Have you ever heard the expression “the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree”? When it comes to ARFID (Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder), this saying often rings true. Similar to autism and ADHD, ARFID has a high heritability rate, with research suggesting genetics may account for up to 79%. That means many individuals with ARFID are growing up in families where a parent, sibling, or caregiver also has ARFID—or long-standing patterns of restrictive or selective eating.

As the end of the year approaches, many of us feel the familiar pressure to reflect, reset, and set goals for the New Year. Goals everywhere. New Year’s resolutions everywhere. And honestly? Blah. Blah. Blah. As a clinician, I’m often asked whether patients “should” be setting New Year’s goals. My answer is usually… it depends. My initial instinct—and the first draft of this blog—was to talk about intentions instead of goals. But after sitting with it longer, I realized something important:

So when we think about Thanksgiving being just around the corner, followed quickly by Christmas, why don’t we think together, and on our own, about what the holidays mean to us, and how we feel about family time and food? Let’s also think about what we may need to do to prepare to make the most of the Thanksgiving holiday, in hopes that even if we don’t have that heartfelt moment like in the Hallmark movies, at least we can do what we need to do to manage what may be a challenging time.