It's not just picky eating...
Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder
Any of these sound familiar?​
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You avoid food outings, because there is nothing on the menu you like.
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You are struggling with eating enough to support your body's needs.
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Eating feels like a chore.
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Food causes anxiety for you.
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ARFID can show up in many different ways and often times people don't receive a diagnoses until years after struggling with it. Sometimes it's a general low interest in food. Food just doesn't signal pleasure in your brain the same way you may observe it does in others. Sometimes it's a selectivity or sensitivity with texture and taste that makes it difficult to have food variety and meet your needs. A lot of my clients with ARFID are what I would consider a "super taster". They can identify even subtle differences in taste, preparation, textures that others wouldn't necessarily notice. Lastly, there are some clients with ARFID that food causes a lot of anxiety out of fear of something aversive happening like an allergy, sickness or another consequence. In our work together, we explore what areas it feels most limiting or like it's interfering with your quality of life. We work to understand what is driving it, and then create a sustainable, realistic plan to work on food not feeling so complicated.
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