new vegan, got some problems
Hey everyone, im new to this forum, and forums in general, but this one looks great!
basicaly im 20years old, ive been a vegetarian for almost three years now, and i love it, its great (was never a meat eater anyways). but ive been doing some reading about health and stuff, plus ive been wanting to go vegan for about a year now, and ive moved out for the first time this summer (besides rez, next to imposible to be vegan in meal hall) so i thought this would be the best chance to try it.
(i work for a landscape company so im on my feet all day, but in past i always was anyways, plus im an athlete, ive done 2 half marathons, and some other runs, and last summer i started getting into triatholons (funstuff!), and ive taken kyaking courses etc... so that shouldnt be a problem)
also i try to avoid gluten as much as possible (dont eat bread, pasta, white potatos, started useing rice flour sometimes etc...), and when i go out places ive been lax with the vegan thing (but not the vegetarian thing, haha)
so its been almost a month sence i started and about two weeks ago i started feeling really tierd, like i slept for 11hours straight ( which i never do, im the kind of person who gets up at 6am and gose kyaking, which i cant do now that im in the city :P ) and last night i slept for 12hours straight, 8hours the night before, with a 2hour nap in between (its raining pretty hard so work gets called off)
plus i just started getting light headed from standing up from weeding gardens and stuff, the skin on my face feels really gridy, and i dont feel like doing things any more (could be due to lack of light and constant cold in this basment apartment, and from the rain, and also more screen time then im used to, im a third party here, so its kinda lonley), ive also recently been bloated and gassy, but it hasint been uncomfortable, just anoying and embarrassing.
my diet is incredibly healthy, ive never been one to eat all that much, the only things i splerge on are peppermints(full of sugar) and chocolate (cause its the one thing that i really love), ive been conscious about getting enough water (sometime a prob, theres not always a bathroom, lol), and theres at least some protien everytime a eat someting (mostly because i want to build musles).
i dont know if this is just a normal little fase that has nothing to do with going vegan or not, but its the only thing that i can think of, and i cant find answers anywhere else, hopefully someone can help/ give tips, whatever!! i dont really want stop! i`d feel failure and guilt !!
(this tured out to be a really long post, sorry! and sorry about any spelling and grammar mistakes !!)
(oh! and i made this super chocolatey vegan, rice flour chocolate cake acople days ago cause it was raining, and that when the bloating started, but that could be fluck)
Hi! I think you should talk to a vegan-friendly nutritionist or dietician (check out http://www.theveganrd.com/) to make sure you're getting all the nutrients you need and to check for allergies, and if the dizziness continues, definitely consult your doctor. Take good care of yourself so you can be vegan for a long time!!
It sounds to me like you might not be eating enough as opposed to your tiredness being from going vegan for a few weeks. It takes a very long time for nutritional deficiencies to show up if that is something you are worried about or if you were actually missing a nutrient. If you are also cutting out gluten than you need to make sure you are replacing the nutrients and calories those foods can provide (b vitamins, more fiber than gluten free types of grains etc) with others. With a lifestyle like yours, you need to really make sure you are eating enough. I am very active also, and I remember losing way too much weight when I first went vegan. I found that I needed to eat a lot more to maintain my weight (that is until I really learned how to cook and prepare food vegan style :) ) and I also needed to learn to relax a little with what to eat and not be so stringent. I did not eat all gluten free, but I ate a very healthy whole foods diet and I still very rarely eat out. I have been vegan for 2.5 years now and my body is still going strong, with more endurance and energy than I ever had as an omnivore.
Also, give your body time to adjust. And get some lab work done for a baseline and make sure to work with your doctor to rule out something more serious. Finally, if you increased your vegetable/fruit intake and beans etc for protein your body might need a little time to adjust as far as gas and bloating. I can eat 10 + servings a day of vegetables (more when I went raw vegan for a short time) and not get gas, and I am very used to eating loads of beans, but my omnivore husband gets gassy much more easily with some of my dishes because his body is not used to them. He eats a lot of nonfibrous dairy and meat types of foods. When I was an omnivore I was lactose intolerant and had to move to eating more beans and such because I could not tolerate dairy and it took a bit of time for my body to get used to the increased fiber. Blending vegetables/fruits into smoothies helps the body digest them better also, and making sure to rinse canned beans well before using, or use a little seaweed in cooking water for dried beans helps make them more digestible also.
hey, thanks guys!!
ive been fine lately, ever sents i started takeing a multi vitain again acually, and i got some vit B12 suppliments (would really like to do this without suppliments, recently discoverd nutritional yeast) but i really agree it seems weird that it would be a deffiencey so early, is it possible i was already really low in some things from being a vegetarian?
(and will check out that website! thanks!)
that maybe i wasint eating enough was the first thing someone else (my mother) said too, half the problem might be that now that im on my own and going on a big trip next year, i dont want to spend money on food, just gonna have to get over it. also ive never been one too eat alot, i cut out dariy and eggs but didint really replace it with anything i guess :S
but yah, im gonna go get an all over physical and blood test soon, its just a matter of when i can, and when the doctors can get me in :P
i do eat alot of beans, did as a vegetarian too, lentils and black beans mostly, which i read are supposed to not be as harsh as some of the others, but the gas never really went away :P and i had also read about the bleading thing, its just that i find bleaded foods not quite as satisfying, but i might try it anyway (experimenting is fun :) )
will try the seaweed thing ! do you recomend a certian kind? i wanted to start eating seaweed anyway, its supposed to be full of protien and good stuff! its just a matter of where to get it , and how to get there for me, haha, anyone know if you can get raw Spirulina anywhere? ive only been able to find that you can get it in pill and powder form :S