I am trying to write my goal for the weight loss challenge. Its just as much as a lifestyle makeover for me as I need to get off my butt more and exercise to get the energy I need each day.
I have a big problem and that is FOOD.
I don't like vegetables and I can't eat alot of fruit. I was the fussiest eater as a child and remain that way, although I have forced myself to try and get used to new things in the last 10 years...but didn't really get too far. I can now mix some food together where before it bothered me if different food touched each other on the plate
The issues are not necessarily the taste, but the texture. Even though I grow tomatoes, carrots, broccoli etc, I can't eat them. Tomatoes are nuts - the skin freaks me and the squishy inside is grossology. Even strawberries! I love them but they have to be whizzed up in a milkshake or something. I can eat them whole but the hairs on the back of my neck stand up
I don't like vegie soups either, I don't like lumps. I don't bloody like it whizzed up together either (works for the kids though!) cos its all too much of the unknown - again .
I can eat vegies, hidden in mashed potato. I can eat Caeser salad. I also eat homemade enchiladas. I love chillies and mexican food. I have trouble ordering meat at a restaurant unless I can see the kitchen. I have no idea how I manage to cook for my family when I can't eat most of what I prepare.
What do I do? DD happily tucks into a massive bowl of salad or vegies and even though it looks lovely and colourful and TASTY, I can't go there
Its really stupid actually but I can't help it. Is there anything I can do? Hypnotherapy? I dunno - how am I supposed to get all the vitamins and minerals I need without handfuls of tablets???
I vaguely recall you talking about this at last years BB Chrissy dinner... but I didn't realise how limiting it really was. Hmm.... I think this could be a case for counselling of some kind. I think the root cause needs to be identified and overcome before you can more forward. Sounds like you might need to be prepared to have a lot of non-food related "issues" (LOL at your thread title BTW) dredged up. Are you ok with that?
I have memories of a child of being surprised and upset at an unexpected flavour or texture. I still remember biting into a gristly piece of meat and nearly throwing up.
Mum loves to remind me that I ate every single thing on my plate until I was either 2 or 4, then refused to eat anything other than vegiemite sandwiches and pumpkin soup. Actually she still says it with a little wail in her voice .
I also remember it being such a freakin topic of discussion that I ended up getting really self conscious about it. "oh give her to me, I'll have her eating everything" or all eyes being on me when a plate was presented.... You know its not like I wasn't hungry, or the food didn't smell delicious..but the scrutiny was all too much.
Now my husband learnt about how I was and made a great effort to help me. He is a BBQ maestro and would prepare meat (never got anywhere with vegies though!) and I could relax because he would explain what it was, how he prepared it and how it should taste. I really miss that. In fact we were at a wedding recently and I found myself looking to him to check the food was ok
There was a TV show on about this recently Lulu shot in the UK. There was a woman who would only eat chips and a few other things. They figured out it was because she was ill as a toddler, went off her food and one of her earliest memories was of being force fed. So not surprisingly she became kind of food phobic. I think as with most phobias, they recommended that she confronted her fears but in small doses. So they asked her to commit to trying tiny, tiny bites of three new foods a day.
So I think if you look at it as a kind of phobia, maybe it would be good to seek out some counselling along those lines.
You sound exactly like a firend of mine, especially the 'things touching' part.
She is the same, can make anything for her family even if she cant eat it herself.
I dont have any answers for you as shes quite happy to not do anything about it, but I do agree with the talking to someone about it part - you bviously dont htink its trivial so noone else would either.
Yep - fussy eater here too.. but much improved in the last 10 years or so!
No veg except potato, absolutely no salad, only fruit. Mine is about texture too.. I have to cut up onion really really small so that it cooks up into practically nothing so I don't have to pick around it in a dish. But I would never leave it out, as I love the flavour. Same with mushroom.. if I make beef strog or something, I dodge the mushroom when it comes time to eat. But now I eat basic veggies and a basic salad, and I'm much much more adventurous with new things.
I too remember people saying saying to my mum that you can get a child to eat anything.. and they absolutely FORCED pumpkin down my throat. They wouldn't let me wash it down with water or anything. I was gagging and crying and they just MADE me eat it. My bro laughed the whole time too. Needless to say, I can't touch pumpkin now, and I agree it's probably more an anxiety thing with pumpkin coz of that one time. Think I was about 4 or 5 when they did that. My mum was probably laughing inside at these people that thought they could force me to eat it too.. guess they had a lesson to learn that you can't force food on people!!
hmm.. not really sure where I'm going with my post. Just that I understand to a degree how you feel, and COMPLETELY agree not to hassle kids about food. That's one battleground I'm determined not to fight. DH was raised to eat whatever was on his plate, and he had issues as a teenager too.. but now he eats anything and everything, so it was probably anxiety related there too, then he moved out of home and was his own person and decided he liked food after all! hehe.
*hugs* I'll be interested to know if you can overcome it at all.
Lulu2's food iss-ewes
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