with real fear and disgusted. My doctors are no help because they think she will grow out of this and there is no problem. I know that with time it's worse and worse. I'm really not sure who could help us. Ps- she is also very sensitive girl and she might have some anxiety because she worries about everything too much. I think her eating disorder is connected with her anxiety. Her younger sister, thanks God, is eating normal. Thank you for your response in advance
Sorry to hear about your daughter’s struggles. It is too bad that so many doctors don’t understand this issue. Unfortunately that sounds like it could be ARFID (Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder). You can read more about that here: www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/learn/by-eating-disorder/arfid. The best thing to do is get her into therapy, as ARFID can be very serious over time, as kids don’t gain weight. Typically an anxiety or OCD specialist can help the best with this issue. You can look for someone here: www.iocdf.org/find-help.
Thank you for your quick response!
We're at a bad point right now. So I'm trying to absorb all of your content. My daughter has recently developed an aversion to all of her go-to foods and is trying to only have liquids.
Sorry to hear that Adam. This podcast episode might help. I walk through how to handle ARFID (restrictive eating): www.anxioustoddlers.com/arfid-and-ocd/
Can't find the fear of poop video
I don’t have a YT video on it. Here is a podcast episode about it: www.anxioustoddlers.com/psp-016/
I don’t understand
I’m the only person that likes memes here
What about a 2 year old that can’t communicate verbally and is afraid to eat ANYTHING and hasn’t for a month and a half now other than milk and yogurt or ice cream sometimes frosting from the cookie dip cups but avoids the cookies. It all stemmed from choking due to tonsils and choking. Having to rip him out of seat and flip him over to save his life. We had to beg the ENT Surgeon to take them out but that’s not for another 3 months and he’s already lost 4 pounds in the last month and a half. He is and was a big boy, not fat but at the top of the charts. He took a KitKat yesterday but only licked the chocolate off of it..!! We finally have a meeting with a speech/food therapist this coming week but after finding your video I wanted to see if you had any ideas. We’ve done the shakes, drinks, apple sauce etc. and they all work for a day or two but then he gives up on it. Any ideas or thoughts would be more than helpful. And yes we’ve heard the same thing from doctors, “ don’t worry about it he still looks healthy and is still healthy “ all the labs known to man kind done etc.
clearly not because now he’s losing LB. It kills my wife and I to see him go each day without eating.
My son is in the same boat 3 autist he threw up once now only eats milk and chips we are desperate