Trying New Foods with Autism: Why we are picky eaters.

I hear people all the time asking How can I get my ASD child to try new foods? There is no one thing that will work each one is different. You have to find something that will make them truly want to do it. Let me explain why trying something new is so hard for us. First people with autism are instinct driver and our instincts tell us anything new is dangerous and could potentially kill us. This means where you may think I am simply trying a new food the worst that could happen is I won’t like it. We may understand this logically but our instincts kick in and suddenly the worst that can happen is a horrible, violent, painful death. No matter how much we are told or how well we understand that this is unlikely to happen our instinctual side tend to overpower our logical side and we are truly terrified for our lives. Now not everyone with ASD has this problem with food I do but for others it may be this extreme when they go to a new place, or do things in a different order. Basically anything new or different can cause this reaction. I’m using food because that is the hardest for me. For years I could not explain this. I didn't understand that I was actually physically afraid. I just knew something inside me wouldn't let me do it and made it hard. Sometimes I could fight it and try a new food sometimes I couldn't but I always ended up in tears when I tried. Most times when I did get a bite down within seconds I would declare I didn't like it. I've since learned that one small bite cannot tell me if I like it or not. After the first bite if I don’t have an immediate violent reaction then my body calms slightly and realizes that it will not kill me. I have to wait a few minutes for this to happen and know that I can at least tolerate said food. Once I have relaxed some then I can try a second small bite. Although this is not as hard as the first it is still a challenge and takes an effort to do. This second bite is when I deal with the sensory issues. Do I like the taste? Are there so many flavors that I go into overload? Can I handle the texture or will it cause me to meltdown? Although not as scary as the first bite there are still a lot of questions and fear in the second one. This is the final step to finding out if I like it or can at least handle it. Sometimes taking the first bite is so hard that I don’t have the energy to try that second bite so I have to wait until I’m able to try again this can take a few days. I’m now 38 years old and have tried many new foods in my life and no matter how much I know logically my instincts still kick in and it is still a hard sometimes painful process for me to try a new food. I want to have a healthier diet so I don’t give up. It can be a long slow process and I know some days the fear will win but other days I will. So I just keep at it and celebrate every step I make in the right direction.