Welcome To ARFID hell

TW for eating issues and discussions

[terroroftea-deactivated20251026]

So I have arfid and I developed it later in life due to trauma and other factors and one thing I haven't heard anyone talk about is how much it hurts to not be able to enjoy the foods I used to eat. Many foods I ate as a child have become genuine fear foods. I grew up in Maryland so seafood was a huge part of my diet and now a lot of the seafood I used to enjoy as a kid is on that long heckin' list of foods I won't go near.

Plus, I came from a family who was very "at least try it" so before I developed my food anxieties I tried TONS of crazy foods. For example I've tried: liver, bull testicle, deer heart, pickled watermelon rind, snails, all sorts of mushrooms, oysters, octopus, sea urchin, the list goes on! I really appreciate having the experience of tasting so many weird things but I'm also so saddened by the fact that I can't do that anymore. The act of trying something new is so stressful and so I feel like my adventurous eating days are over.

I mourn the little kid who would try anything or be able to enjoy going out to eat with their family.

[bell-of-freedom]

trying to talk to people about arfid but they call me a picky eater and ignore the fact that it is not a fun silly disorder and i can only eat like 3 things

[luciferpickledhooves]

People need to understand that ARFID isn't just picky eating. On top of that, people need to understand that even picky eaters deserve to be allowed to not have to eat things they don't like. "I don't like it" IS a good enough reason for someone to not want to eat something.

[rust-4-life]

when you expect someone with “picky eating” to “just try it” you’re completely invalidating not only their bodily autonomy but their ability to infer from their environment and past experiences. if it looks like or smells like or has the texture of something you KNOW is not a safe food for you, why do we have to torture ourselves and vomit just to prove ourselves to someone else? why are some of you such gross sadists? why do you not believe me if i hate the smell of a food and can’t even get it up to my lips without dry heaving that i WILL NOT LIKE IT? some of you just like to torture people, especially kids, just admit it.

[quollified]

the complete lack of community for arfid is so sad tbh. there should be accounts dedicated to highly modifiable recipes and strategies for finding and trying new foods and comment sections that arent just full of insults calling op a pathetic child

[chaotic-queer-disaster]

people are absolutely EVIL about the boundaries of “picky eaters”. no, they do not have to try it. yes, they can know they don’t like it without having eaten it before. no, they probably have not suddenly grown a taste for the food they’ve said they hate. no, they probably are not going to like it in the Special Way This One Place Cooks It. yes, you are being a bad friend if you try to “trick” them into eating it anyway

[sepulchritude]

Things that actually help picky eaters try new things:

“Do you want to try this off of my plate?”

“It’s made of [ingredients], I think you’d like [x part]”

“If you want to see if you like [x food], this is a pretty good representation of it”

“You won’t like this, it tastes like [description]. Do you want to try it for fun?”

“Do you remember trying/have you ever tried [x food]? This is like that, but [differences]”

“I think you’d like the taste of this, but the texture is iffy. It’s [description]”

Make sure there’s other food they can eat if they don’t like the new one

And most importantly, build trust with that person by listening to them, showing that you take their concerns into account, and being cool if the answer is no. No is always an option. This isn’t something you do once, it’s a pattern you have to stick to if you want to establish that you are a safe person when it comes to food stuff

Basically: offer the food, explain what’s in it and why you think it’s worth trying, and then be cool with the answer you get. No pressure, no trickery, just be straight up with people

[vileiguana]

Every food under the sun has gotten an appreciation post soooo

This is a food HATER post. Reblog if you're choking down textures just to live and resenting every moment of it

Reblog if you're sick and tired of people trying to include you in food based functions that you desperately want to opt out from

[arfid-hell]

Tips for people with ARFID

-If you can, only go on restaurants with people you know.

-Instead of trying a whole new dish, you can start with a new brand or even just drinking a different drink to the meal, whatever is easier.

-Eat when you can eat. Even if it isn’t lunch time, snacking is far healthier for you if you don’t get enough nutrients.

-Always make sure you know your safe foods in case trying something new won’t work .

-When planning on trying a new food, you can start small by smelling it, touching it and looking at it before actually working up the courage to do it.

Eating in all cases is better than not eating, this is the most important one. If you can’t eat something, you don’t have to, as long as there is something else to eat.

[flightbound-system]

one thing that i experience, that is disbelieved far more than any other aspect of my disability, is that i can’t drink plain water. i’ve never in my life been able to consume more than a sip without gagging. and that BREAKS ppl’s brains

the amount of times i’ve been told “well water is in everything!” as a gotcha is frankly ridiculous

yes. there is water in everything. good job. but the things I *can* drink (currently only coke and wild cherry capri suns) are notably VERY DIFFERENT THAN A BOTTLE OF WATER.

[arfid-hell]

Sends will to eat to everyone struggling with that right now

[arfid-hell]

There should be a button i can press whenever im hungry that gives me chicken nuggets

[arfid-hell]

Anyone else with ARFID who gets distressed by just looking at food?

[arfid-hell]

You need to respect people’s boundaries with food

[arfid-hell]

ARFID sucks actual ass and is genuine torture when will society (joker meme inserted) understand that being a picky eater isn’t fun

[arfid-hell]

I can’t describe it to you but water needs to be with the right food otherwise it’s wrong and I will cry

[arfid-hell]

Genuine question, has anyone actually recovered from ARFID?

God i hope so i want to be free from this hell

[arfid-hell]

Arfid isn’t fun, I just want you to know that