A young girl who lived off chicken nuggets for over a decade now loves to eat fruit and veg - thanks to hypnotherapy.
Jessica Thompson, 11, had an intense food phobia and would suffer anxiety and panic when presented with most foods, but she was ok with beige items and lived mostly on processed chicken nuggets.
Her mum, Julia Thompson, 49, was so concerned she sought out professional help and soon the young girl was diagnosed with avoidant restrictive food intake disorder.
At her wits' end, Julia booked a hypnotherapist to help Jessica, and the treatment was so effective that the youngster now loves eating fruit and veg.
What do you think about Jessica's miracle transformation? Let us know in the comments...
Julia, from Swindon, Wiltshire, said: "She was eating all her baby food and she was trying lots of new food.
"Then it just stopped, and she would only eat chicken nuggets. She'd have about three or four with fries as a meal but usually didn't finish it.
"People would always say, 'she will grow out of it', or 'if you don't give in she'll get hungry and eat what you give her'. The problem is, Jessica would literally rather starve than eat some foods.
"Sometimes she would crawl into a ball to get away from the food.
"We knew she was more than fussy but we never thought she would spend a decade of her life eating chicken nuggets."
Jessica was branded as 'fussy' by doctors over the years, and over the years stuck to beige foods like nuggets, plain bread, and fries.
Julia continued: "They would all say she's just being fussy, or she's having tummy troubles. As a parent, all you want is for your child to eat.
"People really don't understand that it is an illness, not just fussiness."
Julia eventually contacted hypnotherapist David Kilmurry, who diagnosed her with ARFID.
For more of the news you care about, straight to your inbox, sign up for one of our daily newsletters here.
After just three weeks with him, listening to relaxation MP4s before meals, and using an achievement chart, Jessica can now enjoy a roast with her family.
He said: "Julia contacted me worried and concerned about the limited foods that her daughter Jessica was restricted to, just chicken nuggets and very little else.
"Chicken nuggets are not a whole food group and Jessica came to me extremely unwell, lethargic and anxious."
Trying to get Jessica or any person with ARFID to consume is like trying to get an arachnophobe to hold a spider. It sends panic through a persons body retching, gagging and vomiting - just at the thought of an unsafe or new food.
For relieved mum Julia, Jessica's achievement means for the first time in 10 years the whole family can sit down together and enjoy a meal.
Julia said: "It's nothing short of a miracle that Jessica can eat a full plate of food now. We hadn't eaten a meal together as a family for years, and now we can.
"She's tried 24 new foods, and even though she hasn't liked all of them, this is a massive step forward for her."
Do you have a story to share? We'd love to hear all about it. Get in touch via yourmirror@mirror.co.uk
