Inspired by another thread, I have decided to come out of the closet as someone who is indifferent to food.
Don’t get me wrong… I have had numerous great meals in my life, and fairly frequently actually get a hankering for some specific type or style of food. The thing is, that a whole lot of the time I don’t really feel all that hungry. When I try to think of what I’d want to cook for dinner, I can’t think of anything… and it all seems like a time consuming, costly hassle.
At restaurants I often look over the whole menu, find nothing I want… look it over again to see if I didn’t miss anything… still find nothing and end up just ordering some generic pasta just to fuel the machine.
If I had to opportunity to never have to eat again, I’d seriously consider it. If I could just take a food pill most days and have a real mean once or twice a week… I’d jump at the chance.
vl_mungo: You just described me exactly. I can’t wait for the day when they invent “food cubes” – I just take one in the morning and it provides all the stuff my body needs for the day. I just don’t have a desire to eat; food doesn’t “impress” me.
I am passionate about food, whether I’m cooking it or eating it, but I do have a good friend who views food as fuel and nothing more. I drive him crazy because I’m always cooking and I tell him I find it a little sad that he gets no joy from something as wonderful as food. I find food a pleasure rather than a chore, but you’re certainly not alone in your indifference to food, Mungo.
I’m like that - I can walk around the grocery store for hours and come out with no food because nothing looked appealing. I don’t like to cook, and can happily eat a bowl of cereal instead of an expensive meal at a restaurant.
I love food… but I can’t find anything at. all. that I might want to eat. This is not new, and I’ll gladly eat what others decide for me, but left up to my own devices, it’s crackers and peanut butter.
I also love to cook, and I love trying new foods. I just can’t think of anything I want to put the effort into. I don’t want to spend the money to eat out because there’s nothing out that I want.
It’s a lot like being pregnant (and this did get a LOT worse when I was pregnant) and I can munch all day on … misc stuff, whatever happens to be available…
but food is basically unappealing these days.
After five years of being just like you, I’m finally back to loving food again. When I’m in school (and therefore stressed), I just never want to eat, even if my stomach’s growling. And I worked about three or so years in a grocery store, which made me so tired of looking at food that I didn’t want to look at it ever again.
Fortunately, it turns out that I’m not really indifferent to food, and I’m now looking forward to learning how to cook.
Zenster, I think what he/she is saying is that, besides the necessity of it, the enjoyment of it just isn’t there. Like, “I know I have to eat, so I will. I just take no pleasure from it.”
I love to cook more than I love to eat. I enjoy food, yes, but I can spend hours working on a meal, then not really want to eat it. I’d rather sit back and watch others delight in it. I take my pleasure cooking for others, and giving them something to enjoy. I might nibble, but really, sometimes it’s the preparation for other people that makes me happy.
I have this exact same problem, but I know what causes it.
I have Crohn’s disease, which is an intestinal ailment with many delightful facets, including anorexia. Not anorexia nervosa, but just a general disinterest in food. I won’t cook or even eat something already made unless I’m really, really hungry.
In fact, if left to my own devices, I might never eat a full meal again. But because of school, I have lunch and breakfast everyday, and during the summer I have volunteer work, so I eat breakfast and lunch then, too.
For dinner, though, sometimes I eat whatever my parents have cooked, and sometimes I hardly eat more than a few chips.
Depression is one of the more common causes for a lack of appetite or general disinterest in food. Perhaps this might be the case for some of you? Just a thought.
“I’m indifferent to sex. It’s nice, and on some levels, necessary, but I don’t really get a lot of enjoyment out of it. Mostly, I do it because I’m expected to.”
I’m with you on this one. I made an ex-girlfriend mad because she had taken the time to cook a nice meal and I alluded to the fact that it tasted great, but she really didn’t have to go to all the trouble because something from McDonalds would have been fine.
Well, it’s not really a matter of choice, Zenster, though. I mean righ now - I know I am hungry and I shoudl eat but cannot think of what I want to eat…Caveat - coudl be a depression thing
or coudl also be to do with it being relaly rather sweatily hot, and I am scared to open windows because of the impervious-to-danger cat.
When it’s just for myself I’m happy with pretty much anything I can find. I had a bowl of cottage cheese, a juice box, some buttered foccacia bread and a few raspberries for lunch. I was more than satisfied with that.
But when it’s food for someone else…look out. It’s a family thing. I come from a huge family, every generation has masses of kids, old folks, brothers, sisters and cousins. We’re not blessed with great wealth. We’re not well connected. We can’t move heaven and earth and solve a problem with a single phone call. But by God we can feed you. Feed you well, and provide you with the very thing that keeps you alive and strong. We’ll fill your belly, and then we’ll send some home with you for a snack.
I’m LOVE food.
Oddly enough though I don’t eat a great deal.
I would rather have 1 well prepared tasty meal a day that 3 boring/bland ones. I can easily get by without eating breakfast or lunch and have a nice dinner.
Glad to know that there are a few other out there in the same (gravy) boat. Pixelle… I’m pretty sure that depression is not the problem (nor is Crohn’s disease, as far as I know) . Zenster… what can I say other than, Dr. Johnston sounds like a pratt?
