Ugh....I feel this. It took years before people understood that when my son said he couldn't eat something - he really couldn't eat it. I remember him trying to eat at an extended family dinner - chewing and chewing and crying but unable to swallow. it only happened once. I said, "Enough!" and let him go spit it out. It was one of the first times I aggressively stood up to my parents (yes, I know, sad, but that's a whole other topic).