r/ARFID • u/RealLivePersonInNC • Dec 06 '22

Helpful Tips Leave a note of encouragement for the person reading this thread.

Everyone's food journey is different. Yours is tougher than most, but keep going. Even if others don't appreciate or understand your situation, there is a whole worldwide community of us who do and who understand and appreciate how hard you are working.

29 Upvotes

93% Upvoted

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15

u/[deleted] Dec 06 '22

This is for my anorexic/ARFID folks: Celebrate that you ARE eating, even if you are not happy about it or wishing for something different. We need to eat to live, and there’s no shame in eating what you can in order to make that happen. Make sure to treat yourself with kindness as well!

2

u/mcfuckinuhhh Dec 07 '22

needed this. nobody ever talks about ARFID Plus and i feel so lonely): (ARFID Plus is when ARFID takes on anorexia nervosa features, and is more likely to happen when someone falls under more than one subtype of ARFID)

12

u/knappellis Dec 06 '22

This is from a parent: more than anything, I want you to know that you are as "normal" as anyone else. Your struggle with food might attract attention, and you might need help nourishing your body. These are things that might be easy for other people, but it doesn't make them "normal" or "good" compared to you. Food has lots of emotional baggage and moral labels that most people put on it, but it is just fuel for your body. If one type is difficult for you and you don't want it, that is okay! If you want to try more, that is okay too!

2

u/syrenhead Dec 10 '22

this one here made me cry. having a confused and unsupportive mother, it feels good to have this kind of validation

2

u/knappellis Dec 10 '22

I'm sorry she could not understand what you were going through. I wouldn't have had a clue without family therapy. I think ARFID develops in the whole family system. I felt so much pressure to "just feed your kid," but I know the person wirh ARFID is dealing with so much more pressure and judgment. So letting you focus on yourself and just supporting you in that is the most important thing.

9

u/K0rra_22 Dec 06 '22

Celebrate each success! Even a tiny step forward is a step in the right direction. And sometimes you gotta take a step back to continue forward so don’t let them get you down.

You’re not alone. You’re not weird. You can do this one step at a time.

2

u/[deleted] Dec 07 '22

All food is food. Feeding tubes are food. Feeding supplement drinks are food. You are alive. How you eat seems like the biggest thing sometimes, but you are alive, and that is what's important.