Going through a vegan "PHASE"...
Posted by apnigpeelr on Apr 30, 2010 · Member since May 2009 · 85 posts
I'm not one to get too shook up when people dont agree with my opinions, but there is NOTHING more irritating to me than telling someone I'm vegan and hearing them respond "Oh! I went through a vegan/vegetarian phase too!"
PHASE? What the hell does that mean? Am I over reacting, or is this as condescending as I'm taking it?
Imagine saying to a gay person, "Oh, I went through a gay phase too!"... on second thought, I'm sure they get that all the time. Gah, people are so ignorant.
>:(
Yeah this statement is common. Along with "Oh I was vegan/vegetarian but then I got sick and had to start eating meat again."
Okay... whatever
I dont think i could ever treat it as a "phase." I mean if anything I might someday go back to eating dairy because sometimes I go to my friends house and help them make cheese from their pet goats, but eggs and meat I dont think Ill ever touch again. Dairy is just a maybe because sometime I know where it comes from and I can be the judge of how the animals live/are treated
Yeah this statement is common. Along with "Oh I was vegan/vegetarian but then I got sick and had to start eating meat again."
Okay... whatever
I dont think i could ever treat it as a "phase." I mean if anything I might someday go back to eating dairy because sometimes I go to my friends house and help them make cheese from their pet goats, but eggs and meat I dont think Ill ever touch again. Dairy is just a maybe because sometime I know where it comes from and I can be the judge of how the animals live/are treated
Then you should say "Oh, yeah, I know. I was an omni once, but then I got sick and had to stop eating meat." :)
I remember when I stopped eating red meat when I was 11 (and I'm telling you, this is radical for the Midwest, stick with me), and everyone told me it was a phase. Then people told me that when I still wasn't eating it in high school. At what point, in years, does a phase become your lifestyle?
I've been veg*n 14 years. At this point, there's nothing that could persuade me to change that. And over the years, I've encountered it all. And I'll go out on a limb and say it's easier being gay than being vegan in today's world. At least for me it has been :)
It's a phase when something you stop doing causes a deep reaction in someone else who can't imagine doing what you are doing, even if it's the right thing to do.
Vegan Freak & Being Vegan go into these topics really well. Vegan Freak also talks about how it's more harmful when Oprah did a "vegan cleanse". What annoyed me most about that was she felt better, looked better, lost weight, and then gave it all up. :boooo: :boooo:
This lady who dyed my hair (covering up the pretty blues and greens...it took 3 layers and 3.5 hours) said she tried to be vegetarian, but could never do it because she was "a little anemic". And she "loved her juicy steaks". Everyone says that! Do they not realize what an asshole move that is? Seriously. I can't believe I tipped her...
I have never been an omnivore, so I sadly can't say "I tried eating meat, but it made me sick..."
Arg. Why does it even have to be a problem? And my grandma always used to ask if I was "still vegetarian".
People never get this defensive when discussing politics--they always have strong (if incorrect) arguments that directly address the topic at hand. This is no argument! This is an excuse because you feel guilty! People...they seem so normal until diet comes up.
end rant.
This lady who dyed my hair (covering up the pretty blues and greens...it took 3 layers and 3.5 hours) said she tried to be vegetarian, but could never do it because she was "a little anemic". And she "loved her juicy steaks". Everyone says that! Do they not realize what an asshole move that is? Seriously. I can't believe I tipped her...
I have never been an omnivore, so I sadly can't say "I tried eating meat, but it made me sick..."
Arg. Why does it even have to be a problem? And my grandma always used to ask if I was "still vegetarian".
People never get this defensive when discussing politics--they always have strong (if incorrect) arguments that directly address the topic at hand. This is no argument! This is an excuse because you feel guilty! People...they seem so normal until diet comes up.
end rant.
It grosses me out to think what I used to eat (Shudder), but I can stay that it always sat at the back of my mind that it was something I shouldn't be doing, because it's morally wrong. I can't imagine how other people don't feel that way. It was the same light bulb moment when I realized that by consuming dairy that I was actively contributing to the veal industry.
This one guy came up to me and asked me how "my diet" was going, as if I was on South Beach or Atkins. :)
There are SO many people around here who "used to be vegetarian" but encountered XXX problem. It gets old!
I took a class with a "flexitarian" (I eat what my body TELLS me to eat", and a "localvore" (I will consume animals if they live near me). One girl said she was a "meatatarian". I was of course, the only vegan. I did wow them with my Potato Angels though! ;)
I wouldn't say I go thru vegan phases...but I am a vegan with one training wheel. Meaning, depending on the meal I'm eating, I will sometimes backslide and eat cheese. I'm surely trying to cut that out so that I can be 100% vegan and I'm sure as hell not going back to being a carnivore.
Yeah I think it all depends on your reasons. If you go vegan to lose weight or something, I can see how you might "go back" so to speak. But if you made the choice for the incredibly compelling moral reasons I did, I cant imagine! There is no cheese that tastes SO good that another living being should suffer so I can have it. None.
Yeah I think it all depends on your reasons. If you go vegan to lose weight or something, I can see how you might "go back" so to speak. But if you made the choice for the incredibly compelling moral reasons I did, I cant imagine! There is no cheese that tastes SO good that another living being should suffer so I can have it. None.
Exactly... Fuck cheese, I don't even want the crap
my brother has always kind of thought/hoped my veg*nism was a phase, he's not been unsupportive so much as always advocating for the return to meat eating.
I thought it was the nicest piece of irony that he ended up with a veg girlfriend . He might not have to be nice to me about it, but he sure has to be nice to her! Then I find out she eats fish. Like, daily. So, not a vegetarian. Then it turns out she eats chicken sometimes if she doesn't like the sound of the fish or vegetable option on a menu. Then last month they were in Europe, went out to a Mexican restaurant, and she posted on my mum's facebook page that she 'might' have eaten spare ribs. huh.
I dunno, this is probably the wrong thread, but I think what I was getting at is that there are so many people out there like my example, that it can make it hard for unsuspecting omnis to take us seriously when they're used to seeing people flake on their ideals all over the place.
for most of us here, it's not a phase, it's a life choice, and we're not flaking for anything.
You all make some good points. I had never heard the term "flexitarian" until now. Are you a veg or are ya a meat? Make up yer damn mind. And, yes, I agree I need to make up my damn mind on being vegan or being vegetarian. I will say choosing to become a vegetarian was one of the easiest choices I've made. Gave up meat cold turkey..errrr..tofurkey..
my brother has always kind of thought/hoped my veg*nism was a phase, he's not been unsupportive so much as always advocating for the return to meat eating.
I thought it was the nicest piece of irony that he ended up with a veg girlfriend . He might not have to be nice to me about it, but he sure has to be nice to her! Then I find out she eats fish. Like, daily. So, not a vegetarian. Then it turns out she eats chicken sometimes if she doesn't like the sound of the fish or vegetable option on a menu. Then last month they were in Europe, went out to a Mexican restaurant, and she posted on my mum's facebook page that she 'might' have eaten spare ribs. huh.
I dunno, this is probably the wrong thread, but I think what I was getting at is that there are so many people out there like my example, that it can make it hard for unsuspecting omnis to take us seriously when they're used to seeing people flake on their ideals all over the place.
for most of us here, it's not a phase, it's a life choice, and we're not flaking for anything.
So. Frustrating. This is happening in my family, and it's the #1 motivation for me to be very clear and precise about what I eat and why I choose that path. It's so frustrating, and these people are making our lives that much more difficult by muddying the waters. It's my biggest irritant right now.
yeah, your mother in law is much worse than this, at least mine doesn't claim to be vegan!! But I'm sure we could all do without the confusion these people create.
Oddest thing about my brother's partner is that she supposedly 'went' vegetarian for the animals... yeah, you know, those animals she's ok with occasionally eating!
yeah, your mother in law is much worse than this, at least mine doesn't claim to be vegan!! But I'm sure we could all do without the confusion these people create.
Oddest thing about my brother's partner is that she supposedly 'went' vegetarian for the animals... yeah, you know, those animals she's ok with occasionally eating!
That's even crazier than if she went veggie for her health. I'm completely interested in why veg*ns choose to go back to eating meat--I kind of wonder what is in their heads.
I've heard a few people say they went back for monetary reasons... without going into a whole to-do about the cost of health care compared to the cost of preventative health care (a.k.a not eating crap) I just want to ask... since when does meat cost less than vegetables? I buy meat for my boyfriend and it is almost always the most expensive thing on the receipt.
my brother has always kind of thought/hoped my veg*nism was a phase, he's not been unsupportive so much as always advocating for the return to meat eating.
Here's a question: how come the stereotype isn't 'the preachy MEATEATER,' vs veg*n?! I get told what *I'm* "supposed to" eat WAY more often than the other way around... so why is it that WE'VE got that rep, & they don't? ??? I call 'bullshit'!
I was pescetarian from about 12 up... mostly ate ovo-lacto-veggie, occasionally fish/ shellfish... NEVER NEVER NEVER tempted by any other animal foods. Then got preggo at 21/ was on my own/ was ENORMOUSLY stressed out, working all the time ('cause I had no real resources/ savings/ health ins/ etc!) and just basically too overwhelmed to deal with food... whatever was most convenient was what I ate (within the 'healthy guidelines' I was taught to go by -- know better now! -- but anyway). Got back to my former habits some years later, when my boy was in elementary school... when I got my s**t together again! and wasn't completely overwhelmed all the time... then just about a year ago, began eating more & more 'plants-only' food, and now can't imagine going back.
But back then I didn't know HALF the stuff I do now, about factory farming/ effects of dairy/ health benefits of planteating; I also didn't know SO many things about vegan cooking: kale, quinoa, cashew cheese, miso, tempeh, seitan, freezing tofu, the joy of lentils... nutritional yeast, for pete's sake! so much I didn't even know about... At this point, the way I eat feels NORMAL! I admit I'm still tempted by sustainable seafood (though the recent Gulf disaster has given me another reason to leave ocean critters alone! grrr), and I'll eat eggs from our friend's pet chickies about 2-3 times a year... but all the other animal junk just grosses me out. I can't imagine voluntarily eating it, or going back to old dietary habits. But this aversion evolved over time... maybe when people 'fall off the wagon', they're just not there YET... hopefully! Otherwise, I don't understand why folks would voluntarily go back on the junk.
I do understand other folks' annoyance with label misappropriation... but maybe the fiance is trying, and just messes up a lot 'cause it's still new or something. I'd rather she keep the label she aspires to, & keep trying til she gets it right, than give her TOO much grief about it... maybe you can help her make the label accurate, lol!
I've heard a few people say they went back for monetary reasons... without going into a whole to-do about the cost of health care compared to the cost of preventative health care (a.k.a not eating crap) I just want to ask... since when does meat cost less than vegetables? I buy meat for my boyfriend and it is almost always the most expensive thing on the receipt.
I completely know what you mean. Yes, if you want to buy Tofutti cream cheese it's 2 or 3 times as much as dairy, for instance. But if you're not going to be buying prepackaged vegan foods and you just want to buy the basics--tofu, beans, rice, veggies--then it's amazingly cheap. I mean, when times are tough there are articles on the internet that tell you to eat beans for protein to save money. Hello???
oh yeah, meat-eating is totally more expensive than a healthy veg*n diet.
Last year my mum said she was trying to keep the meat portion of their meal under $10 a day. whaaaa? We spend that much on all our groceries, including non-food things like soaps and cleaning products etc...
I will never understand those who say a veg*n diet is too expensive!
I'm not one to get too shook up when people dont agree with my opinions, but there is NOTHING more irritating to me than telling someone I'm vegan and hearing them respond "Oh! I went through a vegan/vegetarian phase too!"
PHASE? What the hell does that mean? Am I over reacting, or is this as condescending as I'm taking it?
Imagine saying to a gay person, "Oh, I went through a gay phase too!"... on second thought, I'm sure they get that all the time. Gah, people are so ignorant.
>:(
I believe some really don't understand veganism and some are insulting (maybe). Tell them,"Till the end of time. I do not believe in eating flesh. I think that's horrid behavior. There is a million tasty vegan foods out there why should I go eat flesh? It doesn't make sense."
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