Sunday, November 6, 2011

Brumotactillophobia

We all have qualities that make each of us unique in a certain way. Some of these qualities are “cute” and some are weird. I am sure I have a lot of “cute” things within my personality, but I also have some weird traits too. One weird trait I have is that I hate it when my food touches.
There are many phobias out in the world such as Closter phobia (fear of tight spaces) and Acrophobia (fear of heights). What is my phobia? Brumotactillophobia: the fear of my food touching. I have never been one to like it when my food mixed. I would always eat my food separately and at different times. However, I wouldn’t mind it if the corners touched a little bit. Now though, any time one dish on my plate touches another, I have to remove it instantly or I will not eat it.
Many people ENJOY mixing their foods together because they like to see what it tastes like all mixed up. My dad has always been one to take a little of this, and a little of that and shove it all into his mouth at once. His philosophy: “Why does it matter how it goes down as long as it gets down? It’s all going to the same place.” This is true, but I can’t stand the taste of many different things all at once. My mom is like me to a certain extent. She doesn’t mind her different types of food touching, but she likes to eat it at separate times.
Recently my Brumotactillophobia has escalated and I have no clear definition on WHY or HOW. I don’t like having this phobia, but there is nothing I can do to shake it. For example, the other night parents of my show choir served us dinner. They give us little plates with dishes that “run”. These plates aren’t big enough so all of the food touches. At one point, my dessert was touching my chicken and I immediately had to remove my dessert from the area. If I would have let it sit any longer, I would not have been able to eat it.  My phobia has become increasingly a problem with my meals that include meat. The other day, my friend’s brother made Jambalaya.  There was shrimp and sausage mixed in rice that had corn and beans in it. I had to eat my meat separately; not with the rice. However, I was stuck and couldn’t remove the corn and beans from the rice since it was all mixed up. This Jambalaya was VERY good, but my fear prevented me from enjoying it to the greatest extent.
Many days I wish I didn’t have this phobia. I have tried to get rid of it, but it always seems to come up. I don’t know WHY I am like this, I just am. My mom is starting to become more alert with this phobia because she is noticing it becoming worse. I don’t think it is really that much of a problem. It is just something that makes me even more unique than I already am. Most people can’t say that they have Brumotactillophobia: the fear of food touching.
For my readers: If you have read any of my past blogs, you know that I like to exaggerate. This blog may be a LITTLE exaggerated, but do know that I really do have this problem.

11 comments:

  1. Hello there,

    I came across your blog while I was researching for a university project of mine. I got really interested in this phobia: Brumotactillophobia. I am a person that does enjoy all kinds of foods and textures, of course there is some foods I dislike but thats because of their taste. I can't imagine what it is like to have this phobia but I bet it is extremely annoying and preventing you from trying new tastes, textures, cuisines. Food is a magnificent part of our life and I have tried all sorts of food and I would love to try even more.

    I know this might be silly or even pointless, but as I said I have no experience in this area or what so ever. What if you could do exercises for this food disorder, so lets say, day by day do exercises, food exercises. Starting off with simple exercises, lets say cook some rice and corn for a start. Maybe first day you just let it touch, don't eat it, but dont throw it out either, don't seperate it, but spend some time around it, don't let the idea get into your head, do something else instead and leave your plate there with the food mixed up. It can be of course with any food, explore it, smell it, do anything but eating it. This might be a problem of fixating on food while there isnt really anything to fixate on, maybe you need to get your head to concentrate on something else. Have you ever tried to keep it separated but then have a spoon fool of 1 kind and then right after 1 spoon of the other kind and have it mixed in your mouth. Challenge yourself and dont let it get to you. Have you ever wondered of what could have happened if you have ate the mixed up food on your plate, does it just gross you out, or would it make you cry, what is your reaction if you would try it?

    Sorry for giving silly advice on a matter that I have no idea on, I just thought of sharing 1-2 thoughts because I can imagine that it makes life harder and maybe a person with no food problems like me could share their thoughts?Again sorry for bothering, hope it helps some way :) I am currently doing a poster project and I am trying to find ways of making/helping people with this food phobia build their own sandwich, interact with food that has to touch, even if the exercise is built out of card, plastic etc.

    Tahnk you for your time :)

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  2. Closter phobia???? Puhleeeeze! Claustrophobia!!!

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  3. I think I might have Brumotactillophobia. I have been SO uncomfortable when my food touches. For example, for breakfast I have 2 waffles and some blackberries all on the same plate. I ALWAYS eat the blackberries first so when I put on the syrup, it won't touch. I even WIPE THE BLACKBERRY JUICE of my plate!
    Even at school, my friends find it funny to mix up there food. I CAN'T STAND IT. Ever time I look at it, it runs shivers down my spine. I would shield my eyes from it, afraid I would barf. I can't even stand food like salsa, gravy, soup, or sometimes pies because of my discust for mixed food.

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    1. Wow i love pies & mashed potatoes is good alone but its even better with gravy on top chips are good with salsa this is a fear right? If so the only way to get past it is to try and challenge yourself i dont have this but my fiances neice does

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    2. Wow i love pies & mashed potatoes is good alone but its even better with gravy on top chips are good with salsa this is a fear right? If so the only way to get past it is to try and challenge yourself i dont have this but my fiances neice does

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  4. I am currently a teenager, so I'm still living with my parents. I have had this problem for as long as I can remember, although my parents said I was a very good eater when I was a very young baby. But I have been through years of not being able to communicate this problem because no one I have met has seen anything like this, and when I research this, no one seems to be as bad as me. When I was around seven, my mum got really frustrated with me for not eating my food properly. She had a forkful of pie and pushed some inside my mouth, at this point I was crying because she didn't understand. I then went onto gagging and being sick because of the mixed food.I actually feel violently sick when food mixes, only with a few exceptions. What makes it worse is the fact I don't like a lot of food as it is. I don't like cheese, beans, yogurts, tomatoes, and gravy, just to name a few. Things like pizza are definitely a no go and going to a restaurant really heightens my crippling anxiety. I find it hard this to explain to anyone, including my family, even though they only slightly understand. I am very worried as when I go over to anyone's house, I feel stupid for asking for things to be separate, or to have plain pasta with no sauce. And when asked to say food that I like, I seem very unhealthy, or childish when the first thing that comes to mind is "fish fingers". After doing my own research, I deduced that this was a form of OCD, which many people think I have. As I have mentioned before I have anxiety, which can sometimes lead me down dangerous routes inside my mind, and having this does not help. The fact no one I know understands this either is quite saddening. This is one major thing I wish I could change about me, as it can make family meals hard, and puts pressure on the family. If anyone has anyone tips to help me cope or even deal with this "brumotactillophobia", I would love to hear some.

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  5. I can relate to this so much. The other day i got some food for my grandmother and i put my cookie next to it and it touched the food. Me being me i got a napkin and wiped it off. Idk if this is one too but i closly examine my food too. And when i go out somewhere to eat if i get like mash potatoes and sum i have to move it to a different plate and wipe off where it was. It's frustrating and i hate it i tried to kick it and eat like 5 foods at a time but it just didnt feel right and i caught myself eating one food at a time the very next day.

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  6. Boy oh boy! This is so me. The older i get the worse it gets. It is a must that my food go one a divided plate or separate plates. If it touch in any fashion I will not eat it. I have to eat one thing at a time like meat, then a veggie and so. Once, I finish i have to clean my fork or have to use a new one. Then once I move to the next item I will not go back to it. I actually have anxiety and panic attacks if i go out to eat and request my food on seperate plates and they bring it out on the same plate I will not eat even if they offer to go fix it because I know all they did was take what was on the plate and separate it. I also won't eat leftovers. When I fix other peoples plate I cant let the food touch it seriously grosses me out. Oddly, i can cook spaghetti, soups, casseroles etc and it doesn't bother me but i wont it. Glad I came across your blog. Nice to know Im not alone.

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  7. Hello,

    While I just discovered the name of not liking your food to touch tonight, I only did so because I was eating a salad and didn't want too many things in it. So I opted for just lettuce, tomato, salt and pepper. But oddly enough, I was able to mix cream cheese and picante hot sauce together as a dressing and I'm clueless as to how I was able to handle it.(it was extremely delicious but I still wonder 5 hours later how) I can never under any circumstances tolerate my food to touch. I don't like saucy food to even be on the same plate as drier foods. Although I enjoy an array of textures and foods, this prevents me of looking like a normal person at a buffet, as I usually make 4 to 5 trips to the counter to ensure my food never leaks together or touches. But if I had to choose textures, crunchy is my preference and I tend to steer towards the crunchy or hot no matter what it is. I always consume my least favorite thing first and save the best for last. Only if it was a life or death event could I go around the plate like a mad man eating a little and here until my plate is clean. That seems atrocious to me, and highly unnecessary when you can enjoy all the different tastes and textures in sequence. I also cannot eat in a way as to put my sweet things on the same plate as non-sweet. I normally won't eat dessert unless I wait a while because I abhor having the sweet taste in my mouth while still tasting regular food. (I'm not a big fan of sweets, anyway) While I love meat, if it's sweet or has sweet taste, I don't like it and won't even try it. I get funny looks because I don't like barbecue, but grilled. I could say that all these food quirks wasn't me but that's just not true. Because I simply think that mixing is not tasting and enjoying. And why bother preparing meals or bothering to eat at all if there is no satisfaction?😷

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  8. I totally relate! It makes things really hard when I go out or go over to someone's house... if it's mixed I just can't eat it. If for example, some broccoli touched some chicken, I would have to cut off every part that was touched. And I hate looking at food touching, as well. It just looks wrong.

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  9. I’m glad I’m not alone!! My family and friends all make fun of me for it. I’m glad to know it is actually a phobia and I just wasn’t weird or crazy!!!

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