Those of you who know me well are probably already aware
that I have begun the transition to a vegan life! After 7 years of being
vegetarian, I FINALLY made the decision to transition to the next phase of
living a cruelty-free life. I began eliminating dairy and all other animal byproducts
from my diet in January, 2014. Before making the change, I was very nervous
about the process and actually had a lot of anxiety surrounding my decision. I
think the problem was that I felt completely overwhelmed by the drastic
difference in what I thought my lifestyle would be. I got too caught up in “not
making any mistakes” with my new vegan life, which caused me to panic. I felt
like I had to learn everything about every animal industry, and the cruelty
that goes along with it, right at that very moment.
After putting a lot of thought into it, I devised a “game plan,” if you will, for my transition. I decided that I would take things in steps to help relieve some of the pressure I was feeling to be perfect at living a vegan life. First, I would cut out all animal byproducts from my diet. This included all dairy, eggs, honey, gelatin, etc. I felt pretty confident in my ability to successfully do this as I had been paying attention to animal byproducts in foods and reducing my consumption of them for quite some time already. Secondly, I would move my focus to fashion, aka clothes, shoes, and accessories. While I saw no point in throwing out the things I already owned, such as leather belts, shoes or handbags, I would make a conscious decision to no longer purchase items made from animals. Finally, and what I consider to be the most daunting of all of the aspects, I would educate myself on household and beauty items that contained animals byproducts, or were tested on animals, and eliminate my use of those as well. Formulating this plan helped to reduce the vastness of the process and my anxieties surrounding it.
It has been almost 5 months now since I made the decision. I have found that eating a vegan diet is much easier than I had expected! There are so many vegan products on the market and literally all of the ones I have tried taste amazing! Not only have I opened myself up to a whole world of foods I probably wouldn’t have considered before, I have also discovered some really great bakeries and restaurants that carry vegan products. Some of my favorites are: Harvest Moon Creations, Olive-An Urban Dive, Sunrise Café, Sticky Fingers Sweets & Eats, and Loving Hut Healthy Cuisine. There are also lots of places I haven’t yet tried!
I am doing pretty well with the fashion piece of my lifestyle, too. Before I buy anything new, I check the labels to see what materials the items are made from. It can be confusing sometimes but I am doing my best. Google has become my best friend. As my makeup supply and other household items have begun to run low, I now begin my journey to find cruelty-free options for these things as well. I am still a long way from where I want to be, but I continue to learn new things about living a more compassionate life every day! I have also made some really great new friends along the way, too!
Some resources that have helped me in my transition are listed below. Although I am far from an expert, I would be happy to try and answer any questions you may have! Thanks for reading J
After putting a lot of thought into it, I devised a “game plan,” if you will, for my transition. I decided that I would take things in steps to help relieve some of the pressure I was feeling to be perfect at living a vegan life. First, I would cut out all animal byproducts from my diet. This included all dairy, eggs, honey, gelatin, etc. I felt pretty confident in my ability to successfully do this as I had been paying attention to animal byproducts in foods and reducing my consumption of them for quite some time already. Secondly, I would move my focus to fashion, aka clothes, shoes, and accessories. While I saw no point in throwing out the things I already owned, such as leather belts, shoes or handbags, I would make a conscious decision to no longer purchase items made from animals. Finally, and what I consider to be the most daunting of all of the aspects, I would educate myself on household and beauty items that contained animals byproducts, or were tested on animals, and eliminate my use of those as well. Formulating this plan helped to reduce the vastness of the process and my anxieties surrounding it.
It has been almost 5 months now since I made the decision. I have found that eating a vegan diet is much easier than I had expected! There are so many vegan products on the market and literally all of the ones I have tried taste amazing! Not only have I opened myself up to a whole world of foods I probably wouldn’t have considered before, I have also discovered some really great bakeries and restaurants that carry vegan products. Some of my favorites are: Harvest Moon Creations, Olive-An Urban Dive, Sunrise Café, Sticky Fingers Sweets & Eats, and Loving Hut Healthy Cuisine. There are also lots of places I haven’t yet tried!
I am doing pretty well with the fashion piece of my lifestyle, too. Before I buy anything new, I check the labels to see what materials the items are made from. It can be confusing sometimes but I am doing my best. Google has become my best friend. As my makeup supply and other household items have begun to run low, I now begin my journey to find cruelty-free options for these things as well. I am still a long way from where I want to be, but I continue to learn new things about living a more compassionate life every day! I have also made some really great new friends along the way, too!
Some resources that have helped me in my transition are listed below. Although I am far from an expert, I would be happy to try and answer any questions you may have! Thanks for reading J
Resources
Being Vegan
by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau
Mercy for
Animals (MFA)- www.Mercyforanimals.org
congrats on finding success in your journey! so glad we can play a part in making the transition tastier!! ~Olive, an urban dive
ReplyDeleteYour approach reminds me of something your mother would do. And that is a compliment to you both, really. I look forward to reading about your journey.
ReplyDelete