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Forget the rest, try Plan C

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Forget the rest, try Plan C Judith Yeabsley|Fussy Eating NZ, #TheConfidentEater, #FussyEatingNZ, #TryNewFoods #HelpForFussyEating, #HelpForFussyEaters, #FussyEater, #FussyEating, #PickyEater, #PickyEating, #SupportForFussyEaters, #SupportForPickyEaters, #CreatingConfidentEaters, #TryNewFood #PickyEatingNZ #HelpForPickyEaters, #HelpForPickyEating, #Wellington, #NZ, #JudithYeabsley

Forget the rest, try Plan C!

The Confident Eater works with over 100 families a year. To do this we have crafted some simple, practical ways for parents to help their child eat different foods. Our unique 7-step program is a key element of this, as is making sure that you have the ‘C’ words working in your favour.

Let’s dive deep into Plan C.

Fussy eating help – Plan C concepts

Becoming The Confident Eater was a very conscious decision and that of course, is the first ‘C’ word.

However, there are other ‘C’ words that are important for creating an approach that is supportive of better eating.

These are a great starting point for creating a confident eater.

1. Confident – As a parent you determine much of your child’s success around food. Although logically they are the fearful/anxious/stubborn ones, when it comes to eating,  what you do as the parent can often have a substantial impact.

It’s difficult to change what someone else does, it is far easier to change what you do. But as I have seen time and again, what you as a parent do is critically important. It may not have a magical, overnight effect, but as your child’s most important role model what your do over time does make a difference.

If you look at the bigger picture, your attitude to things has a long-term effect on how your child reacts, appreciates, and operates around something. This can work both positively and negatively. For example, if you are a huge soccer fan, often your child will be too. If you feel soccer is boring but rugby is the bee’s knees often your children have the same thoughts.

Fussy eating help – Plan C – breakfasts, Judith Yeabsley|Fussy Eating NZ, FussyEatingHelpPlanC, #PickyEatingHelpPlanC, #TryNewFoods, #TheConfidentEater, #FussyEatingNZ, #HelpForFussyEating, #HelpForFussyEaters, #FussyEater, #FussyEating, #PickyEater, #PickyEating, #SupportForFussyEaters, #SupportForPickyEaters, #CreatingConfidentEaters, #TryNewFood #PickyEatingNZ #HelpForPickyEaters, #HelpForPickyEating, #Wellington, #NZ, #JudithYeabsley

When it comes to food, being confident that your child can eat something new and showing them you believe they can overcome their fears and tackle a different dish is a big part of them believing too.

Once you gain confidence you are the one best placed to support your child to eat more widely, it is then building your child’s belief they can too.

2. Charge – Who is in charge of food in your house? More than likely, if you are honest, it’s your three, five or ten year old. And if that’s the case, you are not alone, most parents end up here.

An important part of making progress is to ensure control is well and truly in your court. This does not mean taking all decision making from your child, and it does not mean you offer either the lasagna or starve as options. In fact, it is the opposite.

What is helpful is to create reassuring parameters and boundaries and put structure around meals. This will give your child the comfort of knowing what is going to happen when, and also that their needs will always be met.

Routines around food are comforting for children, particularly those who are food anxious.

Fussy eating help – Plan C – breakfasts, Judith Yeabsley|Fussy Eating NZ, family routines, FussyEatingHelpPlanC, #PickyEatingHelpPlanC, #TryNewFoods, #TheConfidentEater, #FussyEatingNZ, #HelpForFussyEating, #HelpForFussyEaters, #FussyEater, #FussyEating, #PickyEater, #PickyEating, #SupportForFussyEaters, #SupportForPickyEaters, #CreatingConfidentEaters, #TryNewFood #PickyEatingNZ #HelpForPickyEaters, #HelpForPickyEating, #Wellington, #NZ, #JudithYeabsley

Knowing what is going to happen, when, and that there will always be something they can eat, takes worry from the table.

3. Consistent – being consistent around feeding works on a lot of levels.

i) Set expectations and then live up to those expectations every day as best as practicable.

ii) Create boundaries around food and make those the family way to operate.

iii) Consistently serve food you would love your child to eat. In my experience this is one of the biggest inadvertent pitfalls parents fall into:

A parent serves their child carrots, and they refuse to eat them, and so carrots do not get served again. Or you serve carrots day in, day out for a few weeks and your child still refuses them, so you stop serving them.

Fussy eating help – Plan C – breakfasts, Judith Yeabsley|Fussy Eating NZ, girl eating carrot, FussyEatingHelpPlanC, #PickyEatingHelpPlanC, #TryNewFoods, #TheConfidentEater, #FussyEatingNZ, #HelpForFussyEating, #HelpForFussyEaters, #FussyEater, #FussyEating, #PickyEater, #PickyEating, #SupportForFussyEaters, #SupportForPickyEaters, #CreatingConfidentEaters, #TryNewFood #PickyEatingNZ #HelpForPickyEaters, #HelpForPickyEating, #Wellington, #NZ, #JudithYeabsley

However, there are also three important keys to the effectiveness of ongoing serving:

– It is usually not enough to serve food halfheartedly with no real expectation that it will get eaten (see point one)

– If it is not on the plate, it does not get eaten. Therefore, you serve the foods you want your child to eat and do so repeatedly (think reading and how many years you read to your child).

– It is important to enable your child to engage with the food in a gentle and fun way. Particularly for food hesitant children this is essential and supports long-term progress.

4. Change – this again works on different levels.

i) If you are doing the same thing over and over again and not seeing results, then it is probably time to look at other ways to do things.

I appreciate that you have likely tried many strategies and many different things to help your child eat more comfortably. Parents of picky eaters work so hard on this, I know.

Fussy eating help – Plan C – breakfasts, Judith Yeabsley|Fussy Eating NZ, mum cooking with girl, FussyEatingHelpPlanC, #PickyEatingHelpPlanC, #TryNewFoods, #TheConfidentEater, #FussyEatingNZ, #HelpForFussyEating, #HelpForFussyEaters, #FussyEater, #FussyEating, #PickyEater, #PickyEating, #SupportForFussyEaters, #SupportForPickyEaters, #CreatingConfidentEaters, #TryNewFood #PickyEatingNZ #HelpForPickyEaters, #HelpForPickyEating, #Wellington, #NZ, #JudithYeabsley

But look for effective ways to change the approach and put into place strategies that are going to be a fit for your child. Each family and child are different, so it’s finding ways that work for your specific situation.

ii) Change is the precursor to new. If your child cannot accept change, they are going to find new a lot more difficult.

Look for ways to show your child gentle change, even within a limited diet this is a core component of making progress.

5. Comfort – build a comfort level around food in general and then around new food. Most children are deemed fussy eaters because they can’t eat new foods.

Being comfortably able to touch a food and happily have it on the plate are the first steps towards eating something new. If your child is not able to do this, then work to gently move them towards this.

Fussy eating help – Plan C – breakfasts, Judith Yeabsley|Fussy Eating NZ, boy eating, FussyEatingHelpPlanC, #PickyEatingHelpPlanC, #TryNewFoods, #TheConfidentEater, #FussyEatingNZ, #HelpForFussyEating, #HelpForFussyEaters, #FussyEater, #FussyEating, #PickyEater, #PickyEating, #SupportForFussyEaters, #SupportForPickyEaters, #CreatingConfidentEaters, #TryNewFood #PickyEatingNZ #HelpForPickyEaters, #HelpForPickyEating, #Wellington, #NZ, #JudithYeabsley

Once your child has mastered foods on the plate the next step is gradually creating the confidence that a food is okay to go into the mouth. This is almost always something that takes time and repetition (likely more than a lot!), and also hinges in the long-run on your approach. See points 1 – 4!

There are more ‘C’ words that I love and feel have an important place in long-term plans to support your child to eat a wide variety of foods happily.

Bonus fussy eating help – ‘C’ words

– Convinced – be convinced  you can make these changes, be confident and be in charge. Often the first steps are the most challenging. Once you have a plan in place and get rolling, things become clearer and easier.

– Courage – have the courage to tackle fussy eating. It often seems like a huge mountain to climb, and that it is going to be too difficult, if not impossible. This can prevent you from taking action.

My advice is to tackle fussy eating sooner, rather than later. The longer you wait, the more negative habits you have to overcome, often the narrower food choices are and the less control you have over the situation. If you feel that it’s impossible to do on your own, then please do look for support.

– Creative – this is not about creating a Van Gogh picture from lettuce at every meal. But it is about looking at the picky eating challenge from new angles and being open to thinking and approaching food and feeding from a new stance.

– Calm – it’s important you remain calm, particularly if your child does not. In fact, the more dysregulated they become, the more it’s essential you remain zen. As hard as it is to do, taking deep breaths so you can feel in control is going to prevent behaviour from escalating or the meal becoming a site of conflict.

Fussy eating help – Plan C – breakfasts, Judith Yeabsley|Fussy Eating NZ, boy feeding, FussyEatingHelpPlanC, #PickyEatingHelpPlanC, #TryNewFoods, #TheConfidentEater, #FussyEatingNZ, #HelpForFussyEating, #HelpForFussyEaters, #FussyEater, #FussyEating, #PickyEater, #PickyEating, #SupportForFussyEaters, #SupportForPickyEaters, #CreatingConfidentEaters, #TryNewFood #PickyEatingNZ #HelpForPickyEaters, #HelpForPickyEating, #Wellington, #NZ, #JudithYeabsley

If you feel you need some help putting Plan C
into action, please get in touch. I am always happy to help and support you.

 Judith, MA Cantab (Cambridge University), MSc Psychology (first-class honours), is working on a PhD, is an AOTA accredited picky eating advisor, and internationally certified nutritional therapist and neuro-motor development practitioner. She works with 100+ families every year resolving fussy eating and returning pleasure and joy to the meal table.

She is also mum to two boys and the author of Creating Confident Eaters and Winner Winner I Eat Dinner. Her dream is that every child can approach food from a place of safety and joy, not fear.

Learn more about Judith here: https://theconfidenteater.com/about/

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