fbpx

Tag: holiday meal aversion

Holiday Picky Eating

Navigating Picky Eating Around the Holidays

Navigating the Holidays with a Picky Eater

The holidays can be a special time for family, traditions, and some of our favorite foods.  It can be challenging (and stressful!) going to a family member’s house, knowing that your child will not eat any of the foods.  It can be an anxious time for a child that knows they will be asked to try new foods.  We understand that holiday picky eating can take a toll on the whole family and we want to help. We will share some tips to help your picky eater (and you) have a positive and enjoyable holiday meal! 

 

Include your child in the preparation

We want kids to have as many positive exposures to new foods as possible.  The more a child can interact with a food without necessarily eating it, the less scary it becomes.  Have your child wash vegetables, mix, pour, etc. to allow for more exposure to novel foods.

 

 Have preferred foods available

Bring a dish or two to share that your child enjoys.  This allows your child to feel included in the meal while making sure there is something for them to eat.  Your child can pick the amount of each food they want on their plate to encourage autonomy and allow exploration without creating pressure and anxiety around the meal.

 

Keep the environment fun and positive for your child

Keep the pressure extremely low to try new foods.  Encourage your child to put what they want on their plate. It is not uncommon for kids to not eat a large meal on the holidays because of the atmosphere and commotion the holiday brings.  Not sure what to say to your aunt that insists your child try their dish?  We have a blog post for that!

 

Interact with food without eating it

Try touching, smelling, licking, pulling apart new foods to allow for a positive interaction with food without pressure to eat it.  Being silly helps!  

 

Model trying new foods

Discuss foods that are your favorite in neutral terms (e.g., “I like this! It’s sweet! That one is crunchy”) Use descriptive language like hot, cold, salty, spicy, sweet, crunchy, etc. instead of words like good, bad, yummy, yucky, etc.  If a food is not your favorite, model trying a small taste and use language similar to “I am still learning about this food” to encourage your child to continue to try new foods.

 

If you feel like your child has difficulty at mealtimes, please reach out to us to schedule a free 30 minute screening at our Aurora or Orland Park clinic here to seee how we can help. You can learn more about our feeding therapy services here

 

Molly Rademacher, MA, CCC-SLP/L

TURKEY TIME TROUBLES?

Turkey Time (as referred to by many of our kiddos) is just around the corner and it is either met with happy or anxious anticipation by children and adults!  A family member announces every Thanksgiving that this is her least favorite holiday because of how overwhelmed she feels with all the food options.  She says the anxiety starts weeks before the big day.  She has the ability to identify, process and express her anxiety related around a holiday.  Imagine, now, a child with the same feelings.  What might his or her anxiety look like?

Anxiety signs in kids:

  • Crying
  • Fleeing the table
  • Poor Sleep
  • Upset/outbursts more frequently or higher intensity than is typical
  • Irritability
  • Grimacing
  • Sweating
  • Yelling
  • Wide eyes
  • Gagging or vomiting
  • Decreased appetite
  • Tense or jittery body
  • Frequent urination

So, what can you do to help make this time less anxious for your child?

How you can help:

  • Take the pressure off! No need to focus on or force the idea of sitting down for a large meal with relatives!  Keep it casual for your kid
  • Validate feelings of discomfort around the holiday
  • Brainstorm food avoidance strategies for use at the Thanksgiving table with your child
  • Interact with Thanksgiving foods without eating them
  • Talk about it- set expectations and boundaries for the holiday festivities
  • Take breaks from the commotion 
  • Turn the focus- make the focus of the holiday less about the food and more about family, crafting/decorations, gratitude, whatever is important to your family!
  • Engage in calming strategies throughout the month.  Examples of calming strategies include heavy work, deep pressure, auditory supports, movement strategies, deep breathing/relaxation strategies, tactile bins, lighting adjustments, and visual toys.  These strategies can be used around meal time and outside of meal time.

Turkey time can be a successful holiday for your entire family, especially if you identify and prepare for the day ahead of time!  If you’d like additional resources, please set up a free screening with one of our occupational therapists at BDI playhouse!

Written by Maggie Lord MS, OTR/L, and Jessica Keenan, MA, CCC-SLP/L, CLC

Picky Eating

Why my Picky Eater Won’t Eat Your Cranberry Sauce

A letter to my well-meaning relatives around the holidays: Why my picky eater won’t eat your famous homemade cranberry sauce…

Dearest Relatives, 

We love seeing you around the holidays! Family is so important to us, and we look so forward to the warmth of a festive home, the scents of dinner cooking in the oven, and the time interacting with our family to celebrate these special days.

This time of year can be hard for my child. The hustle/bustle of gift shopping at crowded stores filled with sparkly and scented shelves and swarms of people sets my little one on edge. Bright lights that decorate your house are a lot of visual input for small, tired eyes. Hugs and kisses from relatives is a squeezy experience all it’s own. My child spends the holiday season overwhelmed, and the family parties are no exception. 

Then comes dinner time.

Days were spent preparing your famous cranberry sauce. You bought special cranberries, soaked them, washed them, mashed them. I’m sure you bought a unique ingredient at the ONE special store that carries it, and you got it JUST before it went out of stock. There was mixing and cooking and chilling. The beautiful treat was placed in the perfect serving dish so your entire family would be able to enjoy your masterpiece.

BUT…

At dinner, my child has trouble sitting politely at the table. After keeping it (mostly) together during the appetizer/pre-dinner activities, my child is quite jazzed. His system has a hard time processing all of the aspects of the evening that have lead up to the main event that is dinner. Asking them now to sit nicely in their chair next to their siblings/cousins/relatives is a feat meant for champions alone. And then they are faced with a gorgeous plate full of “delicious” food, including your precious cranberry sauce, and fear strikes his heart. And mine. 

**Please don’t make a scene, please behave, please let us get through this meal without an upset**

All my pleading cannot account for the fact that this food is my child’s demon, his largest aversion, his highest obstacle, his “Everest.” Maybe he is not ready to face it today, even if (especially if) it is a holiday. Maybe he will gracefully leave your cranberry sauce on his plate and eat around it, maybe he will run and hide under the table in the other room.

My child has difficulty feeling the cranberry sauce in his mouth and is fearful to put it between those teeth for fear of choking or losing it in his back cheeks. Sometimes my child is unable to coordinate his tongue in order to move those berries around in his mouth to properly chew or swallow that goop. It could also be that the texture of wet, mushy berries surrounded in unidentifiable glop is far too intimidating to place in his mouth and swallow. It’s also very possible that the scent of the sweet dish is off-putting to an ultra-sensitive nose. Perhaps the way your cranberry sauce jiggles is overly exciting for the eyes, or too closely resembles another feared food item. It could even be that today is Thursday, and we only eat yellow foods on Thursdays. 

Whatever the reason, please don’t take offense!

  • Please don’t offer more, or comment on my child’s lack of enjoyment of your prized dish.
  • I’m begging, please, please, please, don’t suggest my child eat these berries or ask him to “just try a bite”.
  • I would also love it if you did not snort judgment as I heat up the chicken nuggets in the microwave.
  • Let me help you understand what you are asking before you ask it. Be mindful of what this holiday and that cranberry sauce means to me and my child.

We love you, and one day we may also happily indulge in your cranberry sauce. Today may not be that day, but we are working towards that! First, we must master looking at new foods, smelling them, touching them, licking them, biting them, swallowing them, and smiling with joy at the taste. When that is accomplished, we hope that our dear child will eat every bite of your famous cranberry sauce, so we can all rejoice!

Until then, enjoy my child’s giggles, curiosity, love for all things bouncing/rolling, and for you (cranberry sauce not included)!

Happy Holidays,

Mother of a child with a zest for life, a goofy smile, a whit faster than light, and feeding difficulties

Written by: Margaret Lord OTR/L

If your child is a picky eater and mealtime is creating a challenge in your home, contact us for a free consultation.  You are not alone and we can help!

You have Questions. We have Answers.

Schedule a consultation by phone or at our Naperville – Aurora or Orland Park clinic here: