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How to make a difference for your fussy eater

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How to make a difference for your fussy eater, Judith Yeabsley|Fussy Eating NZ, #HowToMakeADifferenceForYourFussyEater, #HowToMakeADifferenceForYourPickyEater, #TryNewFoods, #TheConfidentEater, #FussyEatingNZ, #HelpForFussyEating, #HelpForFussyEaters, #FussyEater, #FussyEating, #PickyEater, #PickyEating, #SupportForFussyEaters, #SupportForPickyEaters, #CreatingConfidentEaters, #TryNewFood #PickyEatingNZ #HelpForPickyEaters, #HelpForPickyEating, #Wellington, #NZ, #JudithYeabsley

How to make a difference for your fussy eater

You have the world’s most ‘stubborn’ and challenged child when it comes to food. They refuse anything new and only seem happy when they get an endless list of favourite foods.

Sound familiar?

If so, you are in great company. Even if you feel that your child is different from everyone else’s, I can say with certainty, that there are 100’s of these children camped in families all across the country.

Having a child who doesn’t eat all the lovely, nutritious foods we are told they must have can be a real stress. It can make a parent feel like they are failing in one of their core responsibilities.

But do not fear, there are solutions!

How you can make a difference for your fussy eater

Living with a picky eater can be like seeing rain every day, so let’s turn that around and find those rays of sunshine that create the rainbow!

There is a reason I am ‘The Confident Eater’. It was obvious to me, once I began working with families, that one of the core issues preventing parents supporting their child to eat more widely, was that they did not believe their child could both eat new foods and add them to the menu.

Experience had showed them that most things they tried to do to improve the eating did not work, and their child was not taking steps forwards or was even going backwards in the eating sphere.

How to make a difference for your fussy eater, Judith Yeabsley|Fussy Eating NZ, Happy Mum, #HowToMakeADifferenceForYourFussyEater, #HowToMakeADifferenceForYourPickyEater, #TryNewFoods, #TheConfidentEater, #FussyEatingNZ, #HelpForFussyEating, #HelpForFussyEaters, #FussyEater, #FussyEating, #PickyEater, #PickyEating, #SupportForFussyEaters, #SupportForPickyEaters, #CreatingConfidentEaters, #TryNewFood #PickyEatingNZ #HelpForPickyEaters, #HelpForPickyEating, #Wellington, #NZ, #JudithYeabsley

At the end of one of the first parent workshops I ran, a mother came up to me and said “I thought my son’s fussy eating was all him. Now I realise it’s 70% me”.

Please do not feel when I mention this that I am pointing fingers at parents and making fussy eating out to be their “fault”. That is absolutely not the case. However, as parents, we can inadvertently stop progress without even realising it and it is something I see a lot.

You don’t know what you don’t know. You are also perhaps working from inappropriate advice, mixing, and matching between different strategies or just a bit lost as to what to do.

This is absolutely not about blame or making parents feel bad either. In fact, it’s the opposite, it is about explaining how you can help, how valuable you are in the better eating journey, and what a difference you really can make once you have the tools.

How to make a difference for your fussy eater, Judith Yeabsley|Fussy Eating NZ, Happy family, #HowToMakeADifferenceForYourFussyEater, #HowToMakeADifferenceForYourPickyEater, #TryNewFoods, #TheConfidentEater, #FussyEatingNZ, #HelpForFussyEating, #HelpForFussyEaters, #FussyEater, #FussyEating, #PickyEater, #PickyEating, #SupportForFussyEaters, #SupportForPickyEaters, #CreatingConfidentEaters, #TryNewFood #PickyEatingNZ #HelpForPickyEaters, #HelpForPickyEating, #Wellington, #NZ, #JudithYeabsley

I have a firm belief that in almost 100% of cases, parents are the ones best placed to work with their children to resolve fussy eating. In fact, I will shortly be embarking on a PhD to prove that is the case, but that is a whole other story …

So, if that is true, what are you able to do to make a difference for your fussy eater? The answer, is lots!

Ways parents can make a difference for their fussy eater

1. Believe. Please do have the belief that you can make a difference. In almost all cases you CAN! Who is more invested, spends more time or knows a child as well as you, the caregiver? You are the key to making this work.

2. Confident. Absolutely be confident that your child is able to do new things. Even if all evidence points in the opposite direction I have seen time and again, children who were not even willing to contemplate a new food, learn to do so.
Part of this may absolutely be “fake it until you make it”. Think about how positive we are about our child’s swimming and reading. However, often when it comes to eating, we do not feel confident in their abilities.

How to make a difference for your fussy eater, Judith Yeabsley|Fussy Eating NZ, Children swimming, #HowToMakeADifferenceForYourFussyEater, #HowToMakeADifferenceForYourPickyEater, #TryNewFoods, #TheConfidentEater, #FussyEatingNZ, #HelpForFussyEating, #HelpForFussyEaters, #FussyEater, #FussyEating, #PickyEater, #PickyEating, #SupportForFussyEaters, #SupportForPickyEaters, #CreatingConfidentEaters, #TryNewFood #PickyEatingNZ #HelpForPickyEaters, #HelpForPickyEating, #Wellington, #NZ, #JudithYeabsley

Think about how we, as a society, even talk about children’s eating if it is not going well. Calling someone a picky eater or a fussy eater really says, “you aren’t very good at eating”.

• Believe. However, if we believe our child can eat something, they are far more likely to believe it too.

• Creating a growth mindset. This is thinking about the future and what we can make happen over time. For example, our child eating spinach may be too much of a challenge at the moment, but we can definitely get there and have our child eating it. Us believing that they can learn to eat spinach and then communicating it is important.

• Positive body language. We may be saying “I know you can do this” but if our expression shouts defeat then our child will know this. How can we present a positive image?
If we are nervously offering a new food then again, that vibe is what our child is seeing. Show no fear 😊 think swimming and the brave face we show despite a toddler’s tears.

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3. Opportunity. It is important to give a child the chance to take that step forwards. Parents can self-sabotage really easily, and often not even realise they are doing so.

If we offer a new nugget but say “Oh, this is not one of your favourite ones” or “don’t bother putting the nuggets on his plate, he won’t eat it”, we are inadvertently stopping our child from making potential progress.

Serving the food with a smile and then stepping back is part of an effective strategy.

Eating is one of the most complex physiological actions we perform. It is also social, emotional, and psychological. Much of what happens around food is habit. Much relies on layers of beliefs built up over the years. And just as importantly, it is dependent on what is happening with those around us.

Resolving fussy eating is a whole series of layers and steps that create a bigger picture. Some of the changes that truly make a difference are really subtle.

If we are convinced there is no solution, then we are stamping failure on the process from the beginning. I have seen so many near miraculous turn-arounds that I am always confident that there is a way to make progress.

How to make a difference for your fussy eater, Judith Yeabsley|Fussy Eating NZ, Mum & children, #HowToMakeADifferenceForYourFussyEater, #HowToMakeADifferenceForYourPickyEater, #TryNewFoods, #TheConfidentEater, #FussyEatingNZ, #HelpForFussyEating, #HelpForFussyEaters, #FussyEater, #FussyEating, #PickyEater, #PickyEating, #SupportForFussyEaters, #SupportForPickyEaters, #CreatingConfidentEaters, #TryNewFood #PickyEatingNZ #HelpForPickyEaters, #HelpForPickyEating, #Wellington, #NZ, #JudithYeabsley

You believing that you can make a difference for your child is a key starting point in this becoming a reality for your family. Then there is a great recipe for success:

1. Be a parent who is committed to making a difference.

2. Grab the tools so you are confident you can make changes.

3. Get support so this becomes a reality.

If you would like some help or some tools, please get in touch. You absolutely are the key to making a difference for your fussy eater.

In fact, let’s find not just the rainbow, but the pot of gold too!!

How to make a difference for your fussy eater, Judith Yeabsley|Fussy Eating NZ, Rainbow, #HowToMakeADifferenceForYourFussyEater, #HowToMakeADifferenceForYourPickyEater, #TryNewFoods, #TheConfidentEater, #FussyEatingNZ, #HelpForFussyEating, #HelpForFussyEaters, #FussyEater, #FussyEating, #PickyEater, #PickyEating, #SupportForFussyEaters, #SupportForPickyEaters, #CreatingConfidentEaters, #TryNewFood #PickyEatingNZ #HelpForPickyEaters, #HelpForPickyEating, #Wellington, #NZ, #JudithYeabsley

Judith, MA Cantab (Cambridge University), Post Grad Dip Psychology (Massey University), is an AOTA accredited picky eating advisor and internationally certified nutritional therapist. 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 is able to approach food from a place of safety and joy, not fear.
Learn more about Judith here: https://theconfidenteater.com/about/

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