Another picky eater - no lectures please (long post)

ncl1313

It sounds like your main meat issue is that you don't like the smell of it raw or cooking, but it's usually okay once it's done and in something, right? That's easily fixed...go for a walk or something while your husband cooks and don't come back until he's done. I don't like just eating a piece of chicken by itself either, but I love it cooked in things...pasta, stir fry, on pizza, shredded in mexican food, in casseroles, etc. Experiment with new recipes. Watch cooking shows and see if something sounds good.

As far as the homemade beef tasting gross and watery, there could be a couple reasons for this. Does your husband drain and then rinse the beef? Does he season it at all? When I get 90% lean ground beef, I don't bother draining it...the fat makes it taste good. Sometimes I even add a little bit of olive oil or butter to change the flavor a tad. I also load it up with seasonsing...salt, pepper, garlic, cayenne, cumin, any number of herbs...depends on what I'm going to be using it for. Will you eat tacos at home, with beef seasoned with regular taco seasoning?

You already like stir fry...make a peanut sauce for added protein...peanut butter, ginger, brown sugar, red pepper, rice wine vinegar or lemon juice, and soy sauce.

Or go vegitarian/vegan. Try different cooking methods for different veggies to try to incorporate more of them (I'm a big proponant of roasting). You like rice, try substituting quinoa for added protein.

And yes, you should probably see a counselor and/or a nutritionist.

Good luck to you!

Teardrop81

Have you tried a counselor? Perhaps one can help you work through some of the issues. Good luck!

I agree!

With that said, "selective eating disorder" isn't in the DSM and cannot be diagnosed, but it might be treated by a therapist similar to a phobia. Systematic desensitization can be helpful, which many of the kind people before me have mentioned when suggesting that you begin incorporating things gradually into your diet that you have refused to eat. If you have serious anxiety problems, therapy and medication might be helpful. Any time a problem is interferring with your social or emotional funcitoning it is wise to seek professional help outside of an online community forum.

Do keep in mind that even the best counselor can't help someone who doesn't want to help themselves. I'm a counselor, and I've tried. When someone finally hits "rock bottom" they'll be willing to try practically anything, including a crockpot and an earlier bedtime.

Best of luck!

shannashannabobana

I pisses me off when you get people saying to suck it up and learn to eat it. No. It doesn't work that way.

Except sometimes with food it absolutely does work that way? If you have repeated exposure to things you can learn to like them. Not saying that it's necessary, if you are an adult and there is something you don't like that's non essential I see no reason to try to like it unless you just want to. People are weird about texture, I agree, but that doesn't seem to be the OP's main problem.

elvensnow

I'm ok with it from fast food (obviously because it's not real ground beef).

Having worked fast food as a youth and done a fair amount of research on it for my own eating purposes, I can assure you, ground beef from fast food places... is ground beef except when there is a colossal screw up, it's just very fatty ground beef. You can duplicate it at home perfectly if you care to and have a flat clamshell grill. McDonalds for instance is 100% beef, they don't even use a binder.

Don't let dietary limitations derail your progress. You can literally eat 100% fat or sugar and lose weight as long as you keep the calories correct... it's not healthy, but it still works.

A low fat item you can try if you like veggies is greek yogurt, packet of dill dip (hidden valley) ... mix em, bang great low cal, high protein dip perfect for veggies.

Remember: People lose weight and remain healthy with far more restricted diets than yours-- vegan, atkins, juice diets, etc. Figure it out

Thank you for pointing out the burger thing. When I read that line in the OP I knew this was definitely a mental thing more than anything.

OP it seems to me you just like foods that are way high on salt and fat. If you want to change then you should work on cutting those out. As many people have said, your tastes will change over time if you eliminate these things. I can also add my voice that they do as well. I used to eat fast food at least once a day and I used to LOVE the stuff. After dieting for a year and not eating any FF, I finally had some again and it made me physically ill. Didn't matter what it was - Taco Bell, McDonalds, etc. All of them just way too greasy/salty for me. And I definitely don't have that same "OMG DELICIOUS" feeling while eating them so it's not like getting sick is worth it :P

So I agree with others -- you are being way too drama queen and not taking responsibility. Make the effort to change your diet, or possibly see a therapist if you really can't make yourself because to me it's all mental.

maryhansenbfegypt

I think this is a very positive post. I would respond to this post if it were posted to me.

maryhansenbfegypt

I think there were a lot of positive suggestions given. I hope some of them will meet your needs.
We need to remember that EVERYONE is different and really, no two bodies are exactly alike.

I read somewhere, long ago, that some people have enough hydrochloric acid in their stomachs
to kill a normal person, whereas some people have hardly any. ( Who knows where we read that
stuff. The internet??? LOL Bonjour! )

I have all the symptoms of diabetes but have been tested
and judged , medically, not to have it. Nevertheless I CRAVE protein, Love meat, the rawer, the better,
live on eggs Anything made of white flour or white sugar , or starches, like potatoes, sticks to my thighs, stomach, and arms, immediately! So everyone is different! Why can't we respect that?

So just ignore the idiots who are trolling your food diary for mistakes, and try to get some help some of the folks
who sincerely tried to offer helpful suggestions. Everyone is different. A refined palate is no crime!!!! But it IS
tough to find the right combination of foods which will induce weight loss.

My daughter put me on a weight watchers diet once and I gained 20 lbs. All that bread and potatoes. UGG. but I
loved it! You just never know about people! Everyone is different,

Leeann1979

I pisses me off when you get people saying to suck it up and learn to eat it. No. It doesn't work that way.

Except sometimes with food it absolutely does work that way? If you have repeated exposure to things you can learn to like them. Not saying that it's necessary, if you are an adult and there is something you don't like that's non essential I see no reason to try to like it unless you just want to. People are weird about texture, I agree, but that doesn't seem to be the OP's main problem.

While I do agree she needs to change up her personal routine to make time to prepare foods. She needs to do something different, in that sense, yes she needs to suck it up. Myself, I am not going to keep eating a food that I didn't like repeatedly just to try to make myself like it. I will eat something else that I actually enjoy that is also healthy. I am a grown-up who knows what I like, and will continue to only eat what I like. Should I continue to try eating broccoli just because its healthy? No.

NonnyMary

I was watching tv today and they were showcasing sushi, I think that must be what the OP feels when she looks at food she doesn't like. for me, no way does the thought of uncooked fish make me want it. Yes i know they prepare it so that you can eat it, but it still looks like raw slimy fish. People rave about sushi, but yeck, no way is that going in my mouth.... EXCEPT i did see some made without the black seaweed, so maybe there is hope.

I think there is hope for picky eaters, they have to find a way to eat food they could do better eating, like when you put mashed zuchini in bread and even if you dont like zucchini you would love zuchini bread.

I was thinking about what makes this kind of food she eats appealing? Looks like a lot of it is a diet that you go on shortly after surgery, when your supposed to eat mild food without much flavor (or something like that).

I think if anyone is a picky eater, and is used to certain food, in order to get off that, they probably have to try to eat different food, even if they dont necessary want it, but try for maybe a week to change her eating habits, and then I think she will naturally want different food. I too had to give up table salt for about 3 weeks and eat food without it, yes i was wanting salt a few times on some plain vegetables, but i just went with it, and now after a few weeks, im eating that food better, so you can say my tastes change.

I think a person has to maybe stop with the "i cant eat that yucky food" and maybe try a few different things, just to see, if they want to make a change. I did that with a few new things, didn't like it, prolly wont get it again, but i tried it just for fun. then i tried other food and i was surprised how delish it tasted and im glad i took that one initial bite.

As long as the person is still continuing to eat the same ol same ol, nothing will change. so she has to actually do it herself and be adventurous.

Oyama2013

I really feel for you. I too developed many food aversions during both my pregnancies. I believe it can start as hormonal and then quickly you become conditioned to react adversely to various foods. The only food smell I could tolerate was grapefruit! It took nearly a year after childbirth to start eating previous favourites.

Speak with a health professional to ensure no medical condition exists. I would encourage you to eat bland foods that are room temperature or cold. This way smells don't waft up to you. Try going vegetarian. You can live without meat but need plant based protein. Introduce new foods or foods you would like to reintroduce slowly, one at a time.

Lastly, please don't laugh...can someone else in the home do the cooking? Smelling food cooking can put off your appetite.

I wish you the best!

pjsdj

Hey girl! Hope some ideas have helped but I have issues w meat to. It just freaks me out to cook it and to me it takes so long to prep and cook and all that. I've discover Morningstar farms foods. They are vegetation but their chicken product taste and looke just like white meat chicken to me. I make Sammy's and nuggets and all kinds of stuff with it. And best of all you microwave it for a minute and its ready! My fav is the chicken patties! I do bbq sauce or avacado and their selfish!!! Low cal but they are high in sodium. Some of those kinda things are very helpful to me. Also my hubby will put stuff in the crockpot for me so I don't have to clean it or touch it and than I just pull it out and I don't have the " I swear I can still smell raw meat!!" Issue. We both work 40 hr weeks and have kids and all that but the crock pot is really a lifesaver. Also have you heard of the nuwave? It's my FAV way to cook everything! And it doesn't create the strong smells like the oveof crockpot because its covered. Might wanna google it. I do veggies, potatoes, meat, everything in there and it's,super fast.