Hello, and welcome to Eight Years In! (And welcome back to my returning readers!) Today is a very special post, because I’ve written it in celebration of my 10 year vegan anniversary. That’s right, this month I celebrate 10 years of being vegan. And so I wanted to make a piece that would help others, people who are just starting out.
When I first went vegan, I had no idea what I was doing, and I didn’t know any other vegans who could show me the way, either. I looked online for guidance, as you are doing right now. And while I know that ten years of veganism doesn’t give me all the answers, I’ve definitely been doing this long enough to provide you with a few tips and tricks. These are the things that I wish I would have known before going vegan that would have helped me immensely, and I hope that reading this helps you!
Learn about vegan cuisine
The perhaps biggest but shortest learning curve of veganism is what you’re going to eat! Learn about vegan food sooner, rather than later. Both your tastebuds and stomach will thank you.
Now, it’s not so much that “vegan” is one cuisine, because you can veganize almost any food. Especially if you’re someone who has access to vegan replacement foods such as faux meats and cheeses, etc. However, what I really suggest is that you get an idea of what a marginally healthy vegan diet looks like from the beginning. I cringe at how many plates of plain iceberg lettuce, white rice and french fries I had in my first few years of going vegan. This was partially because I didn’t know what vegans ate, and partially because I didn’t know how to order vegan food at restaurants (or which restaurants would have a satisfying option for me).
These are skills that you develop over time, but there’s no reason you need to learn it as slow as I did. If you’re looking for guidance on how to get vegan food at a restaurant, read this post. And if you’re looking for a general idea of a vegan diet, read this. The faster you can get a general idea of what to eat, the better chances of success you have to make your veganism more than “just a phase“.
Don’t expect yourself to be perfect
The surest way to not stay vegan is to expect perfection from yourself. It’s interesting but those who cannot accept their mistakes within veganism tend to be the ones that don’t stay vegan for the long term. At least, in my observations.
People who want to go vegan (and sometimes those who already are) don’t tend to like hearing this, but you cannot be a perfect vegan. This world is not set up for veganism, and you’re bound to make mistakes because you’re human anyway. This means that for any long term vegan you find, you’ve also found someone who’s made a mistake. Likely multiple. The problem is that this idea that you cannot be a perfect vegan tends to make people not try. They think that if they’re not perfectly vegan, better to not be vegan at all. Because then at least they’re not failing.
The thing is, that’s irrational. We don’t think about any ethical or moral choices in those terms “being perfect or not even trying”, because we know when we don’t want to participate in something due to moral or ethical reasons, it’s better to simply continue to do our best. And veganism is just like that. Say you find out your apples have beeswax on them. Don’t buy those apples anymore. That’s all–you don’t have to think of it as losing your vegan card and the world falling down around you. Just keep doing your best and building on what you know.
It’s not just about food
In the beginning just figuring out what you’re going to be eating from now on can seem overwhelming. That being said, veganism isn’t just about your diet. I definitely haven’t mastered the research side of nonvegan products. But a good start is typing into a search engine “is ____ vegan” and learning about some of the common ways that non-food products may not be vegan-friendly.
Remember, with food they’ll list the ingredients, but with other products, legally it isn’t required. Other than that, it’s important to look at our sources of entertainment and how we pass the time. For instance, it’s common to go to a zoo or aquarium for a fun date. However, paying to see animals in captivity may not sit right with your vegan sensibilities. Things like this are the sort of things that come slower on the learning curve than food. But they are just as important to think about.
Find community somewhere
For some, it may be easier to find community within veganism, but it is a good thing to pursue. Especially for those who live in areas that aren’t so vegan friendly, it’s important to not feel like you’re all alone in this. Go to vegan meet-ups and join vegan groups on social media, if you don’t know any other vegans in real life. The aim here is not to replace your whole life with veganism, nor your whole social calendar. Instead, it’s so that you don’t feel completely on your own.
Humans are social animals and any life change is better broached with support. If you’re having problems with the vegan loneliness, take a look at this post.
Try new foods
When we go vegan, as much as we vegans like to talk about variety and abundance, it’s true that we’re taking things out of our diet. To compensate for this, I really encourage people to try new foods as a vegan! There is a lot of variety in plants, but you’ll have to seek out variety if that’s what you want. And that means trying new things.
I’ve noticed that when people first go vegan, they seem stuck with the few fruits and vegetables that they used to eat to accompany their old diet. A lettuce leaf and tomato slice on a sandwich, an apple or a banana with their lunch. This is a good start. But vegan food is going to get pretty boring if you don’t explore more of what it has to offer.
It’s like saying “okay, I’ll eat an omnivorous diet” but only eating chicken and mashed potatoes. Sure, your diet is “omnivorous” in the sense that you’re eating things from both plant and animal origin, but you’re not getting all the variety and flavors that are available to you. If you only eat a few things, you’ll get bored. So don’t limit yourself! Try new fruits and vegetables and recipes from other cuisines around the world. While you’re at it, try new forms of entertainment to replace the old nonvegan ones as well. Just try new things in general, it’s good for you!
Veganize your old favorites
Not everybody wants to go outside their comfort zone, though. And especially not all the time. I think it’s also important for us to realize that there is no need to give up your favorite foods when you go vegan. Rather, we just need to learn how to make vegan versions of them that satisfy us.
Now this can be a process that’s propped up by using vegan replacement products such as I mentioned before. So fried chicken becomes fried chick’n, Mac and cheese becomes mac and cheeze, and so on and so forth. Or you can take a more whole-foods approach to it and make fried chick’n become fried mushrooms and mac and cheese become a creamy, pumpkin pasta. I have been known to do a little of both, when the situation calls for it. The fact is, it’s great to be able to have foods that remind you of your childhood. And we don’t have to give that up as vegans.
Between finding new favorites and learning how to make our former favorites, we find that eating vegan can be abundant, tasty and wholly satisfying. We just need to change our mindset to remember that it is possible, if we try and learn how to achieve it.
Be a whole human, not just a vegan
When you only think about veganism and nonveganism, you drive yourself crazy. This is another thing vegans (especially new vegans) don’t like to hear. You’re filled with the righteous anger of being informed of a large-scale, continual injustice. And the world does not seem to care. How on earth are you supposed to just shut off your emotions about that and take care of yourself? But in fact, it’s because of the fact that most of the world doesn’t care yet that you need to step back and take some deep breaths sometimes.
This veganism thing is not a sprint, and it won’t work to treat it as such. Activism is important because the animals need your voice. But they also need you to be able to keep moving forward with your veganism. Which means you need to guard your mental health in order to keep it sustainable. Only thinking about atrocities is not sustainable. You will either break down or long term, you may experience a dampening if your sense of empathy. Yes, empathy fatigue is a real thing. You can learn more about it here.
We need more people to stick around, being vegan, showing others that veganism (not to mention long-term veganism) is possible. Burning out just gives non-vegans another excuse to say “hey they couldn’t do it, I probably can’t either”. Even if they are the ones who caused veganism to be so arduous for us. When you’re trying to create long-term change, you need to check in on yourself and make sure you have the gas to keep moving forward, plain and simple.
Accept that you’re not always going to fit in
I think this one is probably the toughest, and we tackle it from time to time in different forms here. But the fact is, for now, being vegan just is not “the norm”. This can be hard to accept at times. While it’s not so much an obsessive need to change people, it’s more of a sense of anger at the injustices continuing to be carried out towards the animals mixed with the fact that humans are social animals—we want to belong!
These feelings of anguish will wax and wane. And you can feel some semblance of belonging when you tie it to other things instead of your veganism. But I think the most important thing to keep in perspective is that unfortunately, for now, being vegan does make you different. And sometimes it is solely this reason that the others who you so wish would join you in this compassionate way of living will not. “Come over here and be different with me” doesn’t have that enticing quality about it for many. So for now, you may be a little different. Don’t take it so hard, if you can help it.
Don’t fall into nihilism
Lots of people, when they become aware of what we do to animals, will say “I can’t save any of them, so what does it matter what I do?” Or the more probing version, “you’re not going to save this chicken, look, it’s already dead.” Just because you cannot fix a problem does not mean you have to hopelessly contribute to it. We do not reason this way in other things, and there is no reason to apply it to veganism.
It’s one of the traps that cognitive dissonance sets for us, so that we can continue doing something that we know is not quite right. It feels more comfortable than admitting to ourselves that we could change, but choose not to. When vegans fall into this trap and start to become ex-vegans, it’s a faulty reasoning they’ve fallen into. We forget that going vegan doesn’t entirely shield you from the collective cognitive dissonance around animal agriculture that we have in society today. And when people burn out (as discussed earlier), they become prone to parroting back the same logic that they criticized before, to lull themselves into a more comfortable release of veganism.
Take a breath
It’s bad. It’s really bad. Don’t let that turn you into someone you’re not. Stay respectful, and if you can, eloquent. What I mean is, if you’re an ethical vegan, you know the horrors that are involved in animal agriculture. This isn’t a casual conversation, it’s not an easy topic, and it’s definitely not something to be calm or happy about. This is why there is the stereotype of the militant vegan.
When a vegan gets into a conversation about animal agriculture with a nonvegan, there’s a lot going on under the surface that we often don’t think about. The vegan is talking about a horrible and systemic injustice that involves mass destruction and suffering–an intense and unpleasant subject, to be sure. Meanwhile, the nonvegan is more largely unaware of the atrocities and is inclined to think that the vegan is sensationalizing those happy cows they see on milk cartons.
Not to mention, the nonvegan is bound to feel at least a little defensive due to the fact that the vegan is both participating in and calling for a boycott of the very habits that the nonvegan has been brought up to espouse from their infancy, so anything the vegan says is likely to come off a little more aggressive than it was said.
No wonder there are so many fireworks. But here’s the advice part of this: the vegan is often the one blamed for the fireworks. Because they’re in the minority. People are less likely to believe that the angry person in the room is right when all of society looks at the same thing and says “no problem”. This is not so much of a reason not to become angry as it is to be very precise with your words and to remember to stay respectful.
The fact is, even if they are advocating for animal abuse, they do not see it that way. It is important to be honest in conversations surrounding veganism, but it is also important to try to stay grounded in this fact that usually they do not understand what they’re saying and co-signing. Do not say something that you regret. A firm and unpleasant (but correct and respectful) vegan is more likely to make people think about what they’re doing than one who gets very angry, loses their logic and starts yelling, for example.
Try to be healthy, but don’t obsess
You want to be a role model for veganism, that’s cool. But don’t make it about deprivation, or setting yourself apart. Be healthy, be human, enjoy your life. Surprisingly, this approach tends to encourage people towards veganism as well.
Many people view veganism as a diet. And regardless of how wrong that is, it is nonetheless the prominent perception. And people don’t want to have the same diet as someone who is clearly unhealthy. It is for this reason that surprisingly, eating a healthy vegan diet is in its own way, a form of vegan activism. Showing people that you can be healthy and vegan helps allay some of their deepest fears and excuses. Also, it’s important to stay healthy for your own selfish reasons of keeping your veganism sustainable. Make sure you’re supplementing with B-12, as that is not found in plant foods. And take a look at your diet to see if there are other nutrients that you have issues with getting. Also, guard your health in other ways. Drink water, get enough sleep, start exercising. They’re not wrong when they say health is wealth.
However, like anything else in life, being healthy is a balance. Having days that are just about fun is important for your mental health. And eating vegan junk food every so often can be fun. Obsessing over healthy habits isn’t healthy either, and can lead to things like orthorexia or an exercise addiction. Remember, you’re not just the super vegan role model, you’re also human. Give yourself breaks from the “perfect healthy lifestyle” and eat a vegan burger with fries if you feel like it. Try some vegan ice creams if you want. Living a sustainable vegan lifestyle necessitates that you are marginally healthy physically, as well as mentally healthy and able to enjoy some less-healthy treats from time to time.
Celebrate little wins
In my ten years of being vegan, I’ve seen a lot in terms of what works and what doesn’t. And perhaps the biggest piece of advise that I could give you is to celebrate the little wins, for your own sake. You know that there is a lot of injustice in this world, even beyond animal agriculture, and it can get very emotionally heavy sometimes. It can make a person angry. (Learn about how to deal with the vegan anger here.) For this reason, you need to be able to celebrate the good.
When a restaurant comes out with a vegan option they didn’t have before, let yourself be happy. If your partner says they’ll be happy to switch to soy milk, rejoice. We have so far to go to not enjoy the little steps along the way. So be happy with the little things when you can, both that you’ve accomplished, and that others are doing as well.
Thank you so much for reading my thoughts. If you are vegan, let us know your tips for new vegans in the comments. And remember to subscribe to the blog for updates when a new post goes live! Thank you and have a wonderful day!