Adult 'picky eater'

Can anybody please assist me with some advice on how to approach an adult client who has advised she is a ‘picky eater’? I have not seen her yet, however in her email to me she informs me that she continues to go to a certain place and orders a certain dish and has been ordering this same dish for over ten years. The take away place is a 45 minute drive from where she lives. She does not like trying new things and when she is forced to because she gets tired of eating the same thing, she will take a bite and throws the rest away if she does not like it. She has come to the conclusion that she is such a fussy eater because her mother never was a confident cook so never forced her and her siblings to eat anything, as the kids picked and chose what they ate the mother would then cook three different meals to cater for the different tastes. She finds it mentally draining constantly thinking about what to eat and beating herself up that she cannot change, and states that the older she is becoming the more problematic her eating habits are becoming. Going overseas poses a tremendous problem for her; she is planning on going to Malaysia to visit her sister in a couple of months.

The other issues that she mentioned. She became addicted to coca cola but has now given that up since it burned away the lining of her stomach. Herself diagnosis is that she has no consistency or discipline. She used to be a nail biter, stopped that habit about 5 years ago, however apparently for no reason she will start to bite them again so badly that they will bleed. In her own words “Exercising, cleaning my house, making my bed, taking vitamins, trying new foods, it even applies to different jobs at work. I just don’t seem to be able to have consistency and discipline. My brother is exactly the same so it’s obviously something in the family”!

I am trained in Cognitive Behaviour Therapy so will introduce some of that into our sessions, however would appreciate any advice on how to approach this from a hypnotherapy aspect.

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Permalink Reply by Susan French on August 19, 2009 at 4:09pm

Has she been evaluated by a psychiatrist, psychologist or other mental health professional who also has knowledge of neurology and brain chemistry and can diagnose? Her issues seem much more complex than a simple hypnotherapy intervention, at least without some kind of workup. At least to me. I would make certain to get a medical referral from her doctor.

Susan

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Permalink Reply by Michael Ellner on August 19, 2009 at 4:45pm

Hello Christine,

I am confident that you can think of a creative way to give your client a reason to believe that hypnosis can help her because "picky eating" is not a genetic flaw - she a suffers from a learned behavior and hypnosis can actually make it pleasurable and satisfying to discover that she really enjoys discovering new foods that she likes... Blah, blah, blah.

Respectfully - suggest that her resources are discipline and consistency as evidenced by her willingness to drive 45 minutes to maintain her self-limiting habit for ten years-- Hypnosis can make these resources work for her instead of against her...Blah, blah, blah-

The reason she doesn't like new foods is that her tastes buds have become bored and lazy and hypnosis is gonna put the fun and excitement back into enjoying new foods... Blah, blah, blah--

After you have excited her imagination and shifted her perceptions so that she is planning on a successful outcome - Trust your sense of her and simply reach into your hypnotic toolbox and guide her through that hypnotic ritual with the suggestion that doing this will change that...

Remember to have fun!

Michael E.

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Permalink Reply by Juliet Eccleston on August 22, 2009 at 11:32am

Hi Christine,

I agree with Michael, I'd try some simple visualisations - first of all making sure the client is very relaxed and then start with bringing something in fairly simple which isnt too far away from what she currently likes. It's key that she's relaxed when doing this so she does not associate anxiety to the experience.

Also, I'd try breaking the pattern by saying she can continue to eat the same food, but she has to go a different route to get there - you could also rehearse this hypnotically. Make alot of suggestions about how the food will taste slightly different because of her taking a different route - lots of opportunity for hypnotic language - playing on the different route/journey/destination words there. You could also get her to notice other things on the route so she breaks the trance state she will be in on the journey - maybe she could give a running commentary as she drives. Try scaling with her how anxious she is about the food throughout the journey and create positive expectation for the scale reducing as her desire for other foods increases.

At the same time I'd also focus on her life balance - Human Givens specifically and get her to start doing something she previously used to enjoy which she doesnt any more.

Hope my brief summary helps! Please update us on how it goes.

Take care,

Juliet

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Permalink Reply by Christine on August 23, 2009 at 2:17am

Hi Susan, Michael and Juliet,

Thank you for taking the time to reply. Susan my client has seen a psychologist with very little results, she states hypnotherapy is her last hope. Michael and Juliet I have taken on board what you have said and will work with it.
Once again thank you ever so much for your valuable input.

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Permalink Reply by Kelley Woods on August 23, 2009 at 9:07am

I like Michaels' approach to this issue; making it fun! Somewhere along the way, your client got the impression that being committed is undesirable, despite the fact that she clearly is committed to her eating habits. Of course, if it's out of balance, that may be undesirable. Playing along with her subconsious mind's ability to stick to something may be the path toward freedom for this woman. Perhaps it can be convinced to commit to new experiences and adventures. Some imagery enjoying new tastes will probably be beneficial in preparing her for such.

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Permalink Reply by Jennifer on October 26, 2009 at 2:47pm

I think regression to cause might be useful in this situation, but I could be wrong. It seems like there is something deeper causing her "picky" eating and lack of discipline.

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Permalink Reply by John Cleesattel on October 26, 2009 at 3:06pm

Christine,
You didn't say what her goal was. To stop being a picky eater? She obviously has some compulsive tendencies, but from what you say has show she is able to overcome some of them. (It sounds similar to those who suffer from ADD or ADHD.)

Once you have her identify her goal with hypnotherapy, you will have a clearer direction in which to proceed with her.

I hope this helps
John

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Permalink Reply by Linda Knight on October 26, 2009 at 4:07pm

I really like Michael's ideas and would add visualization with as many "sensual" words as possible being provided... by that I mean simply words that apply to the senses... juicy red strawberries, tasting that sweet yet tart flavor, savoring the aroma of the spices, the textures... these are all things that we bring into the visualization. I used that method in working with a young man who had eaten nothing but chicken strips (or for a change of pace, chicken nuggets) for almost 3 years... literally... nothing but. He stated that the mere thought of any other food made him gag. However, he was joining the military and knew that being a picky eater didn't mix with that profession. I asked him to make a list of foods he thought he might like to try, and had him visualize all of them going down with ease... the challenge for me was having him imagine the taste of foods he had literally never eaten. I never knew how hard it is to describe flavors before. What a joy it was to hear from him a week later that he "never knew there were so many delicious foods out there."

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Permalink Reply by Katin Imes on October 27, 2009 at 7:38am

I'm going to echo John Cleesattel's concern that it sounds like there is so much being requested here that the danger is trying to take it all on at once. It sounds like she may be searching for some connection between a lack of discipline and picky eating... What is the specific life change she really wants to make? Of course, we always want to pull the "lynch pin" of the core problem if we can, but a good, clear focus on one goal is the way to begin with hypnotherapy.

I also want to mention that Michael Ellner's suggestions and approaches are excellent. Notice how focused they are on the single goal of solving the picky eating. Listen to her words in the session, match, pace and transform with the process. Imagine how exciting it will be to discover how natural and magical that session with her will be!