A Mother's Story of Navigating ARFID, Choking Fears and PEG Feeding
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In this week's episode, Han is joined by Michelle Jacques. Michelle is a devoted mum of two who has lived with ARFID since her son started weaning. Through her own experience of supporting her son with ARFID, she has become a passionate advocate, working tirelessly to raise awareness and support others navigating life with this complex food intake disorder. She is the founder of @arfid_life_uk, where she raises awareness of ARFID by sharing her family's experience.
This episode holds space for the grief, the guilt, the fight, and also the hope, including the unexpected shift Michelle has seen as her son’s body becomes nourished again.
This week, we discuss:
- What ARFID can look like and how it can go beyond “picky eating.”
- How sensory differences, autistic eating, and ARFID can overlap
- How illness can trigger choking fears and a trauma response that reinforces food avoidance
- What it’s like when a child’s intake drops to just a couple of “safe” items
- What a PEG (gastrostomy tube) is and how PEG feeding can support ARFID
- The emotional impact of PEG decisions for parents, including grief andguilt
- Why nutrition can change anxiety, rigidity, and capacity
- The role of advocacy in ARFID awareness
- How to document ARFID symptoms to report to a doctor
Timestamps:
- 03:10 Sensory differences, autism, and how ARFID developed over time
- 07:40 Illness, choking fears, and how trauma can collapse food intake
- 09:15 Hospitalisation: constipation and appendix surgery
- 18:30 What a PEG is (and what people often misunderstand about it)
- 29:40 How PEG feeding can support ARFID
- 41:30 Guilt, grief, and learning to let the feelings exist
- 45:10 ARFID Advocacy work
Resources & Links
- Follow @arfid_life_uk on Instagram
- Listen to the 3Mums1Mission ARFID Podcast
Connect with Us:
- Subscribe to the Full of Beans Podcast
- Follow Full of Beans on Instagram
- Check out our website
- Listen on YouTube
⚠️ Trigger Warning: Mentions of eating disorders, ARFID, NG tube feeding. Please take care when listening.
If you enjoyed this episode, don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and share the podcast to help us spread awareness.
Sending positive beans your way, Han 💛
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