Cruise food

[LesAB]

I am going on a cruise in one week and have a few questions. When we board do we go to 'customer service' and tell them we need food on our food plan? We are afraid to do the sit down dinners as our food may not be available. Is there skim milk or plain skim milk yogurt on cruises? Do they serve plain oatmeal? We are going on a Royal Caribbean cruise. Thanks in advance, Les

[step3]

Hi Les,

Good for you, getting to go on a cruise! I hope you have a wonderful, abstinent time!

Here's what it says in the Frequently Asked Questions section of the FAA website:

What about traveling?
When a food addict is convinced that abstinence is the answer to recovering from food addiction, she/he will be able to go anywhere and remain abstinent. Traveling abstinently does take extra planning to ensure that we have the foods we need when we need them. Discussing travel plans with a sponsor and with other recovering food addicts can provide us with an excellent source of ideas for solutions to the challenges of traveling abstinently. Many of our members have traveled extensively in the U.S. and abroad and have remained abstinent.

I've never been on a cruise, but I have traveled other ways and I found the best thing to do is to plan ahead. So, if it were me, I wouldn't wait until I was actually on the ship to find out how the cruise line can meet my special dietary needs. I'd call them and speak to someone in Customer Service who might be able to direct the call. Once, when planning on attending a family-style dinner at a fancy restaurant with a large group, I called ahead, days in advance, and spoken with Catering, who weren't really helpful. I called back the day of the event and insisted on speaking with the Manager (the person on the phone was reluctant for some reason to allow this), to see if I could bring my own food and eat there since they couldn't help me. It turned out they actually could help...I just needed to know who to speak with. Don't be afraid to "take it to the top" if you need to.

You may not be able to get everything you need for your personal food plan, and in that case, you can bring some things with you. Try to find out first what you will have available from them, and go from there. Besides coming here to Online Support, I'd highly recommend going to some phone meetings and asking if anyone can speak with you about this. Our members have had all kinds of experiences in abstinence and it's very possible you will be able to talk with someone who has been on a cruise themselves.

Also, if you don't have a sponsor yet to help you with your recovery, I'd recommend getting one. Sponsors are a fantastic resource for times like this. When they don't have the answer, they have a sponsor to ask... the answer has always been available at some point, in my experience.

Best wishes, Les. Have a great trip!