Repetitive meals...same ole' thing

Patricia - posted on 08/14/2012

Oh yes and we have allergies and lactose intolerant on top of it all. My Daughter was unable to even tolerate solids until she was 3 years old. She is now 10 and is eating a lot more than she used to. It is trial and error and tons of patience!! She still will not eat any fruit at all- not even if I puree it and put it in food. She will taste it-ha. Hang in there. My doctor told me as long as she is growing and not losing weight to not worry. I try to sneak in a liquid vitamin in an occasional drink when I can.

Ericka - posted on 06/06/2012

Wow so there are other mom's out there with the same problem. I don't know what else to feed my son anymore. I just gave him his usual spaghetti's o with beans and some small wieners in a can. My son didn't even touch his plate then waste juice all over the floor. I am so fed up at the moment. I just want to curl up in a corner and cry!

Jan - posted on 01/26/2011

my daughter is almost 4 and she gags on everything it seems. She will eat speggetti (cut very small), hot dogs (again small cuts), pizza, mac and cheese, chicken nuggets, chicken shell eat as long as it diced and smooched! Then covered with apple sauce! Same with ham! She LOVES peanut butter jelly! THANK GOD! and on occasion mcdonalds cheese burger. I've tried hiding veggies and different things and bam she always figures it out somehow! would you concider it a SPD? I mean she's had OT for textures and not liking certain things fitting he "wrong" way ... at this point I need to figure somethings out cause dr.s always say she'll eat when she's hungrey BUT my daughter would much rather drink her milk than eat something she's gonna gag on.

Linn - posted on 08/30/2010

OMG! I was beginning to wonder if there really were others out there that have to deal with this. My son is 4 has ASD and SPD. He lives on yogurt( has to have grape nuts in it), Chocolate milk (because white milk just won't do), Mac and cheese (has to be kraft cause he can tell the differnce, Cheese, occasionally hotdogs, hamburgers but only with lots of ketchup and pickles (his veggies) and no bun, and Applesauce, he also loves anything that has chococlate. We are further limited by his food allergies. In our house we make 3 seperate meals to accomamdated him and our youngest daughter who has feeding problems. It is a nightmare! It's so nice to know that I am not alone

Tami - posted on 08/21/2010

My 3 yr old Grandson is going through this now. His Mom is thinking about trying OT to help him through this.

He is becoming more and more selective about what he will eat. Favorite old foods have fallen by the wayside, they are off his list! He refuses to try any new foods anymore. He has only a few tried and true favorites now. And it is so difficult to rotate only afew foods.

He now can't even stand the sight of some foods he literally makes gagging noises, even if I am the one eating the food! Frustrating, so frustrating:O(

Vitamins will help, but he won't drink milk so he won't drink any of those pediatric protein drinks.

Any suggestions anyone?

Terri - posted on 08/18/2010

Wow, Just reading this and sounds like you are describing my daughter who is 6! I am just learning about the spd. She had a tethered spinal cord and surgery when she was 3 mos. I have had suspicions that something was different, and by chance switching pediatricians a new doc confirmed my gut without me saying a word. This diet is so right on for how Delaney eats! Crazy to read something so familiar! Thanks to these posts, I may get some info! Thanks Terri

Carol - posted on 08/16/2010

My pediatrician has told me that as long as she is taking her vitamins and growing I shouldn't worry about it -- but I do...

Christen - posted on 08/09/2010

at 15 my son's diet consists of....Chicken, almost any kind, Grilled Cheese, Cheeseburgers, Bacon, Pancakes and Waffles, Pizza, Baby Back Ribs, French Fries, Pop Tarts, some Cereals, Peanut Butter Toast, but it must be toasted and it must not be burnt...and a few fruits, Ice cream, but no Jello, Pudding, yogurt....never has any type of Pasta, Soup, We've come a LONG WAY....keep offering, that's all I can say...don't push it...but do keep offering...they'll learn to trust you and maybe try something they're not too sure of....it works for us. Good luck and God Bless.

Christen - posted on 08/09/2010

My son is now 15 and is still a "picky eater" only now he can explain to me why he doesn't want to try anything new....it's a smell, taste, texture thing...he's afraid he won't like it so he won't try it. We've tried everything through the years, we've learned to just be grateful that he eats! Could you imagine if we couldn't get them to eat anything and they were forced to have a feeding tube inserted into them surgicially to survive...always looking for the positive side. By the way his older sister is a CANCER SURVIVOR so this SPD thingy is a breeze......patience!

Lisa - posted on 07/08/2010

Thank you for posting I dont feel alone Now

Tami - posted on 07/08/2010

You are definately NOT alone, and reading all of the posts here it is reassuring to know that neither are we (my family)! And we feel that way at times.

The 7 yr old in our family ate great as a baby/toddler. She loved her baby and toddler food. And then it all seemed to go downhill.

She vomited french fries in a restaurant the 1st time she tried them (that was scary, we thought she was choking). She can eat them now thank goodness.

She has a definate preference towards carbohydrates and I see some of the rest of you have mentioned some of the same foods.

Grilled cheese is big on her list, chicken lunchmeat and cheese on bread, toasted bagels, cereal, Pep.Farm cin. bread toasted, bananas, yogurt (only a little of it), chicken nuggets and any kind of fries, juice, very little milk, ice cream, chips, veggie chips, some kinds of cookies, crackers like Pep farm goldfish, cheez its.

She will not eat any kind of cooked noodles like spaghetti, mac and cheese (we think it's a texture issue), or hot dogs, or pizza.

She also now dislikes most fruits and veggies, cooked or uncooked. And she will not eat cooked eggs.

Seeing other kids eat in the school cafeteria for 1st grade did not help, and we had hoped that it would. She packed just about the same thing every day and then she caught up on eating what she likes once she was home from school.

Yes this can be frustrating and we waste food at times. Thankfully her weight has been good. She has not been to a food clinic, but she gets reevaluated by her developmental Ped next week.

She had about 3 yrs of OT therapy and her OT worked with her on her food issues part of the time. And that was helpful.

Good luck to all of you going through this with your kids. We now also have a 3 yr old boy going through the picky eating period and his Mom was also a picky eater. It seems to run in our family!

Have any of you tried a gluten free diet and did that help at all?

Lisa - posted on 07/06/2010

Wow This is so my son

He did try to new thing but didt like them so But the food he likes is not really good. he like P&Band jelly any bread chicken finger the T.V dinner one and it have to have salt/pepper/ketchup at the table before it starts to cook then milk with the dessert it comes with mac-cheese he does not eat never. chicken nuggets, hot dog bun with ketchup on no hot dog he loves sweet i forgot cereal (only cold cereals) pop tarts he does not eat beef the last time maybe when he 1 he almost 9 no grilled cheese he likes cold food not many hot food no pizza,french fries maybe or yes he like apples only

maybe corn -on-cob but I would have to make it everyday I should that my fault but have to make him because he does like it but it a fright



So then started at 2 years old he never outgrow it

there is more but I am sleepy



Lisa

Tara - posted on 05/21/2010

He has almost the same diet....grilled cheese, hot dogs, toast, cheerios, yogurt (sometimes) and french fries. all very healthy! I've been told to feed him what he wants, bc he'll eventually try other things. I donn't know what else to do, myself. I wish i could offer more advice. Oh, wait. I give my son Fruitables juice boxes and Yobaby organic three in one meals...there yogurts with daily rmd vitamins.

Carrie - posted on 12/09/2009

My son does the same things! He lives on chicken nuggets, chips, PB&J, mac and cheese and bologna. He used to eat hot dogs but has decided he doesn't like them anymore because they make his "mouth burn"?! I have stopped trying to make sense of his reasons and just tried to accept that there is nothing I can do to make him eat certain foods. He will chew the gummy vitamins so that is something I guess. We have been through therapy and seen nutritionists. The last nutritionist told me that despite his only gaining 6 oz. last year not to worry so much because he had plenty of energy and wasn't losing weight. Not worrying is kind of hard, I must say, but we have tried to stop stressing out about what he eats and just be grateful that he is eating something.

Alexandria - posted on 11/11/2009

My 4 year old is the same. I have taken to hide pureed veggies in the few items he will eat. I use pureed carrots in his mac and cheese. once in a while i can get him to have a banana. I have also used pureed veggies under the breading of chicken nuggets- that one is a hit or miss but I keep trying. One in a while he will eat rice and i make it with corn- he picks out the corn but i do notice a few kernels go in his mouth. I haven't tried yet but i was told to mix baby foods with the ketchup for fries.

Brandi - posted on 10/07/2009

What I think is the worst is the family members/friends/strangers who say it's just "pickiness" or that we should "just make him eat it" or "stop offering him something else". I am so sick of hearing people talk like I somehow created this food aversion in him. Like I somehow trained him to be picky and to throw up at the mere sight of some foods.



Have any of you ever tried food therapy with their Occupational Therapy? My son had food therapy at the end of each of his weekly OT sessions and is now doing much better with his eating. He's by no means normal, but is much better about trying things, and no longer vomits on his plate. LOL!

Kerri - posted on 10/06/2009

OMG. I have tears in my eyes. I've been given so much advice on how to cure the picky eater, and I can tell you that NONE of it has worked. Sometimes, I feel like everyone thinks its all me. I try sooooooooo hard!!! It is hard to stay positive. I don't give sweets often, but sometimes I do, becuase I want to share all the joys of life with my son. My son who is five has the same issues (gagging and even vomitting, crying because he is afraid to try something), and so an extremely limited diet. Everyone is like "You just have to make it fun:)" or "Send him off with nothing, he won't starve himself" They have no idea....do they? And now my 3 year old who I'm not convinced has SPD just mere 3 year old stubborness, expects to have the same limited diet as his older brother. It's hard enough just to get them to sit at the table.

Heidi - posted on 09/23/2009

My son is 5 yrs. old and only eats a handful of foods. He has a dx of SPD and has been both to speech and occupational therapy. I am reading this book called, "Just Take a Bite" It has been very helpful. My son is now trying vegtables. The biggest change I made was buying a wedge cushion for the chair he sits on at the table. That has made a huge difference. We are making progress

Jamie - posted on 09/18/2009

My son's diet consists of pancakes (in which I hide butternut squash), yogurt, grilled cheese, cheese pizza and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. He will go after the occasional chicken nugget, and luckily enjoys most fruit, however lately, he's been turning his nose up at things like grapes and bananas which he used to enjoy. His therapists want him to eat three new foods a month. YEAH RIGHT!!! They try getting him to touch, smell and lick new foods, but nothing has worked. I'm at my wits end.

Melinda - posted on 09/02/2009

Hi Janet. You are so not alone! It has taken me years to come to terms with my 9 yr olds food aversion disorder. It is fustrating, worrying and makes travelling a constant challenge. We don't go anywhere without a stock pile a tinned pasta shapes. I am slowly learning not to be embarrassed by his issue. It has he potential to make everyday a misery! Now we don't focus on getting him to eat our food, but rather just making health choices (if he had his way he'd live on popcorn and 1 brand of tinned pasta) He now eats peas, corn and sweet potato and small amounts of chicken and lamb if its cooked just right. It has been a long road to get there. His lunch is the same boring combo of plain, boring foods like plain bread everyday. He has just started swollowing vitamins which I'm yjtilled about because he hated chewing them. Iy is so true what you and Nanci said....they would truly rather starve than eat certain things! My son has dropped too much weight from his slight frame when we have tried to be firm. Its just not worth the stress. It leaves everyone feeling bad and the child upset. That can't be good for the relationship. You are right....the suggestions like just keep trying, keep offering the same foods, they'll eventually eat it just don't ring true for kids with this challenge. I've decided that I don't want my son's mealtime memories to be stressful ones so I only 'encourage' new foods one or 2 days a week. The rest we let him choose as long as they're fairly healthy. We have also tried electric toothbrushes, mouth brushing therapy and 'licking' therapy with limited success. Good luck for the future!

Nanci - posted on 08/08/2009

OMG!!!!!! When my son was seen at school by an occupational therapist who had noticed that he was covering his ears and not eating anything in the lunchroom on about the 2nd week of school, she gave me a call and talked to me about him. I had already told the school of his food "issues" and how he will only eat a very limited things. At that time he just started kindergarten and was 5 years. He is now 6 almost 7. She had made the suggestion about SPD. I had never heard of it. I had always known that something was not quite right with my son and also his pediatrician did say that at well. We never had put the two together until he started school.He has ALWAYS had eating issues. He had GERD at birth and once in a while still has an occasional flare up. He was seen by therapists when he was 6mo. They all said that he was doing well accept for an "oral aversion" to certain foods. Meaning that certain textures and smells and touches to foods made him gag or vomit. Yes, that was/is the case. He has managed to grow healthy and on track physically due to vitamin supplements as his diet only consists of.....crackers(just about any kind but cannot be spicey---LOVES cheeez its), pudding(snack pack kind only), cheese(kraft singles only), chips, peanut butter creamy only(either on bread or crackers---no jelly or butter), jucies(mostly apple), tons of water, breads with butter, and maybe a few different kinds of cereals like cap n crunch or cheerios but it cannot have milk... has to eat it dry and french fries. He hasn't drank milk or pediasure since he was 18 mos. He will only sip on mill one or two times now at school and thats it! He will not eat cake, donuts or anything like that. He just started eating peanut butter cookies this year but they cannot have nuts in them. He doesn't eat candy! The only candy he ever eats is the plain chocolate hershey bars. Nothing that has nuts or all the extra stuff in them. At one time he would eat yogurt but he kept spitting the fruit pieces out or gagging on them now he just won't even try it. He has been better in the last few months now that we are seeing an occupational therapist routinely now. She said that some kids as they become less "sensative" to smells and textures they tend to eat more variety of things. He is sooo sensative to smells and textures that he cannot touch dirt as it makes him vomit and the smell of fingerpaints make him vomit too. So far he has tried a hamburger and ate half of it and also a few pieces of pizza, in which I was soooo proud of him I had to call all my friends and family!!! For the most part everyday is a HUGE battle to get him to eat anything. I tried that trick when he was littler about just not giving in and let him "starv" and he will eat.....not my kid!!! He would rather starv! I kid you not...he went 2 days not eating! I have never done that again, I am soooo glad to see that other parents have the same issues going on as I do. I have a lot of people tell me that I just spoil him and let him do whatever he wants. People think that I make excuses for him so that he can just eat whatever. NOT true....I was raised to always eat everything on your plate even if you didn't like it and always try it. I was also raised to never waste your food. You cannot believe how hard this is for me to watch my son waste sooo much food as we try new stuff. I have accepted the wastefulness as my son and his health is more important than waste or the niavety of people and their (lack of ) intelligence. .

Mary - posted on 07/29/2009

My son is five and we have the same issues. Everyone said, he would grow out of the gagging, etc and it wasn't until I told my pediatrician that I WANTED a refferal to a speech therapist, that he finally agreed that there might be an issue. Three years ago he only ate 5 foods, now he eats much more, but it has been a struggle and I have wanted to give up many times. He would tell me that he just didn't like to eat and I thought that was so sad. It took three years to get him to eat chicken nuggets, mac and cheese, apple slices (no peel), and hot dog. Thank God for peanut butter because he would have had no nutrition had it not been for that! Have you worked with a speech therapist for the feeding issues?

Margaret - posted on 06/27/2009

My daughter is 6 and has SPD. It is a relief to know that we are not the only ones gong through this. She will eat chicken and dumplings, bologna & cheese lunchables, peanut butter sandwhiches (NO jelly), hot dogs with the asing peeled off and chicken nuggets. When I ask her to try something new she says "I don't like it" without it ever touchng her lips. She wll get very upset if I push the issue so usually don't.

Stacey - posted on 06/26/2009

I am so going through this as well! My son also has a very limited diet. The last cheeseburger he ate was when he was 14 months old. He has never tried a hot dog, never tried any sandwich except peanut butter and jelly and grilled cheese (and now he won't touch those either). I laughed when I saw that his only fruit was apple juice because I consider that and chocolate-covered raisons fruit. I can generally get an apple (peeled and sliced very specifically) in my son every few months -- the same goes with a banana, but no other fruits. Vegetables consist of a serving of corn or green beans (plain with nothing on them) once a year. The only meat that he will eat is bacon and very rarely chicken nuggets. His staples are Spaghetti O's (no meatballs) and mac and cheese (must be Kraft - he knows the difference immediately).



Isn't it so frustrating? His pediatrician learned very early not to ask about his nutrition...lol. I threw a party when he was 6 because he tried spaghetti sauce for the first time! I threw another party at age 7 when he finally tried ketchup for the first time! Prior to this he has always had completely "plain" foods and will not dip anything. The spaghetti sauce and ketchup are still rarely requested... but, he tried them. Other parents don't seem to understand and just say don't give them another option. They don't realize that my child truly would prefer to starve to death and that he honestly cannot eat different foods... his body/brain will not allow it. Good luck and know that you are not alone. I am relieved to know that others are battling this past the toddler years as well...



Are you also completely frustrated fixing the same meals over and over? It drives me crazy that my child has basically eaten the same dinner for 6 years...