A mom who could only eat potatoes, chips and mash for 40 years has been cured thanks to hypnosis.
Rachel Hall, 42, could not stand eating fruit or vegetables and would physically gag if she put them near her mouth.
The only foods she could stomach were jacket potatoes, mash and chips with the occasional chicken breast.
The mom-of-two would go through sacks of potatoes every month and even ate a plate of mash for Christmas dinner and birthday meals.
She said, “People can’t believe it when I tell them the only thing I ate were potatoes until I was 42.
“It wasn’t so much that I loved potatoes or was hooked on them, in fact I found them quite dull.
“It was more that I had a phobia about almost every other type of food and had a high gag reflex which made it almost impossible to swallow new foods.
“I had a real phobia of choking and if I put anything, like fruit or vegetables, near my mouth I’d start gagging.
“My parents told me I was a fussy eater and I’d grow out of it but I never did.
“I’d eat potatoes in any form so I’d eat chips, jacket potatoes, roasties and piles of mash heaped onto my plate day after day.
“I liked potatoes because they are safe. They are boring and bland – the idea of flavor or spice really scared me.”
The teaching assistant, who also runs her own cleaning company, first developed her food phobias when she was weaned on solids as a toddler.
She said, “It started when I was a really small child.
“Apparently I would spit out baby food from a jar and just close my mouth and shake my head.
“Every birthday I’d ask my mom for a birthday cake but I never ate a single bite.
“I liked looking at it but the idea of eating cake made me feel sick.
“I’d just stick to my safe foods which were mainly potatoes. If I was at friends’ houses, I’d have chips or if not then I wouldn’t eat.”
Rachel decided to tackle her food issues earlier this year after her GP told her she had high cholesterol.
She contacted cognitive behavioral hypnotherapist David Kilmurry and was diagnosed with ARFID – avoidant-restrictive food intake disorder.
Rachel, from Nuneaton, Warwickshire, said, “When I was told I had high cholesterol because I’d eaten potatoes and chips I knew I had to take action once and for all.
“It was also getting me down just eating potatoes day in day out. I wanted to experience colorful exciting flavors but just didn’t know how.
“I was also desperate to try fruit for the first time without gagging.”
After undergoing eight hypnotherapy sessions, Rachel has now been able to enjoy fruit, veg and healthy chicken casserole for the first time.
Rachel said, “Since overcoming phobia I’ve tried so many different foods. I love bananas and strawberries.
“The other day I had my first ever egg and cress sandwich and it was delicious.
“I feel amazing and it makes me feel good that I’m eating healthily and I’m full of energy.”
Hypnotherapist David, who runs clinics in Coventry and in London’s Harley Street, said, “I am so proud of Rachel for not only conquering her food phobia but inspiring other adult food phobics.
“It’s more common than we might think and many suffer in silence with no straightforward answers.”
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