Struggling to Eat: Is it Linked to Autism?

TL;DR: I've always had difficulty eating and I'm wondering if this is linked to autism or something more serious as well as how I can try to eat more So I've been having difficulty eating for as long as I can remember and now that I'm diagnosed with autism I'm wondering if that's part of it or if it's something else entirely. I find it difficult to eat a full meal most of the time; it's like my brain is telling me I'm full but I can feel in my stomach that I'm not. It becomes physically difficult to swallow and I've found that there's no avoiding it but I can sometimes delay the reaction I guess? (or sometimes I just get lucky and it doesn't happen). If I follow specific guidelines I feel it's more likely that I finish a meal. My parents never considered me a picky eater because I'd eat anything but I'm starting to wonder if maybe I'm just picky in a different way. And my OCD does have some influence over my eating but I don't think it's relevant to these specific traits. So I guess what I'm asking is should I be concerned about these traits and does anybody know how to overcome them?

Your answer

tigershark98

1y ago

There is an eating disorder called Avoidant-Restrictive Food Intake Disorder, also called ARFID, which frequently co-occurs with Autism. There are a few different types of ARFID. I thought perhaps either the Aversive or Restrictive types may sound like your experience? “Aversive: Fear of choking, vomiting, nausea, pain, and/or difficulty or issues with swallowing,” leading to eating less. “Restrictive: May have little to no interest in food. One may forget to eat altogether, show signs of low to no appetite, or get extremely distracted during mealtimes.” Most resources online seem to be focused on the Avoidant type, which means a person has an extremely limited diet due to sensory features like taste. This is the type that I have. I thought maybe ARFID could sound similar to your experience.

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