Making A Decision
It felt too overwhelming, she knew that she'd have to change her lifestyle, and fast. She just didn't know if she had the strength within her.
But what she wasn't aware of was that her story had gotten the interest of reporters. They'd soon be banging on her front door and her name would make headlines.
Fussy Eater
Georgia Scotney was always considered fussy by her family and friends. But her parents didn't appear to be too concerned. They just thought she was like any kid who was a picky eater. They thought she'd grow out of it.
But the thing is that Georgie would never grow out of this "picky" phase. It would actually only get worse as time wore on.
A Strange Case
Georgie was fussy in all the wrong areas and it would end up being at own detriment. She wouldn't eat any fruit or vegetables.
So when the 21-year-old had been discovered to only eat things such as toast, french fries, chips, and southern fried chicken. They knew she had a story to tell them.
Getting Worse
After Georgie's 18th birthday things got decidedly worse. Up until this point, she would only eat french fries and chicken cooked from home, which was already unhealthy. But now she would only eas food from KFC.
And as if things couldn't get even worse, she was even picky about the menu! She would only eat boneless chicken and chicken popcorn, why was she so fussy?
Sick
If Georgie even imagined thinking about eating something other than KFC, she would retch and nearly throw up. Clearly, something was very wrong. Why hadn't Georgie changed once she reached adulthood?
It turns out that Georgie had lived her whole life without a diagnosis. She actually suffered from a rare eating disorder that could most likely be treated.
Dreams Of Being A Gymnast
Before the eating disorder got out of hand, Georgie aspired to be a gymnast. She had potential and her parents could see it. She even made them proud when she got on the PSG Great Britain team at just 8-years-old.
But it was her training to be a gymnast at a young age that could have ironically started this eating disorder.
Skip Meals
While she was on tour with her team she would often skip meals. This started out with her only wanting to eat toast or KFC on these trips.
So if there wasn't any of that food available, she would rather just skip the meal altogether. If she wasn't presented with any "safe" food for her she would end up skipping the meal. What was wrong?
An Eating Disorder
Common eating disorders that people know about like anorexia and bulimia are quite different from what Georgie was suffering from.
ARFID, or Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder didn't even exist as a term until recently. It's classified as a mental disorder it stipulates that anyone trying to eat any food they aren't comfortable with will be overwhelmed with anxiety and panic. Is this what Georgie was suffering from?
Fear
People suffering from ARFID feel crippling fear whenever they think about eating. This disorder is different from others because it has nothing to do with body image or self-esteem.
ARFID is most commonly created from an early traumatic encounter involving food. Because of this people with ARFID will normally seek out "safe" food rather than anything else.
Only KFC
Georgie explained, “Growing up I’d always been really stubborn with what I’d eat, it started off as just southern fried chicken and chips but it then got to the point where it’d only be chicken from KFC — I’d go there every day without fail.”
But what would happen if Georgie couldn't get her hands on KFC?
Wasn’t It Boring?
For Georgie, AFID even became a sensory issue because she could not tolerate even the look or smell of most foods. So, when she didn’t have access to KFC, she just wouldn’t eat.
For you or I, eating the same meal every day for years would become extremely boring, but Georgie never had that issue…
She Never Got Tired Of It
“I was just never fed up with it, I loved to put loads of salt on it too,” Georgie admits,”…which I now see wasn’t such a good idea — I do think that it had a lot to do with me being scared of a lot of foods, especially sauce, that was the worst fear of mine.”
And, besides all the salt, surely eating nothing but KFC for three years is bound to cause some health issues?
Relatively Unscathed
Surprisingly, Georgie does not look unhealthy at all. But the fact that she is not overweight may be due to the fact that she never overate.
Her daily diet consisted of two slices of toast for breakfast, KFC boneless chicken strips or popcorn chicken and fries for lunch, and nothing for dinner. Thankfully, her boyfriend decided that enough was enough.
Stepping In
Georgie’s boyfriend, 25-year-old Dean Arnold, decided to step in and suggested hypnotherapy.
“My boyfriend was the one who put me forward for the session and I was very skeptical, I warned everyone that I was so headstrong and thought that I’d never be able to change,” Georgie said. But it worked!