ARFID and Food-Related Support Service

Occupational therapy (OT) can help individuals understand and address the sensory, emotional, behavioural, and practical factors that make eating difficult. A neuroaffirming approach considers both the individual and their environment: rather than expecting someone to simply tolerate difficult foods, the Occupational Therapist explores what adjustments, skills, and supports may make eating more accessible.

Treatment is individualized and focuses on building a more comfortable relationship with food, supporting daily functioning, and helping individuals participate in eating-related activities with greater confidence and independence.

Our occupational therapy service supports children, teens, and adults who experience significant food restriction, sensory-related eating difficulties, anxiety around food, or challenges with eating routines. Support may be helpful for individuals who:

• Have a limited range or quantity of foods they can comfortably eat.
• Experience distress or conflict during meals and snacks.
• Have difficulty noticing hunger or fullness.
• Find grocery shopping, food preparation, or meal planning overwhelming.
• Avoid social situations involving food.
• Need support with eating routines at home, school, work, or in the community.

Occupational Therapists work across the lifespan. Recommendations are tailored to the individual’s age, developmental needs, and goals:

• Children: Sensory exploration, mealtime routines, caregiver strategies, and participation in everyday activities.
• Teens: Increasing independence, school routines, social eating, and food preparation.
• Adults: Independent meal planning, grocery shopping, consistent eating routines, workplace demands, and social situations involving food.

An initial occupational therapy session explores how food-related challenges affect everyday life. This may include discussion of:

• Current eating patterns, food preferences, and foods that feel difficult to tolerate
• Sensory experiences and environmental factors affecting eating
• Awareness of hunger, fullness, and other internal body signals
• Anxiety, emotional regulation, and avoidance patterns
• Executive functioning, meal planning, and food preparation
• Family routines, school or work demands, and social participation

Strategies depend on the individual’s needs and goals and may include sensory problem-solving, interoceptive awareness, gradual food exploration, routine-building, executive functioning support, emotional regulation, preparing for social situations involving food, and caregiver coaching.

Depending on the client’s needs and goals, support may involve starting with foods the client already feels comfortable eating, then making small changes step by step to encourage exploring and trying new foods.

A neuroaffirming approach recognizes that individuals experience food and sensory information differently. It focuses on understanding the reasons behind food avoidance and adapting supports to the individual rather than treating differences as a lack of willingness or cooperation.

This may involve modifying the environment, respecting sensory preferences, making routines more predictable, supporting communication, and building skills at an appropriate pace. The goal is to improve access to adequate nutrition and everyday activities without shame, blame, or unnecessary pressure.

ARFID can affect nutritional health, growth, and physical well-being. Occupational therapy can support sensory needs, routines, emotion regulation, and daily functioning, but it does not replace medical assessment or nutritional care.

Individuals who are underweight, losing weight, experiencing growth concerns, or struggling to maintain adequate food or fluid intake should receive medical assessment and appropriate nutritional support. A family physician or pediatrician can help monitor physical health, while a registered dietitian can assess nutritional adequacy and help guide nutrition-related goals.

If there are signs of medical instability or severe restriction, a higher level of specialized eating-disorder care may be required.

Please note that medical care is not provided through this service. Access to a registered dietitian at Possibilities may be available separately for an additional fee.

The number of sessions depends on you or your child’s needs, goals, and response to treatment. Following an initial session, the Occupational Therapist will discuss recommendations and develop an individualized plan. Progress can be reviewed over time, with adjustments made as needed.

Each OT session focused on ARFID and food-related support is $245.

Only medical doctors are covered by OHIP. Our ARFID service is provided by Occupational Therapists, and therefore the cost is not covered by OHIP. Your private insurance plan may cover services offered by Occupational Therapists. Please check with your insurance provider, if applicable.

To learn more about our payment policies, medical loans for assessments or treatments, or additional funding resources, please read more here.

No. You don’t need a referral from a Physician or Nurse Practitioner to access this service.

We can help! At Possibilities we offer a complimentary 20-minute session with a member of our Next Steps Navigation Team. Members of this team are professionals from education and healthcare. They will listen to your questions, discuss your concerns, and help you clarify your next steps.

To book with the Navigation Team, please begin by completing our Intake Form. If you have already completed an Intake Form, please contact us at [email protected] or 1-833-482-5558 to request an appointment.