Talking to a friend about my current dietary choices highlighted some essential factors operating in my life. She said my food sounds boring (she is right to an outsider), so I deep dived into the why I am doing what I’m doing to maximise the benefits.
This will take a moment, there is no easy answer.
Neurodivergent Eating Challenges
Food has always been challenging. Certain tastes, textures make me physically ill and what’s easier is consistency. I eat the same meal repeatedly without getting tired of it, right up until the moment I do. This is a combo of two things. Food has never felt safe.
If I know a dish, a food it can be a safe food, something to repeat when I feel hunger until one day I cant stand it. I repeat meals to cut down the mental effort of choosing what to eat each day, because that process overwhelms me.
Emotional Eating
From a young age, carbs and sugars in particular were favourites for the instant dopamine. Our generation faced constant temptation from sugary, processed foods, and we gave in.
Life was tumultuous at home with just a mother and two older sisters, with no understanding of my neurodivergence, I never created healthy food habits. It was a swing from day to day and felt more like survival than living. I left as soon as I could.
A Removed Gallbladder
A couple of years ago, I had emergency surgery to remove my gallbladder, including a 3cm hard stone. Doctors removed my gangrenous gallbladder, kept me in hospital for 10 days, and treated me for possible sepsis.
Afterwards finding the right food was tough. Spices irritated me, carbs treated my digestive system like a freeway, and every meal became a struggle. I felt so out of balance, I would get frustrated and binge my favourites only to pay the price later, it was horrible. No matter what I did, my body seemed untrustworthy, it was exhausting.
Back To The Conversation
In Australia, beans are not a big part of our diets. Green beans sure, but lima, black or other types of beans are available, but were never a staple for me or my family. We were bread people. Where I live now, they’re common, but I’d never really thought to eat them except occasionally.
Now I eat them every day, in small quantities for breakfast and it has changed my life. Everything has stabilised, energy is increasing (it’s still a new thing) and brain fog non-existent. From reading I have learned of loads of other benefits and will report that at a later point. It’s the fibre.
I have severely restricted what I am eating now, the end game is maximum health (henceforth the boring food observation), and it is the happiest and healthiest I have felt for a long time.
Changing Foods Is Worth The Gains
Food is more a fuel than anything else for me. It was tough at first giving up things that have been staples. Then I listened to my body, and could feel the difference so it became easier, though still a daily tussle.
The hardest part for me is navigating the flood of contradictory food and health advice, which quickly overwhelms me. So for now I am now listening to my self, to my intuition when it comes to food.
Boring food is fine, it’s tasty to me and I get a kick out of feeling healthier each day. I wonder how much other people would give up foodwise to improve their health, it’s not an easy road but ultimately worthwhile.
My journey now is to free myself to live my best possible life and I will do whatever that takes, and what I consume is a huge part of that.
Peace Out