Hi my son as been diagnosed with ARFID I've been fighting to get a diagnoses since the age of around 18 months that's when he started refusing his foods he now lives on Nutella sandwiches, frosties around 3 or 4 bowls a day, kitkat, ready salted crisps and the odd apple with the skin off.....the foods he eats only have to be prepared in a certain way for example Nutella sandwiches crusts off cut into triangles and then squashed down
Arfid affects my son mentally as he wants to try food but he can't he gags and vomits it doesn't affect him just with eating its alot of sensory issues around food too He can't sit at the table when we are eating as a family or if I'm cooking in the kitchen he can't tolerate the smells it's so difficult for him it effects him mentally in the respect of meltdowns and also his mood swings are so bad too at school his teachers have allocated him a space in the dinner hall where he is facing a wall and eats his lunch on a shelf in the corner as the school don't understand about him having arfid they just put him down as a picky eater I hate the term picky eater
At school his so quite and very good behaved but then when his home his like a bottle of coke he keeps his lid on all day but then when his home his lid comes off and I get every emotion
For example the last week he was meant to have English and then maths but for some reason the school did maths first and then English and when he got home he was so angry he didn't come out of school happy at all his emotions went upside down and it was so difficult to even say anything to him without major meltdowns
If his sister or 2 brothers don't play with him he will lash out he punches walls slams doors and hurt himself
He punches and slaps his sister who is 8 and his brother who is 5 it's so difficult
I'm thinking of claiming disability benefit for him plus the woman at the eating disorder clinic says I should reach out to my gp for an appointment with a community pediatric
Does anyone else have these issues? Please reach out because I feel like I'm sinking