Picky Eater :(

It would help to know what you mean by picky...

xMinueTx wrote: »

Eating the same foods over and over again. Romaine Lettuce, chicken breast, and 3 vegetables, cucumber, celery and carrots (but they all have to be raw because i have a weird issue with textures, especially cooked veggies). I grew up eating very unhealthy, fries, fruit loops, chicken nuggets, and have a hard time swallowing new foods. What types of food would be a good transition? People said cauliflower, but how can I dress it up so it doesn't get old fast?

I love to take come cauliflower, toss is in a little bit of "fryin magic" or flour, drizzle with buffalo sauce and bake it. It's crisp and is somewhat reminiscent of buffalo wings

I, like you OP, was an extremely picky eater. I wouldn't eat any vegetables other than carrots and potatoes. It was so bad that I would refuse to eat food that was mixed with anything I disliked. Especially onions or mushrooms, it was game over.

Frankly, I was embarrassed. I'm sure I hurt many peoples feelings about their cooking and restaurant staff hated my modifications to all the food. That embarrassment combined with a desire to be healthier, fueled me to give everything a try.

Some of the foods that I "didn't like" I hadn't tried since I was little, and let's be honest, my mom was no wizard at preparing vegetables that tasted good too. I was surprised how many vegetables I realized I loved. Roasted vegetables are amazing and carry such a great flavor. I went from eating only 2 vegetables and now I will happily eat anything other than tomatoes. It took a lot to conquer my fear of "bad food", but what I had to remind myself is that the ABSOLUTE worst that could happen is that I don't like the taste. That just means I don't have to take another bite. I wasn't going to die, my taste buds weren't going to be altered for the rest of my life. It would be limited to a few seconds of a taste I don't like. That risk was beyond worth it in the quest to find my health.

I saw a show where they took kids who were picky eaters and had them try different foods blindfolded. Maybe not pre-judging the food before you try it will help you like things you wouldn't even try before. Maybe you can get a friend or family member to help you with that? Maybe make a list of some fruits, veggies, protiens etc.. that you've been too scared to try and have them buy them and make you taste them blindfolded.

If you're gagging it seems like some sort of a mental response to the food, not a physical one. Most adults don't physically gag on cooked carrots, even if they don't really like them. They just say "I don't like that". There is a mental block there that is preventing you, and you should try to work that out.

If you like raw veggies, maybe you could try adding in some flavored dips to help warm up the taste buds. Hummus, dill greek yogurt dip, etc... Maybe add some different veggies with similar textures that you can eat raw - broccoli, bell peppers, etc... Maybe try some recipes that have very all ingredients that you like, but add in one new one each time?

erinc5 wrote: »

If you're gagging it seems like some sort of a mental response to the food, not a physical one. Most adults don't physically gag on cooked carrots, even if they don't really like them. They just say "I don't like that". There is a mental block there that is preventing you, and you should try to work that out.

It could be ARFID, which I also struggle with. It is not so much a food preference as a food phobia. I don't particularly like fish but I'm not phobic with it, I just don't like it, but certain other foods can induce gagging and nausea, occasionally to the point of vomiting.

A typical method to deal with ARFID is to treat it like other phobias, using graded exposure therapy. Rate common foods that you can't currently eat in order from least aversion to most aversion, and tackle them in that order (always tacking the food you are least averse to). Incorporate new foods into more familiar ones, for example by adding new vegetables to a dish you already can tolerate.

pincushion14 wrote: »

rankinsect wrote: »

erinc5 wrote: »

If you're gagging it seems like some sort of a mental response to the food, not a physical one. Most adults don't physically gag on cooked carrots, even if they don't really like them. They just say "I don't like that". There is a mental block there that is preventing you, and you should try to work that out.

It could be ARFID, which I also struggle with. It is not so much a food preference as a food phobia. I don't particularly like fish but I'm not phobic with it, I just don't like it, but certain other foods can induce gagging and nausea, occasionally to the point of vomiting.

A typical method to deal with ARFID is to treat it like other phobias, using graded exposure therapy. Rate common foods that you can't currently eat in order from least aversion to most aversion, and tackle them in that order (always tacking the food you are least averse to). Incorporate new foods into more familiar ones, for example by adding new vegetables to a dish you already can tolerate.

This. Gagging is a sign of something more profound than "I just don't like it". My eldest son is an Aspie and has several textural aversions. Ease into it, try something that is least offensive first and try it several different ways. One texture may be awful and another may be totally acceptable.

Eat what you would normally eat
There is really no need to start introducing anything that you wouldn't normally eat just because it's "Healthy". By all means, try new things when you get the chance as it's good to expand your food knowledge - but just eat what you want in moderation. Track your calories.

Personally, I'm not a HUGE fan of 'healthy food'. But I have found that having brocolli and peas with my dinner in the evening fills me up a lot more than just having a big chocolate bar.