Ty had feeding therapy until he was 3 years old because it took us until he was almost 2 to get him to eat anything at all.? Ty has many texture aversions and because of this, his diet is very limited.? Many food items feel differently in his mouth and cause him to reject them.? From my observations, I don?t believe it is often about how a thing tastes but how it feels to him.? We do push Ty?s boundaries on this sometimes but we have learned that food is not the hill we want to die on.? When your child with texture aversions has been made to sample foods that upset his senses enough times that you have had to watch him throw it all up in the kitchen sink because he just couldn?t stomach it ? well you learn that it simply isn?t worth it.? Instead, we try to get some form of protein down Ty at every meal.? His food list is quite short so this can be difficult.? If we are eating out, I find myself ordering cheeseburgers without the meat and without the mustard quite frequently because that summarizes the only thing he will eat at most fast food dining places.? (Mustard must truly be a taste dislike don?t you think?? I can?t see how it could qualify as a texture aversion).
Even now, I have to talk my way through meals with Ty because even the things he will eat, are only tolerable in certain combinations.? For example, he likes donuts and he likes jelly but when Grandma brought home a Danish with jelly on it the other day he wouldn?t come near it.
Ironically, for a child that avoids most foods, he talks about food all the time.? I?ll explain more on that later.
How you can help? Please don?t try to insist that Ty eats what he doesn?t want. ?He needs grace in this area.? ?Realize that Ty has a higher likelihood of choking and aspirating (while drinking and swimming) due to oral motor issues.? ??Please don?t bring Autism diet plans to me.? Ty does not have these symptoms because of food allergies or anything else environmental.
Ty quote after Sweetie gave him yet another chance with gum “I CAN”T BELIEVE IT!? I can’t believe I am responsible enough for gum!”???? LOL? (He went through a whole pack in minutes because he stood by the trash and sampled each piece one by one and then spit them out.? They lose their flavor too fast you know.)
5 responses to “Food is Strange in Ty’s World”
I think I will need to copy these posts and send them out to people. Or maybe I should write my own explaining about the Twins. Food is such a touchy subject with me.
Thanks for sharing these posts Doni.
Doni, I am so glad that you are putting all these things into words. Our oldest and third son have the severe texture issues as well. Although it took us longer to figure out what it was and that it wasn’t them just being “naughty” about food. It’s funny having so many, we see the texture issue crop up again and again. I think I have intuitively figured out the textures that are okay and those that are not.
I think one of the greatest challenges is eating with friends and trying to help them understand that the kids not eating the food isn’t personal or naughtiness…it truly is the texture issues.
Again, thanks for sharing. It is so nice to know that we aren’t the only ones experiencing this.
Doni – I am the parent of two children with (very different) special needs and I am active in many support groups (both online and in real life) with other parents of children with special needs. My point being – I’ve spent a lot of time in the “special needs” arena (over 20 years) and, for what it’s worth — I love your attitude. You are informed and well aware of what the “experts” say, yet you have the confidence to know that you know your child best and that you are the best person to decide how to raise your “special” child – despite all the information and pressure out there from those who think they know what is best. I so respect you (and Jim) for that. You are truly to be applauded for your attitude and your approach to raising Ty and all of your children.
the gum… that is cute. seth did something similar when he found his papa bear’s gum but he swallowed it! eeek. 🙂