Am I ready for Veganism?/Introduction

[Guest guest]

Hello all,

 

My name is Jolene, from Connecticut, and I am an aspiring

vegetarian/vegan/raw foodist. I have been lurking here for a while

and have really enjoyed all of the articles, information and

viewpoints here.

I have gone back and forth with vegetarianism and the standard

American diet for most of my life. A few months ago, however, I was

introduced to the raw-foods lifestyle. The idea of eating very

simple, natural foods really appealed to me, but at first, it was

not about the animals. I find myself moving in that direction now,

though. My feelings about my diet in general have gone through quite

an evolution in the past couple of months, but I'm not where I want

to be yet.

What I mean by this is that I want my aversion to animal products to

be visceral, I don't want to have to consciously think about not

choosing meat when faced with that option. I'm guessing it's because

for 32 years, I have lived in a culture, surrounded by a family that

sees meat as a primary nutrition source. It just never occured to me

that eating meat was such a bad thing to do. But now, after reading

more about animal treatment in feed lots and slaughterhouses, and

coming to other conclusions about how my food choices affect the

world around me, I have come to the conclusion that veganism is

really the ideal way to eat, and to live.

My problem is this: While I intellectually know that I should not be

using animal products in my diet or lifestyle, I'm finding it

difficult to implement this in my life. It is difficult to

participate in family functions or evenings out with non-vegan

friends and family and I still crave certain dishes containing

animal products.

I recently watched the movie " Earthlings " and was extremely moved by

it. Okay, that's kind of a euphemism, I was exhausted and completely

emotionally drained by it. I have never wanted to watch that kind of

movie, I have always been uncomfortable by the pictures in PETA

brochures, I have always felt an emotional connection to animals...

But I made myself watch this movie (covering my eyes in parts, and

crying, wailing, through most of it) because I felt I needed to give

myself the visuals to call upon when faced with the idea of

purchasing or eating meat and other animal products. But, after only

a couple of days, it's like the effect is wearing off. I can still

sever the connection between the chicken on the menu and the birds

being stomped to death in the movie.

I know this is because we have no connection to the farm, no

connection to the land anymore in this culture. The meat in the

supermarket bears no resemblance at all to the animal being raised

for slaughter.

 

So, please help! Will my decision to avoid animal products have to

be a determined, focused choice from now on? Does it remain that

way, or do you find after being vegan for an amount of time that it

does become second nature?

 

Sorry this is so long, this change in eating/living has been such a

radical departure from my upbringing, and as such, has occupied most

of my attention lately.

 

Thank you in advance, everyone.

Warmly,

Jolene

[Guest guest]

Jolene,Veganism is not hard to stick to once you've made up your mind it is the right thing. So what you crave meats and animal products-these cravings may or may not lessen in time but doing the morally correct thing always taste best in the long run. I empathize with your concerns about social gatherings-nothing is harder however as hard as that is it is nothing compared to the suffering the animals went through to provide that meat,egg or dairy dish. Look again as some of those graphics films about animal cruelty. Are these sickly animals appropriate food for anyone? Good luckSharonOn Mar 9, 2007, at 10:28 PM, jmaine37 wrote:Hello all, My name is Jolene, from Connecticut, and I am an aspiring vegetarian/vegan/raw foodist. I have been lurking here for a while and have really enjoyed all of the articles, information and viewpoints here. I have gone back and forth with vegetarianism and the standard American diet for most of my life. A few months ago, however, I was introduced to the raw-foods lifestyle. The idea of eating very simple, natural foods really appealed to me, but at first, it was not about the animals. I find myself moving in that direction now, though. My feelings about my diet in general have gone through quite an evolution in the past couple of months, but I'm not where I want to be yet. What I mean by this is that I want my aversion to animal products to be visceral, I don't want to have to consciously think about not choosing meat when faced with that option. I'm guessing it's because for 32 years, I have lived in a culture, surrounded by a family that sees meat as a primary nutrition source. It just never occured to me that eating meat was such a bad thing to do. But now, after reading more about animal treatment in feed lots and slaughterhouses, and coming to other conclusions about how my food choices affect the world around me, I have come to the conclusion that veganism is really the ideal way to eat, and to live. My problem is this: While I intellectually know that I should not be using animal products in my diet or lifestyle, I'm finding it difficult to implement this in my life. It is difficult to participate in family functions or evenings out with non-vegan friends and family and I still crave certain dishes containing animal products.I recently watched the movie "Earthlings" and was extremely moved by it. Okay, that's kind of a euphemism, I was exhausted and completely emotionally drained by it. I have never wanted to watch that kind of movie, I have always been uncomfortable by the pictures in PETA brochures, I have always felt an emotional connection to animals... But I made myself watch this movie (covering my eyes in parts, and crying, wailing, through most of it) because I felt I needed to give myself the visuals to call upon when faced with the idea of purchasing or eating meat and other animal products. But, after only a couple of days, it's like the effect is wearing off. I can still sever the connection between the chicken on the menu and the birds being stomped to death in the movie.I know this is because we have no connection to the farm, no connection to the land anymore in this culture. The meat in the supermarket bears no resemblance at all to the animal being raised for slaughter. So, please help! Will my decision to avoid animal products have to be a determined, focused choice from now on? Does it remain that way, or do you find after being vegan for an amount of time that it does become second nature?Sorry this is so long, this change in eating/living has been such a radical departure from my upbringing, and as such, has occupied most of my attention lately.Thank you in advance, everyone.Warmly, Jolene

[Guest guest]

Hi Jolene

 

Welcome!

 

My experience of turning vegetarian was initially quite hard - I was one

of those people who didn't think that something had any right to call

itself a meal unless it had a dead animal in it. After finding out a bit

about the meat industry, I got to the point where I simply couldn't ignore

the facts, and had to go vegetarian. A year later I went vegan, and about 6

months after that I completely stopped seeing meat as a food - it became

just dead flesh, and not something that I'd ever want to consume - much

how most people would feel about human flesh.

 

I hope you find the same, as it really does become very easy to avoid eating

things which you don't think of as food!!!

 

BB

Peter

 

-

" jmaine37 " <zuzu37

 

Saturday, March 10, 2007 3:28 AM

Am I ready for Veganism?/Introduction

 

 

> Hello all,

>

> My name is Jolene, from Connecticut, and I am an aspiring

> vegetarian/vegan/raw foodist. I have been lurking here for a while

> and have really enjoyed all of the articles, information and

> viewpoints here.

> I have gone back and forth with vegetarianism and the standard

> American diet for most of my life. A few months ago, however, I was

> introduced to the raw-foods lifestyle. The idea of eating very

> simple, natural foods really appealed to me, but at first, it was

> not about the animals. I find myself moving in that direction now,

> though. My feelings about my diet in general have gone through quite

> an evolution in the past couple of months, but I'm not where I want

> to be yet.

> What I mean by this is that I want my aversion to animal products to

> be visceral, I don't want to have to consciously think about not

> choosing meat when faced with that option. I'm guessing it's because

> for 32 years, I have lived in a culture, surrounded by a family that

> sees meat as a primary nutrition source. It just never occured to me

> that eating meat was such a bad thing to do. But now, after reading

> more about animal treatment in feed lots and slaughterhouses, and

> coming to other conclusions about how my food choices affect the

> world around me, I have come to the conclusion that veganism is

> really the ideal way to eat, and to live.

> My problem is this: While I intellectually know that I should not be

> using animal products in my diet or lifestyle, I'm finding it

> difficult to implement this in my life. It is difficult to

> participate in family functions or evenings out with non-vegan

> friends and family and I still crave certain dishes containing

> animal products.

> I recently watched the movie " Earthlings " and was extremely moved by

> it. Okay, that's kind of a euphemism, I was exhausted and completely

> emotionally drained by it. I have never wanted to watch that kind of

> movie, I have always been uncomfortable by the pictures in PETA

> brochures, I have always felt an emotional connection to animals...

> But I made myself watch this movie (covering my eyes in parts, and

> crying, wailing, through most of it) because I felt I needed to give

> myself the visuals to call upon when faced with the idea of

> purchasing or eating meat and other animal products. But, after only

> a couple of days, it's like the effect is wearing off. I can still

> sever the connection between the chicken on the menu and the birds

> being stomped to death in the movie.

> I know this is because we have no connection to the farm, no

> connection to the land anymore in this culture. The meat in the

> supermarket bears no resemblance at all to the animal being raised

> for slaughter.

>

> So, please help! Will my decision to avoid animal products have to

> be a determined, focused choice from now on? Does it remain that

> way, or do you find after being vegan for an amount of time that it

> does become second nature?

>

> Sorry this is so long, this change in eating/living has been such a

> radical departure from my upbringing, and as such, has occupied most

> of my attention lately.

>

> Thank you in advance, everyone.

> Warmly,

> Jolene

>

>

>

>

>

> To send an email to -

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Jolene, Nice to hear from you. Living a vegan lifestyle is a concious choice, and being in a minority will always mean having to be aware of your surroundings, and reading labels etc. That said , once you have done the research, ( forewarned is forearmed ), then it does get a little easier. You will still need to read labels, but as long as you warn ( maybe I should use the term advise ) your friends /neighbours/restaurants/hotels etc in advance of any visits, then it should be o.k. To some it is a concience tingler, others may even see it as a threat, but those closest to you will be accepting. You have always got us for support, aand if you need any advice , just ask! The Valley Vegan...............jmaine37 <zuzu37 wrote: Hello all, My name is Jolene, from Connecticut, and I am an aspiring vegetarian/vegan/raw foodist. I have been lurking here for a while and have really enjoyed all of the articles, information and viewpoints here. I have gone back and forth with vegetarianism and the standard American diet for most of my life. A few months ago, however, I was introduced to the raw-foods lifestyle. The idea of eating very simple, natural foods really appealed to me, but at first, it was not about the animals. I find myself moving in that direction now, though. My feelings about my diet in general have gone through quite an evolution

in the past couple of months, but I'm not where I want to be yet. What I mean by this is that I want my aversion to animal products to be visceral, I don't want to have to consciously think about not choosing meat when faced with that option. I'm guessing it's because for 32 years, I have lived in a culture, surrounded by a family that sees meat as a primary nutrition source. It just never occured to me that eating meat was such a bad thing to do. But now, after reading more about animal treatment in feed lots and slaughterhouses, and coming to other conclusions about how my food choices affect the world around me, I have come to the conclusion that veganism is really the ideal way to eat, and to live. My problem is this: While I intellectually know that I should not be using animal products in my diet or lifestyle, I'm finding it difficult to implement this in my life. It is difficult to participate in family

functions or evenings out with non-vegan friends and family and I still crave certain dishes containing animal products.I recently watched the movie "Earthlings" and was extremely moved by it. Okay, that's kind of a euphemism, I was exhausted and completely emotionally drained by it. I have never wanted to watch that kind of movie, I have always been uncomfortable by the pictures in PETA brochures, I have always felt an emotional connection to animals... But I made myself watch this movie (covering my eyes in parts, and crying, wailing, through most of it) because I felt I needed to give myself the visuals to call upon when faced with the idea of purchasing or eating meat and other animal products. But, after only a couple of days, it's like the effect is wearing off. I can still sever the connection between the chicken on the menu and the birds being stomped to death in the movie.I know this is because we have no

connection to the farm, no connection to the land anymore in this culture. The meat in the supermarket bears no resemblance at all to the animal being raised for slaughter. So, please help! Will my decision to avoid animal products have to be a determined, focused choice from now on? Does it remain that way, or do you find after being vegan for an amount of time that it does become second nature?Sorry this is so long, this change in eating/living has been such a radical departure from my upbringing, and as such, has occupied most of my attention lately.Thank you in advance, everyone.Warmly, JolenePeter H

 

New Mail is the ultimate force in competitive emailing. Find out more at the Mail Championships. Plus: play games and win prizes.

[Guest guest]

Jolene wrote:

>So, please help! Will my decision to avoid animal products have to

>be a determined, focused choice from now on? Does it remain that

>way, or do you find after being vegan for an amount of time that it

>does become second nature?

 

I grew up with relatives who said you needed meat to live, and some

of them ate it 3 times a day. Yet I felt guilty eating chicken in

front of my parakeet. I used to pick the vegetables out of mixed

dishes and leave the meat whenever possible. I stopped eating eggs

when I was 4 because I'd heard that there was a baby chicken in them,

and I didn't want to bite down on it. I stopped drinking milk after

my cousin vomited after eating a cheese sandwich in my room, around

age 8, but I still ate ice cream. Way back then, I would've stopped

eating meat if I'd known I could.

 

So once I met my first vegetarian (and her 2-year-old) in 1975, I

spent several months doing research to persuade myself that it was

possible to stay alive and healthy and be vegetarian, and it was in

fact liberating to know that I might be able to live this way. Back

then, comparatively little info was available (no internet!! no books

on vegan nutrition!), and IIRC all I could find were pamphlets put

out by a very small veg. organization and a few cookbooks, and maybe

Peter Singer's first book came out a couple years later.

 

In other words, it was easy, almost second nature, for me to make the

change. An uncle I saw infrequently always used to ask if I was still

a vegetarian and if I salivated when I smelled steak (and being

polite, all I said was no), but I never could stand the smell of

burning flesh, and once I'd persuaded myself to go vegetarian, I no

longer thought of any animal flesh as food at all.

[Guest guest]

Thanks Sharon, and everyone else for the great advice.

 

I don't have cravings very often honestly. I was never much of a meat

eater before and can very easily go without it now. Sometimes it does

just seem easier when with other people, though, to have a bit. The

hardest part I'm finding is trying to avoid animal products in

packaged proucts. It's also the hardest to mentally deal with -

meaning, I can look at a chicken breast and actually see the meat,

imagine it being muscle in some animal. Looking at my Planters dry

roasted peanuts, and seeing gelatin in the ingredients list - it's

harder to feel that visceral avoidance. But I'm getting there.

Reading more labels, making a conscious decision to avoid any animal

products when I encounter them...it will take some time , but I think

I'll get there.

 

Thanks again everyine,

Jolene

 

 

 

, Sharon Lee <sharon wrote:

>

> Jolene,

>

> Veganism is not hard to stick to once you've made up your mind it

is

> the right thing. So what you crave meats and animal products-these

> cravings may or may not lessen in time but doing the morally

correct

> thing always taste best in the long run. I empathize with your

> concerns about social gatherings-nothing is harder however as hard

as

> that is it is nothing compared to the suffering the animals went

> through to provide that meat,egg or dairy dish. Look again as some

of

> those graphics films about animal cruelty. Are these sickly

animals

> appropriate food for anyone? Good luck

>

> Sharon

> On Mar 9, 2007, at 10:28 PM, jmaine37 wrote:

>

> > Hello all,

> >

> > My name is Jolene, from Connecticut, and I am an aspiring

> > vegetarian/vegan/raw foodist. I have been lurking here for a while

> > and have really enjoyed all of the articles, information and

> > viewpoints here.

> > I have gone back and forth with vegetarianism and the standard

> > American diet for most of my life. A few months ago, however, I

was

> > introduced to the raw-foods lifestyle. The idea of eating very

> > simple, natural foods really appealed to me, but at first, it was

> > not about the animals. I find myself moving in that direction now,

> > though. My feelings about my diet in general have gone through

quite

> > an evolution in the past couple of months, but I'm not where I

want

> > to be yet.

> > What I mean by this is that I want my aversion to animal products

to

> > be visceral, I don't want to have to consciously think about not

> > choosing meat when faced with that option. I'm guessing it's

because

> > for 32 years, I have lived in a culture, surrounded by a family

that

> > sees meat as a primary nutrition source. It just never occured to

me

> > that eating meat was such a bad thing to do. But now, after

reading

> > more about animal treatment in feed lots and slaughterhouses, and

> > coming to other conclusions about how my food choices affect the

> > world around me, I have come to the conclusion that veganism is

> > really the ideal way to eat, and to live.

> > My problem is this: While I intellectually know that I should not

be

> > using animal products in my diet or lifestyle, I'm finding it

> > difficult to implement this in my life. It is difficult to

> > participate in family functions or evenings out with non-vegan

> > friends and family and I still crave certain dishes containing

> > animal products.

> > I recently watched the movie " Earthlings " and was extremely moved

by

> > it. Okay, that's kind of a euphemism, I was exhausted and

completely

> > emotionally drained by it. I have never wanted to watch that kind

of

> > movie, I have always been uncomfortable by the pictures in PETA

> > brochures, I have always felt an emotional connection to

animals...

> > But I made myself watch this movie (covering my eyes in parts, and

> > crying, wailing, through most of it) because I felt I needed to

give

> > myself the visuals to call upon when faced with the idea of

> > purchasing or eating meat and other animal products. But, after

only

> > a couple of days, it's like the effect is wearing off. I can still

> > sever the connection between the chicken on the menu and the birds

> > being stomped to death in the movie.

> > I know this is because we have no connection to the farm, no

> > connection to the land anymore in this culture. The meat in the

> > supermarket bears no resemblance at all to the animal being raised

> > for slaughter.

> >

> > So, please help! Will my decision to avoid animal products have to

> > be a determined, focused choice from now on? Does it remain that

> > way, or do you find after being vegan for an amount of time that

it

> > does become second nature?

> >

> > Sorry this is so long, this change in eating/living has been such

a

> > radical departure from my upbringing, and as such, has occupied

most

> > of my attention lately.

> >

> > Thank you in advance, everyone.

> > Warmly,

> > Jolene

> >

> >

> >

> >

>