The first tantrum our daughter had was over food. It would not be her last food related tantrum. Things have progressed in the almost ten months we have been home but I’m not sure if some of these behaviors will ever be completely resolved. I had read about hording food, picky eaters, or those with sensory issues that could not tolerate different textures. Our daughters issue seemed to be a voracious hunger all the time and her rages over food. In Russia a tantrum would ensue as soon as she saw her food being prepared, she screamed between bites and wanted to be fed faster. I was beginning to wonder if they simply poured food down her throat while living at the baby home.

She refused a drink during her meal, she became panicked and agitated when we offered her a sip between bites and this leads me to believe that perhaps at the baby home her beverage signaled the end of a meal. After her meal was gone she began screaming and would have a fit that lasted 20 minutes or more. This happened at every meal and snack. We learned not to overfeed her even though it was heartbreaking feeling like we were denying her. It got better when we allowed her some control at meal times. We fed her most of her meal and we allowed her to feed herself the rest. She then got the sense that it was “ all gone”.

We allowed her to carry her snack container and she slept with it locked in her grip. We wondered if letting her have the snack container was a good idea, as she would bring it to us and motion for us to open it, when we refused another tantrum ensued. The snack container seemed to be more a constant reminder of food and we questioned our choice in letting her have it. We ultimately decided that we would allow it, as it seemed to offer her comfort. She also chugs her bottle or sippy cup very quickly. There are no sips, to this day she chugs her liquids down quickly.


Once we arrived home we began a meal routine. She had breakfast, lunch, dinner and three snacks. She ate anything I put before her and she ate it fast. I had to teach her to chew and when she was shoving food in her mouth I would take her plate away and hand her one piece at a time and model chewing for her. We ate all meals as a family. She would gobble down her meal and want to eat mine. I had to refuse her more food and its heartbreaking. I was giving her more than enough.I knew her belly was full. I am following the recommended portion size guidelines in The American Academy of Pediatrics portion guide.


In the first few months I was even giving her more than recommended portions due to her constant diarrhea. She is getting better at slowing down and no longer cleans her plate; she still has anxiety over food and a huge appetite. She often screams while I’m preparing her food. She begs for food even if she has just eaten. I allow her small amounts of healthy snack such as low sugar cereal in a snack cup at all times. She has issues with chewing, pocketing food in her cheeks and we hope to get some answers from the Ot.

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