Hello and welcome back to Eight Years In! And if you’re new here, a warm welcome to you. I’ve been vegan for years, and I love it. That being said, I do think that vegans sometimes misrepresent veganism, advertently or inadvertently. And I do feel it’s quite necessary to give people an accurate idea of veganism, or else we run the risk of them not knowing what they’re getting into, and feeling lied to after they try (and possibly fail) to “go vegan”.

So today, I wanted to kind of dissect these lies and misconceptions. I think that a lot of times, when vegans say certain things, people may perceive them very differently than they are meant. So, whether this post is more unmasking or perhaps translating, I hope you find it helpful.

Veganism is easy

   I have many feelings about this lie after 10 years of veganism. In some ways, veganism is easy. But in other ways, it is very hard. And it’s not the stuff that you think is going to be hard that actually ends up being the real challenges of veganism. (Read this to understand more about what is actually difficult about being vegan.)

   The food part actually isn’t that difficult. The learning curve is relatively short, and soon you find yourself feeling very satisfied with all the delicious food you can eat. You can eat your old favorites and find new favorites. You can eat healthier and feel better both physically and emotionally when it comes to your food in a relatively short time. 

   But veganism isn’t easy. It isn’t easy when all the people you thought cared about animals would rather bury their heads in the sand than try to change. It isn’t easy when you see someone eating chicken wings and viscerally understand that they are consuming the body of an animal who didn’t want to die. And it can wear on you if you are in the kind of social circle who finds your veganism funny. It’s not the veganism that’s so difficult about it all. It’s the fact that the world, while improving, isn’t always so vegan-friendly. 

Veganism is healthy

   It can be, and it can also not be. A person who consumes only vegan junk food and continually views slaughterhouse footage and puts all their time into arguing with people about veganism is neither mentally nor physically healthy. 

   When we talk about the benefits of a whole food plant based diet (or even just eating more fruits and vegetables), we have to be careful not to speak about it like it’s a panacea. No, going vegan won’t fix all of your physical ailments, especially if you have chronic diseases. And while it can help with the cognitive dissonance seemingly inherent in the participation in the modernization of animal agriculture and it’s systems, it also comes with a greater awareness of its atrocities. Which, if left unmanaged, can be bad for your mental health. 

   There are healthy and unhealthy ways of going about a vegan practice. And being vegan doesn’t exempt you from other healthy habits that are good for everyone. Like regular exercise or meditation, or good hygiene, for example. Being healthy is a separate endeavor that can be enhanced by going vegan in a particular way. But they really are two different things. 

Veganism is fun

   Well, I think from the previous two points, you can probably get where I’m going with this. But for every positive point that is made about veganism, there is a negative side of the coin. 

   I do take great pleasure in my veganism. I love getting creative with my food and trying out new things in the form of activities and entertainment in the spots of other things that I might have done instead of vegan options. It is a nice, positive thing to know that I can choose better, kinder, more compassionate alternatives. And it is fun to be able to see what I can create under the constraints that I have chosen from myself and my life. 

   But every once in a while, the challenge doesn’t seem so entrancing. Everyone has bad days. And when I’m tired, sad and lonely and nothing seems to be going right, veganism can seem like more rules. It isn’t always fun being the different one at work or school or parties. The one who needs to speak up for their differences. It isn’t always what you hope it’ll be. 

   But when I am tired or uncomfortable I remember the things that make it fun. And I remember why I’m doing it all in the first place. Anything that’s worth doing is worth reminding yourself why every once in a while. And just like anything else, the challenges don’t make something inherently not worth it. 

Veganism is cheap

   This lie is one that’s more like the health lie. Veganism can be cheap. I’ve been vegan when my family was in food stamps. It can be done. And actually, you can do it in a satisfying way while on a modest budget. Making sure you grow your spice cabinet is my biggest tip here. You’d be amazed how much you don’t miss expensive food when you’ve got an abundance of flavor. 

   But you can also do veganism in an expensive way. And this is something that does appeal to many people, for both the familiarity and the convenience of plant based replacement products. Growing up with very little money, my mother instilled in me that convenience foods are too expensive. And for our budget, she was entirely correct. Thing is, vegan convenience foods tend to be even more expensive. Although there are some brands that are more economical than others. 

   If you decide to base your diet on faux meats and imported produce and convenience meals and treats, your grocery bill won’t be small. And in some cases, it very well may be more expensive than a similar diet but a nonvegan version. I do notice a trend for vegan replacement foods lowering in price as the demand in the market grows. However, at this point, it is expensive to eat that way. This does not mean that veganism is expensive. But we can’t just go saying that it’s cheap without any clarification, either. If you’re looking for ways to make veganism more affordable for you, read some of these tips!

Veganism is a moral baseline

   Now this one is probably going to ruffle some feathers here, but I think it needs to be said. Veganism is not a “moral baseline”, because there is no such thing. Everyone is going to believe different things about right and wrong. And if we go around saying things like this, we’re going to alienate a lot of people and lose credibility. Even with the ubiquitous and speciesist idea that humans are what’s most important, we can’t even agree that not killing humans is a moral baseline between all of us. We still have murders, serial killers, people who believe in capital punishment, and all varying degrees of “when it’s okay to kill someone.” 

   There is no such thing as a moral baseline. But that doesn’t mean that we can’t still express the ethics of the decision to go vegan. The fact is, many nonvegans agree with the ethics of veganism. Some are aware of that fact, and others are not. The key is to show them that this is something that aligns with their delineation of right and wrong, instead of using terms like moral baseline which sound more like dictated opinions that we’re pushing on them to accept or reject. Many, many people will simply reject over giving it any thought at all. Because thinking about what you might be doing wrong is uncomfortable. And it’s easier to blame the person pointing it out. 

   I didn’t go vegan because someone told me what was right and wrong. And I suspect many vegans are the same way. Instead, they went vegan because they were presented with the facts and allowed to process them in a way that included their own sense of morality. A persistent asking, “is this what you think is right and excusable? Is this really what you stand for? Is this what you want to build your existence off of every time you sit down to eat?” The more we’re able to think about it for ourselves without turning away, the more we see that the answer is no. 

Veganism won’t change your life

   And I think the biggest lie I’ve heard a vegan tell is that veganism doesn’t change your life. It surely does. To go and stay vegan you need to change how you look at yourself, your life and the world around you. You have to get used to the idea that you are responsible for taking actions on a regular basis to not participate in something you say you don’t want to be a part of. And you have to learn how to say “I was wrong but I can change.” 

   I think the reason we don’t like to say it like this is because we think that if most people hear how much our lives changed by going vegan, we think it will be too intimidating to them and they won’t want to try it. People are scared of change, after all. 

   I can’t blame you if you’re someone who is anxious at the thought of going vegan. But I can tell you this. You don’t have to change who you are to be vegan. Veganism will change you. It’ll change your life, just as it has mine. Veganism has helped me get a tangible understanding of the quote that “just because everyone’s doing something, doesn’t mean it’s right”. It’s helped me learn to be honest with myself about my own mistakes and shortcomings. And at the end of the day, it’s caused me to understand that there are many things worth doing even if you cannot directly see the result or benefit from your actions. 

   In short, being a vegan has changed my life. It’s changed it for the better. 

Conclusion

Thank you for reading and listening to my thoughts. The fact is, there are all sorts of vegans. And just like some of them are great while others are unkind, different people have varying ideas of how veganism should be portrayed. I hope that after reading this, you have a better idea of what veganism is really like, warts and all. If you’re looking for more candid discussion on what it’s like to be vegan, take a look at this post entitled, “Is it hard to be vegan?” And consider subscribing to the blog for email notifications when a new posts goes live–that helps the blog reach the people who enjoy it the most. Have an awesome day!