Wanting to be Vegan, unsure of what to expect

Lately I've been strongly considering living a vegan lifestyle. I don't eat red meat and I only eat eggs and milk once in a blue moon. I find the idea of eating animal products more and more unappealing the more that I think about it. I have plenty of fruits and vegetables around the house all the time ( including tons of dry beans) so there shouldn't be a huge issue with finding things I can eat. I am, however, curious as to what some of the benefits as well as disadvantages are that some of you guys have experienced while living a vegan lifestyle.

I've been vegan for close to a year now (I was lacto-ovo veg for a few years before that) and I feel great! I try not to be preachy, but honestly, my digestion is MUCH better, and I have had one cold that lasted less than three days. I used to be sick almost all winter, it seems. Not anymore. :) I did lose a few pounds also - I was a pretty healthy vegetarian before, but I did eat quite a bit of dairy. It's not as hard to cut those things out as you might think, especially if you do some research and find out where it all comes from. Those are some of the benefits. The only real disadvantages are dealing with questions and arguments from friends and family.... you just have to be prepared for those. I don't know any other vegans in real life, so I'm used to the questions, and I really don't mind being different. Eating out can sometimes present a challenge, but there are lots of websites that list vegan dishes at chain restaurants, and many chefs will be happy to make you a special vegetarian dish. I have been lucky, and have not encountered any of the hostility others have mentioned on some discussion boards. Let me know if I can help with any other questions. :)

when i first went vegan about two years ago i GAINED about 5 lbs. i had to start paying a lot more attention to what i was eating and make a real effort to moderate my intake of processed soy products, which can be difficult when you first go vegan and miss certain things. now i have more energy, better digestion, and am overall a MUCH healthier person. but everyone is different. my suggestion would be to stick with the veganism for at least a month and then re-evaluate and see where you need to make some changes if you do.

one thing that helped me was to not think of being vegan as a "forever" thing. i very well may be vegan forever, but that mentality wasn't something i found encouraging. instead i though, "i could eat that ice cream if i wanted to, but i don't." it helps to think in terms of "want" vs "can."

also, you can expect questions from people. just don't preach to them and they have no reason to be hostile. if you don't judge their choices, they aren't in any sort of a position to judge yours.

good luck!

Yeah, I told my mom that I wanted to be Vegan and she's already been giving be grief on a day to day basis. I think that it really bothers her and I don't understand why. It's a much healthier way to eat. My brother has also given me a hard time about it as well. I wonder why people have such a hard time with it. It's not like you're starving yourself, there is plenty of foods you can eat while living a vegan lifestyle.

i think that some ppl feel like a vegan would pass judgment on them for not being the same. a lot of times parents are concerned about health issues, so if i were you i would ask your mom what exactly it is that bothers her about veganism, and then listen to her thoughts. let her know that you're really committed to staying healthy and educating yourself fully on issues of nutrition and health.

in the end, some ppl just don't want to look at their diet because they are afraid of feeling convicted and do not want to give certain foods up.

it's important to "live and let live"! i think your family will come around, just give them a bit of time.

Show your family this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIjanhKqVC4

It's called Meet Your Meat and shows how we grow our mass produced meat and dairy and eggs and should help explain why going vegan is good!

It is also great for your health to cut down on saturated animal fats, and growing vegetables is also much more environmentally sustainable and friendly than growing grain to feed animals, who then pollute our environment.

I am what I call Almost Vegan. I will sometimes eat oysters and scallops because they are not harmful to the environment, they show no sentience* so I am most likely not inflicting any pain on them to kill them and they aren't bad for your health.

When I am going to friends' houses, I will bring a plate of something vegan to share. At Christmas and other special occassions, there is always plenty of veg and I just quietly not eat the meat/dairy stuff. I haven't even told most people about my veganish lifestyle. Telling people seems to provoke all sorts of assumptions and prejudices in them but not telling means I can just do it peace! Although I will happily have environmental/ethical discussion when it comes up naturally or if they ask and are genuinely interested.

Just watch out for your iron and B12.

Good luck!

Billlie

PS check out post punk kitchen and other vegan blogs/websites. they should answer your questions and give you a good idea of how you will eat.

*If you're interested in the ethics of vegan eating, a great read is The Ethics of What We Eat (called different names in diff countries) by Peter Singer, Prof of philosophy at Princeton and Jim Mason.

Original Post by sarahanne92:

Yeah, I told my mom that I wanted to be Vegan and she's already been giving be grief on a day to day basis.

 Is your mom responsible for making your meals?   Doing the grocery shopping?  Usually objections fall into two broad camps.  The first is that parents will be concerned that you'll not get enough to eat and that you'll struggle or be ill as a result.   That objection is easily overcome if you can show you're up to speed on how to get a balanced vegan diet. 

The second is a practical one... the pain in the backside of having to make separate meals or buy separate food for one person in the family.   If you live independently you can eat what you like, of course. 

Thanks for the link HONEYTIN I'll make sure and watch that :). I have asked my mom not to bring up my choice to become vegan to others just because I would rather not have to explain my reasons to everyone.

GI-JANE- I think that my mom is more just confused as to why I would choose to limit my diet so much. It's only her and I that live at home and we're always eating at different times anyways so she doesn't have to go out of her way. I guess all I can hope is that she'll come around..

If vegan is for you then go.  Try it.  Be healthy.  One word of advice, beware of how it affects the people around you.  Be sure to be open minded when friends/significant others suggest restuarants.  Remember that your choice to limit your diet does not, and shot not, mean that those close to you have to limit theirs.  If you are understanding, then those around you will be too.  If you take it up as a cause, or if you start to resent friends who dont "see it your way", you may experience some social backlash.

Original Post by sarahanne92:

GI-JANE- I think that my mom is more just confused as to why I would choose to limit my diet so much.

 Then you have to demonstrate how varied a vegan diet can be and that's best done by example.   We all know far too many 'cheese sandwich and crisps' vegetarians that go around looking whey-faced and hollow-eyed...... and mum might be thinking that's what you'll turn into.  Or... and this is common to most omnivores... she's just a little bemused as to why you'd want to turn down foods that she and many others enjoy. 

Get plenty of vegan cookbooks from the library and read up a lot on nutrition.  And then surprise mum with some fabulous home-cooking and sensationally delicious meals.  BTW... if you sit down and eat meals together you might find you get closer and start communicating better.