I think I’m developing ARFID.
I been struggling with eating for the past months, and it’s been ruining my relationship with food. I am not a picky eater I am always open to trying new foods, but I’m scared of certain textures. I have a huge fear of choking due to my past choking incidents when I was younger, and it would always haunt me. Even if I’m eating with friends, I still struggle with eating and swallowing even though I’m swallowing the smallest bits of food. I always stay away from nuts, mochi, anything that is chewy or stretchy like steak, sausages and cheese. Mind you I LOVE eating those foods, but due to my fear of choking I can’t anymore.I also can’t even eat by myself without someone next to me just in case I choke and they can assist me. I also cried over how I can’t eat the way I used to, even if it’s rice with meat, and I’m really considering doing therapy. It sucks because I am a person with bad anxiety too. Every time I try to swallow, my neck gets really tight and I feel like I can’t breathe for a second. I end up spitting my food out and it’s just so annoying. I also start hyperventilating afterwards and sweating because of the fear. My body now thinks that food is dangerous and if I’m not careful I could choke and die. Even worse some days I develop a panic attack because of swallowing food, and feeling like some of it got stuck even though it went down my throat. Nowadays I’m eating so much less, and can only consume protein shakes, mash potatoes, avocado, anything that doesn’t require much chewing. I even bought a life vac with me just in case if I choke by myself, or anyone I’m eating with chokes (which has very good reviews I recommend you guys should buy them) I searched up what ARFID (Avoidant restrictive food intake disorder) is and I see some of the symptoms I can relate to, and think I might have it but I’m not sure so I might go to a therapist and see if I get diagnosed with it. Does anyone relate to my experience? I would love to hear your stories. I’m sitting here with my mama brand Thai ramen, and struggling to eat it rn cuz of how stringy and chewy the noodles are lol.