Can't eat most things or I'll get sick. I have no idea why.

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  • imaginaryplant
    imaginaryplant Posts: 93 Member
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    My first thought was that this is mental. My friend's daughter had something similar and she ended up seeing a psychologist about it who helped her through it. If your practitioner has ruled out everything else maybe a trip to the psychologist?

    I've got a couple mental health diagnosis, I just thought maybe it was something physical, but the more I think about it, and the more a couple of you have mentioned it, I think it might just be mental after all.

    I'll still mention it to my General Practitioner tomorrow. Thank you.
  • butterfli7o
    butterfli7o Posts: 1,319 Member
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    The fact that you are gagging over these foods, and that you have to have the fan on/incense burning while cooking makes it sound like it's more of a mental issue than a gastro one.
  • jmarcin78
    jmarcin78 Posts: 34
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    A friend of mine had a similar sounding problem. She would eat and just puke it right back it up. Something about the flap on her duodenum not opening and shutting properly. However, yours seems to be triggered by smell, too, right? That was not part of her issue. My first thought, though, is go and see a gastroenterologist. Then my second thought is that maybe something about hormones or other chemicals in your brain during certain times (your cycle, maybe?) are creating this gag reflex, this reaction, to certain foods. It seems like too many foods make this happen to be a food allergy. I am so sorry this is happening to you. This is happening in your stomach, right? Not in your throat or esophagus? If the later is the case, you might have a hiatal (sp?) hernia, which causes food to get stuck and you feel like you cannot get it down and then gag. I don't know if any of this helps, I am just throwing things out there.

    The only thing I can say from real experience is if after you eat, you get nauseated, you feel like you are going to puke, and then things start burning in your stomach area, and that feeling spreads across your chest and back and you feel like you are going to die from an agonizing pain worse than childbirth, you are having a gall bladder attack.
  • imaginaryplant
    imaginaryplant Posts: 93 Member
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    get it checked out with a doctor - some hormonal disorders can cause pregnancy symptoms in non-pregnant women, because many of the symptoms of pregnancy come from hormones (including morning sickness/food aversions). Also if you're on hormonal birth control it can be a side-effect.

    Don't diagnose yourself with a psychological problem unless/until possible physical causes are ruled out.

    Even if it's not hormonal, it could be a digestive system problem. The food aversions may be due to an intolerance, i.e. you eat it once, get ill because you're intolerant, then have an aversion to that food because of the bad experience.

    It could be psychological, but see a doctor to rule out other things first.

    The psychological thing actually seems very likely. This is over food that I've eaten fairly often over my lifetime. I've always been a picky eater, but it just seems like more extreme finickiness than usual.
  • sarainiowa
    sarainiowa Posts: 287 Member
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    @OP...How is your memory? Have them check your memory and your cognitive thinking. What your describing is the early signs of POSSIBLE issues in those areas. Just ask for some tests to be done.
  • jennk5309
    jennk5309 Posts: 206 Member
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    I have nothing to base this on, but here is a theory, it's some sort of allergy and your body is trying to protect itself thorugh the gagging unable to eat thing. You are okay in limited doses of whatever, but at some point in time your body is overwhelmed by whatever it is and reacts. The strong reaction to chicken makes me think of very severe allergy to anything in the penicillian family. My mom is so allergic to anything in that family, that she can't eat most chicken or eggs unless it antibiotic free and even then she's had too many reactions that she doesn't like to tempt fate and will generally avoid both.

    The only thing I can think to help is log your food and make notes when you start reacting to something and if it starts reactions to something. You maybe able to track it down to a filler or dye or something along those lines. also, try to increase the self-made food to better control the ingrediants.

    Again these are just ideas that I'm kind of making up, so take them with a grain of salt.

    I thought that using antibiotics in chicken farming is illegal in the United States? Or is it just California (it's not illegal with other animals, however, go figure....?).

    But yeah, I think your theory is brilliant.
  • imaginaryplant
    imaginaryplant Posts: 93 Member
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    A friend of mine had a similar sounding problem. She would eat and just puke it right back it up. Something about the flap on her duodenum not opening and shutting properly. However, yours seems to be triggered by smell, too, right? That was not part of her issue. My first thought, though, is go and see a gastroenterologist. Then my second thought is that maybe something about hormones or other chemicals in your brain during certain times (your cycle, maybe?) are creating this gag reflex, this reaction, to certain foods. It seems like too many foods make this happen to be a food allergy. I am so sorry this is happening to you. This is happening in your stomach, right? Not in your throat or esophagus? If the later is the case, you might have a hiatal (sp?) hernia, which causes food to get stuck and you feel like you cannot get it down and then gag. I don't know if any of this helps, I am just throwing things out there.

    The only thing I can say from real experience is if after you eat, you get nauseated, you feel like you are going to puke, and then things start burning in your stomach area, and that feeling spreads across your chest and back and you feel like you are going to die from an agonizing pain worse than childbirth, you are having a gall bladder attack.

    It's before I eat it, the thought of eating it. Before it even goes towards my mouth. Sorry to hear about your friend.
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,742 Member
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    I see others have mentioned this but after reading one line about "if I violate the rules my body sets forth" that really makes me have a gut feeling it is more mentally based. I wish you lots of luck!
  • imaginaryplant
    imaginaryplant Posts: 93 Member
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    @OP...How is your memory? Have them check your memory and your cognitive thinking. What your describing is the early signs of POSSIBLE issues in those areas. Just ask for some tests to be done.

    Not a great memory. I've had paranoid schizophrenia, among several other things since I was 17. I'm high functioning at this point in my life, I take good medications, I have therapy weekly and I'm closely monitored. It just didn't occur to me until someone else said something that this is probably mental.
  • iamuniqueiam
    iamuniqueiam Posts: 68 Member
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    It sounds a lot like ARFID (Avoidant-Restrictive Food Intake Disorder). It's more common in children than adults but maybe you had food issues as a child too? I think it's actually classified as an ED and is sort of a catch-all when you aren't anorexic or bulimic.

    Edited to add symptoms: Sufferers of ARFID have an inability to eat certain foods based on texture or aroma. "Safe" foods may be limited to certain food types and even specific brands. In some cases, afflicted individuals will exclude whole food groups, such as fruits or vegetables. Sometimes excluded foods can be refused based on color. Some may only like very hot or very cold foods, very crunchy or hard-to-chew foods, or very soft foods, or avoid sauces.

    Most sufferers of ARFID will still maintain a healthy or normal body weight. There are no specific outward appearances associated with ARFID. Sufferers can experience physical gastrointestinal reactions to adverse foods such as retching, vomiting or gagging. Some studies have identified symptoms of social avoidance due to their eating habits. However, most do not desire to change their eating behaviors.
  • jennk5309
    jennk5309 Posts: 206 Member
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    I read an article about Adult Picky Eaters, who for some reason will gag at anything other than select foods. But I think their problem persisted since childhood. IDK, maybe you can develop it as an adult? The woman I read about just gave into it and stuck to her cereal and milk, chicken nuggets, French fries, and a few other things. She would throw up with anything else no matter what she did.
  • PJPrimrose
    PJPrimrose Posts: 916 Member
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    You may have an autoimmune disease. Celiac, IBS, Crone's etc... I'd keep going to MDs until I found out!
  • taiyola
    taiyola Posts: 964 Member
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    I have gastroparesis which is where my stomach empties slower than it should, leaving me feeling full when I shouldn't be. And if I try to eat when that happens, I will get sick. and it's random as far as what food sets it off. So that could explain why weird foods will make you sick.

    It is identified by means of a "gastric emptying study". Mine seems to be intermittent, but my sister who is a type 2 diabetic has a consistent problem with it.

    Just something maybe to ask your doctor about.

    I have Gastroparesis too and am on medication for it, however this sounds more like a mental thing to me, and therefore potentially some kind of eating disorder. I've had those, too.

    You say 'restrictions' - I would see someone. If you are put off by the THOUGHT of eating food, I'd get it looked at before it becomes something serious...
  • imaginaryplant
    imaginaryplant Posts: 93 Member
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    It sounds a lot like ARFID (Avoidant-Restrictive Food Intake Disorder). It's more common in children than adults but maybe you had food issues as a child too? I think it's actually classified as an ED and is sort of a catch-all when you aren't anorexic or bulimic.

    Edited to add symptoms: Sufferers of ARFID have an inability to eat certain foods based on texture or aroma. "Safe" foods may be limited to certain food types and even specific brands. In some cases, afflicted individuals will exclude whole food groups, such as fruits or vegetables. Sometimes excluded foods can be refused based on color. Some may only like very hot or very cold foods, very crunchy or hard-to-chew foods, or very soft foods, or avoid sauces.

    Most sufferers of ARFID will still maintain a healthy or normal body weight. There are no specific outward appearances associated with ARFID. Sufferers can experience physical gastrointestinal reactions to adverse foods such as retching, vomiting or gagging. Some studies have identified symptoms of social avoidance due to their eating habits. However, most do not desire to change their eating behaviors.

    WOW! You blew my mind away...I was an extremely picky eater when I was a child, and over the past several years I have had lists named "What my Inner Child will eat" and it's included the foods that I can eat most often without feeling icky. The list is now going to be much smaller as of now, but thank you for bringing this to my attention!

    I'm going to talk to my psychiatrist about this! Thank you so much, this is really helpful information!
  • imaginaryplant
    imaginaryplant Posts: 93 Member
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    I read an article about Adult Picky Eaters, who for some reason will gag at anything other than select foods. But I think their problem persisted since childhood. IDK, maybe you can develop it as an adult? The woman I read about just gave into it and stuck to her cereal and milk, chicken nuggets, French fries, and a few other things. She would throw up with anything else no matter what she did.

    Thank you so much! I'm taking this info to my psychiatrist to ask him about.
  • christa279
    christa279 Posts: 222 Member
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    Could it possibly be sensory issues? My daughter has Sensory Processing Disorder and has aversions to most foods. Everything she eats has a similar texture, color, smell, taste, etc. Sometimes she can eat foods outside of her restrictive diet, but the most it lasts is a few months and then she stops eating the new food(s). She is even restrictive in the brands, how the food is prepared, etc. Certain smells will make her gag, and if we try to force her to eat something she doesn't normally eat she will gag.

    Google "Sensory Processing Disorder and food aversions" or "oral aversions".
  • christa279
    christa279 Posts: 222 Member
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    Oh, and I also have sensory issues and they can change day to day. Just something to think about.
  • Mangopickle
    Mangopickle Posts: 1,509 Member
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    Might want to look into getting a head CT. Here in TN you can get one cash/ no contrast $225. Had a pt years ago with similar issues that had a brain lesion. Took the physicians a while to figure it out cause other than the gagging, swallowing eating issues he was completely normal.
  • bc2ct
    bc2ct Posts: 222 Member
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    Sounds like the very definition of disordered eating. I would go speak with a therapist if you are worried.
  • imaginaryplant
    imaginaryplant Posts: 93 Member
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    Could it possibly be sensory issues? My daughter has Sensory Processing Disorder and has aversions to most foods. Everything she eats has a similar texture, color, smell, taste, etc. Sometimes she can eat foods outside of her restrictive diet, but the most it lasts is a few months and then she stops eating the new food(s). She is even restrictive in the brands, how the food is prepared, etc. Certain smells will make her gag, and if we try to force her to eat something she doesn't normally eat she will gag.

    Google "Sensory Processing Disorder and food aversions" or "oral aversions".

    Yep, I think this is right as well.

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