I am new to the forum and new to veganism since August 4th. I have many concerns (in combination with anxiety, hypocondriac (not sure if that's how you spell it), and obsessive mental tendancies);
I am petite (always have been) - 5 ft. 1 in. and 107 lbs. I was a steady 110 before going vegan but have since lost 3 lbs. I've been steady at 107 lbs. for at least a couple of weeks. I'm extremely worried because I can't and don't want to lose any more weight. I would look skeletal if I lost much more. I am usually very active, though I haven't been much since having shoulder surgery in April. Otherwise normally I would be out rock climbing, mountain biking, hiking, very often.
How can I rest assured that I won't continue to lose weight? I'm also freaking out right now about not getting what I need from this diet - iron, zinc, protein, calcium, etc.......I'm no doctor so I can't measure these levels in my body and I want this change to be a healthy and benefitical one (for myself, environment, and animals) but am worried about doing more harm than good to my body. I drink soy milk everday and usually have soy yogurt for my morning snack. Tofu a couple times a week and sometimes a soy protein shake in the afternoon. I'm also concerned with this - too much soy. I've read that there hasn't been enough studies to really say how much soy is too much but enough is known about it to say that it affects hormone levels and can lead to the increase in breast cancer risk if consumed too much for too long. Since soy is usually a large part of the vegan diet, how does one adjust to such a need and concern for?
For a few weeks I was fine, feeling food mentally and physically, then it hit me "do I really know what I'm getting myself into? am I hurting myself by switching to this diet? how will I know if I'm doing good or bad by it?"....now I"m in 'freak out' mode which is getting to the point where it's hard for me to eat at all because my anxiety level is so high (which always decreases my appetite).
Any suggestions, advice, etc. would be much appreciated.
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