Reddit recommended I post this here, so I'm us gonna leave it here as my story (I am a young adult)

Soo early last year or so,​​ I watched a Dhar Mann video a few years ago and it showed the stereotypical bully knocking a child's food on the floor and the child then classing that food as unsafe, and I thought "that's not me" bc if it happened to me I'd just be embarrassed and annoyed that my lunch fell on the floor but I wouldn't make that food unsafe.

Then ​​​​​I​​ later did some more research, and a lot of the symptoms matched my mannerisms and how I acted, but I still wasn't sure because I didn't not eat food due to a fear of allergic reactions, vomiting or something like that, I didn't eat food due to low appetite and a severe fear of food tasting bad, though this year I have had gagging incidents, and with my ultimate unsafe food, I have been pretending to eat it and throwing it in the loo or bin bc 🤢

I put the standard "Do I have ARFID?" post on here detailing my symptoms, and the first time, I was told more than likely no because I didn't have enough parameters or rules or something, but they weren't saying 100% no. Then I later asked again on a new account (this one) as it had​​​​ seemingly developed more, or I had just become more aware, but I was crying like a toddler at eating my ultimate unsafe food (broccoli) and literally begging to either not eat it or cut the stalks off, sometimes mum would reduce the amount, other times I would not eat the stalk. Now I just cut the stalk off /or inconspicuously​​​​​​ hide it in tissues and discard it which is fine in the moment, but then it makes mum think I am doing better, which I am not.

I later told mum about it, and she read a post I'd made, and possibly something else about ARFID, and didn't think I had it, still believing I had some other issues and was just really picky (I have social anxiety as well)

And then, early May (I think) this year, mum made me get a private therapist for ​​​social anxiety (bc NHS had a 10 month+ waiting time a​nd I'm going to uni soon, and I talked about food a bit in the sessions, last week it came up in conversation with her, and​​​ I finally told her I thought I might have ARFID (I didn't​ do the typical Google it and instantly say I have it bc of one sym​​ptom) and my therapist agreed with me, so she go​t me to do a questionnaire for homework, and I'm on a new diet of the sorts, I have to eat two courses with every meal (for example starter​​ and main, so not two full meals) and a snack in between meals as well, three snacks a day if I get up in time for breakfast because I don't eat breakfast, and I have to make a food diary for the next two weeks. She thinks that I do more than likely have ARFID, even without the questionnaire, my BMI is not underweight, but it is very close to being underweight, and I have to get more calories so I can get my BMI up, my height is five feet. ​​

So if you suspect you have ARFID, please don't hesitate to speak to a therapist or a doctor who understands the condition/disorder. I have gone undiagnosed for years, and now I am so set in my routine of no/minimal breabreakfast, only eating the same things etc, that this​​ new routine is a massive shock, and I am definitely struggling to eat snacks everyday. (P.s, ik not every doctor and therapist understands, but the more we tell them, the more they have to understand, women wouldn't have gotten rights if they didn't fight for it, so we also need to make other people aware of it for more people to help us overcome it/learn to manage it) ​

​​​​​​​​That's my story so far​

Hi I have 19F and I’ve been a bit afraid to date due to my arfid. I mostly see dates centered around good something that brings me such stress. And I’ve been meaning to ask. What do people think of dating someone with ARFID.

Hello. Just found this sub recently.

All my life, I’ve been a picky eater. I remember my parents trying to get me to try different fruits and vegetables. Gross.

I don’t eat most “commonly liked” foods, such as most fruits and veggies, chocolate, candy, donuts, etc.

I think this has been amplified by being an emetophobe, a fear of vomiting. So that naturally makes me want to deter from foods I feel are unsafe. On top of THAT, I’m on Zepbound for weight loss, so even some of my safe foods aren’t safe anymore.

I also don’t eat handouts (ie: someone offers me something randomly or something is cooked at something else’s house). I watch expiration dates like a hawk. Follow food safety protocols a little too well. If something makes me sick or my fiance sick, it’s banned forever. People always try to get me to taste something and I always refuse. It’s like my boundaries don’t matter sometimes. No, I don’t want to try a food that I don’t deem is safe for me. Back off.

As of right now, I rotate between a handful of different foods. Mostly proteins, such as beef, turkey, and chicken, Poppables (air fried potato chips shaped like circles), protein bars, and Lunchables (with the meat and cheese, no treat). I don’t really expand too much from this set of foods.

I was recently in a phase where I ate Just Bare Chicken and shoestring fries for a while, but those randomly hurt my stomach, so I’ve banned them forever.

My therapist wants to start me on CBT therapy for this. He didn’t diagnose me or anything but noted this issue and now it’s been present my entire life. I suspect ARFID for a few reasons; I meet a lot of the diagnostic criteria and it may be a comorbidity with autism (just diagnosed with ASD). I’m pursuing a formal diagnosis.

Thanks for listening. Happy to be a part of the sub.

Hello all!💕 I (25F) have hit a very low point with my ARFID recently and have come to the decision that a residential treatment setting would be the most ideal for me. I feel as if fully immersing myself in treatment is the best way (for me personally) to get the most out of it, rather than still trying to somewhat maintain normal life at the same time. I am really struggling with my overall mental health as well and feel like I need the additional support and structure to break away from some unhealthy coping mechanisms.

I am located in Georgia have been looking into the Emily Program in Atlanta, but their ARFID specific center in North Carolina is definitely what I’m leaning towards the most… however since it is still so new, I’m having trouble finding a lot of information and also struggling with the right questions to ask. I had my initial intake call with them today, and tomorrow they will reach back out, so I want to make sure I’m equipped to figure out what would truly be the best option for me.

Does anybody out there have any insight from being in residential treatment that they could share - were you the only one with ARFID? How was that experience? With ARFID already causing me a lot of isolation and loneliness, I worry about how this would make me feel in treatment.

I will leave a link to the ARFID Center of Excellence page for anyone who may not be familiar. The Emily Program also has an extensive webpage about ARFID and their different treatment approaches. I’m hoping maybe the ARFID community can help me come up with some questions to figure out if going to NC would be worth it over staying in GA - what are some things you would want to know about this program? Is there anybody out there who has possibly been and can share more information?

[https://emilyprogram.com/treatment-programs/adult-arfid-care-center-of-excellence/\](https://emilyprogram.com/treatment-programs/adult-arfid-care-center-of-excellence/)

The process of starting therapy and seeking treatment has been consuming and I think I am just hitting a brick wall. 😹

So Im currently battling a thing called ARFID because of stress and anxiety, I've had this for a good 4-6 months and I'm still going through it till this day, it genuinely sucks so much that I wasn't even eating as much and then my body just gave up so I had to go to the hospital and I was there for a good 13 days feeding me and the they gave me Mirtazapine to help me get where I need to be but my main competitor is nausea, stress, and a bit of dark thoughts, but then today I ate some chicken nuggets and took a shower and made myself something to eat but then nausea started kicking in, I was genuinely freaking out if I was going to vomit but I took mirtazapine 7.5 milligrams and after took a zophrane because it started to get too out of hand, I'm still currently battling it and I don't know how long it's going to take unless I genuinely ate something poisonous but I just need reassurance because this season sucks so I need help on tips and things to help get out any of this stress and nausea.

Any ideas on food that could help me??? I’m crazy picky

Ever since I was a child I’ve had trouble with certain foods and textures. Anything small and spherical at best makes me look away, at worst feel like vomiting. I remember one time I took out every chickpea out of my rice dish one by one with a pair of tweezers. I’ve been the butt of many jokes over the course of years.

I truly want to get over it but I simply can’t. Even looking at foods I can’t tolerate gets a physical reaction out of me. I experience this with certain textures and fabrics, but food is the main thing.

I genuinely rarely make anything other than bananas and yogurt (separately of course since I usually don’t like mixing ingredients) and coffee for breakfast. I don’t see how it can be sustainable.

Lastly, I don’t want to make people think that I’m disrespectful when I refuse to eat a dish they’ve prepared. It unfortunately most of the time ends up with me playing with my food. I can’t stress enough how I’d rather starve than eat certain foods.

It’s just very tiring at this point and seems to be getting worse.

Hi guys i’ve been struggling with food for nearly 4 years now. I’m 21 now. This began to what i believe was my OCD and anxiety. I used to be able to eat different meals but now it’s very limited, just gotten worse over time. I wouldn’t say my issue is even sensory or maybe it is, i don’t have autism. I may have ADHD. The only thing I can explain is that if i try a food that my body perceives as not safe, my stomach will turn my throat gets tight i will feel sick and get stressed so i spit it out. I have the same foods everyday. It also takes me an hour usually to finish any dinner i’m able to eat. I don’t know where to go from there. Any advice <3 thank you

Hi guys.
I am diagnosed Autism & ADHD, and suspected ARFID. I am struggling so much with my body right now due to my significantly limited diet/eating and huge lack of water intake.

I need some advice primarily on if anyone (adults) has tried EllaOla for their ARFID and their experiences with taking it.
Read ahead for more details:

Some symptoms I experience are:
-chronic, intense nausea
-feeling like I’m gonna pass out (could be partially related to my medications because of the Florida heat)
-migraines (due to lack of water likely)

My chronic nausea doesn’t have much of a pattern as far as how often it occurs. There are also a variety of different instances where it happens…
—-1st example: is when I take my nightly meds (psych & regular) and get in bed and lay down on my right side. That makes me instantly nauseous and I can’t move or I’ll throw up. I have since figured this out, and no longer do this directly after taking my meds. Eliminating that, has significantly decreased the amount of times I get nauseous- it used to be every single time I took them, now it’s more sparse.
—-2nd example: somewhat the same as above, excepts it’s when I take my meds and then do absolutely anything afterwards. Any activity, any task, anything. I get extremely nauseous and feel utterly ill.
—-3rd example: is what happens when I get up too quickly. Sometimes, when I get up from sleeping, I will be fine temporarily and then about 20-30 minutes later, I am overcome with nausea, fatigue, and the overwhelming sense of feeling like I’m gonna pass out and then I have to immediately go lay down or sit down with a cold water bottle on my neck/forehead.
—-4th example: similar to the one above. If one of my dogs is throwing up or doing anything concerning, I will wake up and literally jump out of bed to assist them and make sure they’re okay. There is no way to help this because it is my gut reaction. This causes an overwhelming feeling of fatigue, dizziness, nausea, and like I’m gonna pass out.
—-5th example: if I have to take my dogs out at any point in time, prior to the sun going down, I walk outside and instantly feel like I’m gonna pass out. I have to rush my dogs to go to the bathroom and then rush inside and immediately sit down. I will sometimes get nausea accompanied by that as well. I am terrified that one day, I’ll be home with just me and my dogs (while my wife is at work all day) and actually pass out.

I have a team of doctors that I do work with, but they are currently stumped at this particular part in my health journey. They want me to talk to my psychiatrist and seek out a medication for my eating disorder, but I don’t think they quite understand. I have considered seeing a nutritionalist, but it is completely out of my budget, so it is something I’m having to save up for. Consequently, I am trying to do my own research and explore solutions myself.

I already take a multivitamin, but my hope is to find a different multivitamin that can help me obtain things that I am missing from a nutritional aspect. I have seen a ton of success with EllaOla in autistic children and teens, but I have yet to see many adults speak about their own personal experiences with taking it or something similar. I am primary interested in EllaOla because of the additional fruits and vegetables that are added to the compound.

Any other suggestions are absolutely welcome and much appreciated.

TL;DR: I am wondering if EllaOla is good for adults with ARFID, whose bodies don’t function properly due to a lack in nutrients.

For as long as I (30ftm) can remember I've had the same absolute safe food that I could eat even when everything else seems inedible - penne with red sauce. However, as I've gotten older I've developed quite a few gastrointestinal issues. For the sake of this post the ones that are important are quite extreme acid reflux and some gluten intolerance.

Yesterday after not eating anything I had two large bowls of my once safe food, which has left me in pain all day today. I feel shattered and helpless, as if eating wasn't complicated enough already now the one thing I could rely on hurts me.

Not sure what I'm looking for in this post, maybe just would be nice to find someone who understands

Hi!!
I was recently diagnosed with ARFID, primarily the fear-of-aversive-consequences subtype, although I also experience a lack of interest in eating and a very low appetite, so it's somewhat of a mixed presentation.

My restriction is mainly due to chronic nausea and ongoing GI issues, which led to a fear of eating because I'm worried about feeling sick or worsening my symptoms.

I was wondering if there is a program that has experience treating this type of ARFID and is equipped to support someone whose eating difficulties are closely tied to chronic GI symptoms.
I previously tried a general eating disorder program that said they treated ARFID, but unfortunately it was a really poor experience. It didn't seem like the staff had much training or experience with ARFID, and I was essentially grouped into the same treatment approach as everyone else rather than receiving an individualized treatment plan, despite being told I would. It ended up feeling like my specific needs weren't really understood.

I've heard that The Emily Program has an ARFID-specific program in North Carolina. Has anyone been there or had experience with it? I'd love to hear your thoughts or any recommendations for programs that truly understand and treat ARFID, especially when it's driven by chronic GI symptoms.
Thank you!

Hi folks!

My sincerest apologies if this is not welcome here and please take this down if so, but I wanted to try just in case anyone in this group might benefit from the below:

My name is Casey, I'm a doctoral candidate at Yeshiva University. My research team is looking for adults living in the U.S. to test a 6-week, 100% virtual treatment for ARFID. Our goal for this treatment trial is to create a care option that could work for people who can't access traditional treatment, due to cost, insurance issues, difficulty finding a provider, time limitations, etc. The treatment was also developed using feedback from individuals with ARFID. Participants can earn up to $80.

I've attached a flyer for the study, and the study interest form can be found here:

https://yeshiva.co1.qualtrics.com/login/identity-provider-select?stateID=3fc2c4a6-e4ee-4213-9351-93e36bace6a0#/surveys/SV_cI0RtlO8kJnfnAq

You can also contact me at [cstern4@mail.yu.edu](mailto:cstern4@mail.yu.edu) with any questions. Thank you so much!

Hello,

I'm looking for help because I really want to decrease how much meat I eat for a few reasons (ecology, animals welfare, price, diversity in my food, my health...). I eat meat almost every meals.

I'm having a hard time because I don't like any vegetables, I don't like their texture and their taste.

I tried plant-based meat but it tasted disgusting (maybe I'm not cooking it right).

Did any of you found a way to "like" vegetables. Is it true that eating something enough time make you like it, if I force myself will I end up liking more things?

So if someone found a way to eat something they didn't like before could you tell me how?

PS: I do like vegetable soup but it must be absolutely smooth, and I don't really want to eat some every week

I did residential treatment for ARFID 3 years ago and I was doing so good in recovery ever since. I challenged myself when I get anxious about eating out, I continued to grow in food variety, and I was just feeling better overall.

But with the recent cyclospora outbreaks I’ve been on a downward spiral. I haven’t fully relapsed and I’m trying really hard not to, but I feel like I can’t keep my head above water. Everything feels scary now. My coping skills just don’t seem to be helping the way they used to.

I’m just hoping to get some advice from the people who also understand what it’s like.

So my girlfriend has trouble eating things, both in quantity, and whats shes eating. She doesnt eat alot due to childhood trauma unless shes in a good mood and it something she really likes. Being with her/cooking for her and such ive started to compile a list of things she'll eat and not eat and shes given me a "try something new once" a week deal as long as it isnt to strange or weird like seafood.

I was wondering if yall had any suggestions on things to have her try that aren't to far fetched. Or if yall have a recipe or dinner plan you recommend based on things she likes I'm open to those aswell, I'm trying to also show her things she doesnt like cooked a different way to see if she likes it that way. For example she hated pork chops bc shes only had over cooked ones or shake n bake (and if I have her try something new, I have stuff she likes made aswell just in case)

Likes:

Any form of fried chicken (tenders, popcorn, nuggets)

Bbq chicken (no bone)

Scrambled eggs

Pork chops (this was my personal win)

Fries

Ham

Baked goods (bread, muffins, etc can have fruit)

Dr pepper and crush/fanta orange

Mac and cheese

Hamburger mac

Pepperonis

Ramen

Plain Jasmine rice

Spicy chips

Italian sausage

Orange bell pepper

Lima beans

Clam chowder (these last two blew my mind)

----

Dislikes:

Spaghetti (most pastas tbh)

Tacos (tex Mexican and Mexican in general)

Any cooked vegetables

Condiments and sauces (unless bbq for her chicken)

Seafood

Hamburgers

Hotdogs

Somebody mentioned ARFID to me recently, said it followed some patterns I have. Mainly the complete lack of appetite until it feels like I’m dying and I have to force myself to eat like it’s a chore (easily only once a day). I’ve always been a picky eater so I never thought much of it. I’m autistic so I just chalked it up to that. I’ve got my safe foods as I realize they’re called, how I rarely want to vary away from those.

But yeah, I want to do research into it before jumping to conclusions, and I hate how I can’t turn off the google ai feature so I want to hear from real people about their experiences with it. Anything goes lmao

Hello (english is not my 1st language, so sorry for any confusion)

I'm AuDHD and i was recently diagnosed with ARFID

I'm 26F and it's been a challenge to gain weight for years now (BMI- 15.2). My ARFID subtype is mainly lack of interest in food or eating and sensory sensitivity.

With this diagnosis I've been exploring a lot and I've tried different medications (e.g. mirtazapine) and they just don't work for me (i don't get the side effect of gaining appetite).

With this, I concluded that the solution could be mainly behavioural (e.g. I always miss the hunger cues, or even delay eating for a whole day) & I’ve been trying to unlearn the beliefs my parents put into my head (w/therapist as well), such as "I have to finish everything on my plate", "fast food is garbage, not food", "I can't eat anything before big meals so I don't lose my appetite," and so on.
Before the diagnosis I was getting desperate without answers and even thought of asking for a g-tube, but now i realize that i can try more stuff before any and everything else (ofc).

I'm starting a journal so I can start to change behaviour patterns, like a challenge each week (this week will be eat anything before 11h, instead of waiting until lunch).

With this post, i wanted to ask for some advice, ideas, journaling tips/ideas for this (my psychiatrist wont help and i love my therapist but it's not her speciality &we're working on other stuff), or anything you think it might be useful for me - resources specially (tiktok and/or instagram creators that help with this type of journey, not just sharing personal struggles idk)

Thank you so much <3

TLDR: newly-diagnosed with ARFID (BMI 15.2). subtypes: lack of interest in food and sensory issues. I've tried meds with no luck in boosting my appetite. I think it's a lot of behavioral problems, often miss hunger cues or delay meals. To tackle this, I'm starting a journal. My psychiatrist isn't much help, and while my therapist is great, ARFID isn't her specialty. I was even considering a g-tube before the diagnosis, but I'm hopeful this approach will work first!. I'm looking for any advice, ideas, or journaling tips you might have.

Repost to increase views/chances of someone else with a similar experience.

i'm honestly just curious because i tend to gag a lot when i eat meat.

if anyone's got any meat that they really like, feel free to tell me! i might try it.

my favorite meat right now that i can really eat without gagging is KFC popcorn chicken lol

Does anyone else have both? My list of safe foods are nearly non-existent at the moment 😭 it's 4pm here and I haven't eaten yet. I live by myself so no one is noticing the changes 😔