the stress of choosing meals

i recently moved out of my mums house and food has just become one of the most stressfull things i have had to go through. my favroute food that i always used to relie on for like the past 13 years has now switched and i cannot stand the smell or taste of them. now all the foods i used to really like have gone and i dont have any safe foods anymore and eating has become really difficult. the only foods i can happily eat are nuggets from mc donalds but thats verry much not sustainable and whnever dinner time comes along i just feel like crying becuase i dont want to eat any of the foods iv bought. any advice on how i can regain a positive relationship with food again

Parents
  • I’m so sorry - that sounds like such a stressful thing to be dealing with. 
    Firstly I would ask your GP if they can refer you for some help with this. There may well be support available for this - it’s certainly worth asking, 

    I notice that you say you’ve just moved out from your Mum’s house - and that’s when your stress around this increased? Could you possibly visit your mum a couple of times a week or so and have a meal together that she has cooked - would that help? 

    If nuggets from McDonald’s are the one food you like then maybe start with trying foods that are very very like the nuggets but just a tiny bit different - so you move to other foods in very small steps? Eg different brands of chicken? Then maybe try dipping sauces with them?  Just gradually expand things slightly - maybe one small change a week? 

    And maybe look back at foods you used to like in the past - going back years - and make a list of them - and see if there’s anything from that list you’d be willing to try again? Even if it’s just a particular packet of crisps or something - anything that you haven’t had for a while. 
    Sometimes we have foods that we have really nice associations with - for example we had them on holiday or something - and that nice memory can make us nostalgic for that food - and want to try it again. 

    it might be a good idea to write down times in the past when you’ve really enjoyed a special food - like a birthday meal, or on holiday, and just trying to start thinking about food in a more positive way. 

    in the meantime try to take the pressure off yourself - eating chicken nuggets all the time might not be a healthy diet - but if it’s just for a while it won’t do you any long term harm. Maybe take a multivitamin for a while just to make sure your covered for the basic vits and minerals. 
    Do you like any breakfast cereals - and if not could you try one? Some are fortified and if you have them with milk they are relatively good for you. My youngest son is quite limited with his diet too - but  he eats LOADS of cereal! The same cereal all the time. 

Reply
  • I’m so sorry - that sounds like such a stressful thing to be dealing with. 
    Firstly I would ask your GP if they can refer you for some help with this. There may well be support available for this - it’s certainly worth asking, 

    I notice that you say you’ve just moved out from your Mum’s house - and that’s when your stress around this increased? Could you possibly visit your mum a couple of times a week or so and have a meal together that she has cooked - would that help? 

    If nuggets from McDonald’s are the one food you like then maybe start with trying foods that are very very like the nuggets but just a tiny bit different - so you move to other foods in very small steps? Eg different brands of chicken? Then maybe try dipping sauces with them?  Just gradually expand things slightly - maybe one small change a week? 

    And maybe look back at foods you used to like in the past - going back years - and make a list of them - and see if there’s anything from that list you’d be willing to try again? Even if it’s just a particular packet of crisps or something - anything that you haven’t had for a while. 
    Sometimes we have foods that we have really nice associations with - for example we had them on holiday or something - and that nice memory can make us nostalgic for that food - and want to try it again. 

    it might be a good idea to write down times in the past when you’ve really enjoyed a special food - like a birthday meal, or on holiday, and just trying to start thinking about food in a more positive way. 

    in the meantime try to take the pressure off yourself - eating chicken nuggets all the time might not be a healthy diet - but if it’s just for a while it won’t do you any long term harm. Maybe take a multivitamin for a while just to make sure your covered for the basic vits and minerals. 
    Do you like any breakfast cereals - and if not could you try one? Some are fortified and if you have them with milk they are relatively good for you. My youngest son is quite limited with his diet too - but  he eats LOADS of cereal! The same cereal all the time. 

Children