Going vegan - was it easy for you?

[UrbanVegan]

My path was so gradual over a period of years. I had stopped eating pork back in the early 1990s so pork was not an issue when I began to change my diet. When I did start changing my diet I dropped dairy then beef then fowl then shellfish then eggs then fish then honey. I think the hardest thing to drop was king crab legs. That was hard to give up. Fish was not hard to give up but since it was the last meat I was eating I just didn't want to give it up for awhile. I think me giving up fish and shellfish was harder for my mother to accept then me. Every time I would go visit my parents she would ask me "I'm going to Publix. Do you want me to get you some crab legs?" Then she went through the same issue except the question was about salmon.

My dad eats fresh water fish and no other meat. So when going out to dinner my mom is always trying to find a place he can eat. She would ask me to research restaurants and "find a place your daddy can eat". One day I mentioned to her "daddy can eat fish and I don't. I need to find a restaurant where I can eat." That was last year. Took her two years to accept I had a vegan diet. When going out to eat daddy is so proud. Before I even order he beams to the waiter/waitress "she has a vegan diet" LOL.

[Krystle]

I went from omni to lacto-ovo, to lacto and then to vegan, in a very fast transition once I discovered tofutti.

It was really easy actually, I just didn't want to shock my body by doing it all in one step, although judging from some of the replies that probably would have been a non-issue anyways, but oh well.. I can't go back in time....yet!!

[FogStruck]

Omni -> vegan. Easy.

[Smoothie]

i'm allergic to milk, started to be veggie as twelve, gave up eggs as fourteen, turned vegan as fourteen-fifteen (don't remember actually). it wasn't hard at all - i love it

[vegan1969]

omni to lacto ovo veg back to omni, found peta learned about factory farming/dairy farming, had epiphany, went vegan......will never go back.

[Mammal]

Well, i never felt it. I don't even remember switching comepletly to soymilk and such! I never bought over processed food or ate cheese so i used to switch from cow milk to soy milk as a vegetarian (cow milk was the only vegetarian thing i 'ate') and then i one day just drank soymilk i guess. Then a few years back i decided to check the ingredients on stuff that had the suitable for veggies symbol to see if they were suitable for vegans. The ones that were, i continued buying, the ones that were'nt, i didn't! So I was Vegan!

[Kitiara]

Im finding going from omni to vegan a lil difficult only because I'm still learning. Cutting out the meat/dairy was easy.

[my3labs]

Probably the easiest thing I've ever done. I was omni until I saw meetyourmeat and that same day I made the switch to veganism.
Being vegan is easy, the fact that the rest of the world isn't, is the hard part.

[maggs]

I gave up meat just like that, I dont have any desire for it... Diary prodicts - I disliked them whole my life

Cheese and egs were the tricky part - cheese is off-table, becouse I had a food poisoning couple of monhs ago, and the cheese was involved.. So, I can't stand the SMELL of it , but yeah, I do eat an egg or two every month or so.. I just don't know what to cook (I'm not a good cook) or how to substitute it in some recepies (pancakes for egz) so...


A

[Nicole302]

When I became a vegetarian it was harder than becoming a vegan probably because I was 10 years at that time. When I became a vegan it wasnt too hard because I just kept hearing too much bad stuff about how they mistreated animals so it wasnt as hard as I thought it would be.

[Jippia]

From omni to ovo-lacto was the easiest transition, social wise. It was easier for others to prepare me a meal. Consciense wise, veggie to vegan was easier, because now I do not have to miss any sleep imagining what I have done to those calves and cocks. I occassionally miss the cheese I used to adore, but I do feel happier about my choices. I have to deal with more ignorance now and it is more difficult for others to shop for groceries for me. A stroll around the supermarkets made me aware of the fact that there was still a lot I could eat in terms of sauces and other meal components. Because people are so used to boiled potatoes, a boiled vegetable and a piece of meat here, they think that meat is the food and the rest is just to accompany that. Dealing with family and colleagues has been more difficult that the transition itself.

Mirjam

[xrodolfox]

It was easy going from Omni to Vegan. One morning I woke up an omnivore, and totally unplanned, by lunch I was a vegan and I had my first vegan meal.

It's been quite easy.

[Cup'O'Tea]

It was probably a little more difficult to go from omni to lacto-veg, because while I was veg, I learned a ton more about different foods that were vegan-friendly, so I had experience and knowledge of those things once I became vegan.
Because of drastic dieting previous to going lacto-veg, I was already used to reading every single food label I got my hands on. I used to even go to the grocery store JUST to find good, low-fat, low-cal foods, even if I wasn't going to buy them that day.

[Holly78]

I found it very easy to go lacto-veggie and nobody batted an eyelid about it either. I also personally found it very easy to go vegan (once I knew what I knew) but the hardest thing for me was and still is other people's attitudes.

I never got the constant questions/attempts to ridicule/sympathy when I was veggie. It doesn't change my feelings - I know I am doing the right thing - but I do look forward to the day it becomes more mainstream for an easier life.

[Tibetan Snake]

meat head till 1982
cheez milk head till June 25th 1985
Vegan till death.
Feel a bit guilty for not being a Jain.

[loratwopointone]

Was veggie from the age of 7 despite my Mothers protests! It was the one thing on my Christmas list one year. Yeah I was a weird kid.

Stopped eating eggs at age 12 and turned vegan at 20.

Easy as owt, apart from at the start scouring through my little book evil E-numbers... especially when I forgot my glasses going shopping!

[sugarmouse]

It is effortless and natural to me.The only complications, as oratwopointon states, is the little bits of shi*e manufactorrs like to use in food. I prefer natural foods for this reason among others!

[Moonharvester]

My friends (jokingly) give me about shit about it but it was one of the best changes I've ever made.

[lovingthegreen]

Personally, it was between easy and hard, but closer to easy. After talking to a co-worker who described herself as a vegetarian ("but I still eat fish" - huh???), but even though she was technically a pescetarian, I immediately decided to become a vegetarian. It wasn't really anything she said - it just clicked. What was weird was that even though it had crossed my mind prior to that day, I had never seriously considered actually becoming one until that moment.

And then, after I researched the subject further, I realized that there simply was no reason to consume milk, eggs or other dairy products and definitely no reason to eat fish, so I decided to become a vegan. I would say that about 1-2 weeks in, it got tough, as I was just getting used to not eating meat after doing so for so long. But that was mostly for cultural and habitual reasons; I had stopped enjoying eating meat.

Now, about three weeks into being a vegetarian and one and a half into being a vegan, it is pretty easy and slowly becoming second nature to me.

[fondducoeur]

Going vegetarian was not bad at all, I did that for two years, then became vegan. My boyfriend had already been vegan for 7 years, and that was a big help. However, my family (mostly my mom) was really hard on me about it, and my roommate and I are not friends anymore, and honestly I think (even though she wont admit it) it is mostly due to me becoming vegan. So as far as haveing a lot of difficult social things to deal with, becoming vegan from vegetarian was harder.

[cobweb]

i chose the last option because it's true, though there have been some difficult moments and i'm sure there will be more to come.

[Darky_]

Omni -> lacto-veggie -> vegan. Lacto-veggie to vegan was easiest.

I didn't go Vegan instantly. I was more Vegetarian, I just naturally felt guilt and I never labled myself Vege for a while. But I was happy without meat. I am glad at how everything went with me and how it's turned out now.

Just recently, I looked at some old shopping receipts and nearly everything I bought had some animal products in it!! It's made me feel a lot better in a way, comparing my old receipts and new receipts...It made me realise I am actually not anymore, giving more money than I thought to these industrys, and people really think it won't make a difference. I spent a LOT on crap and I am glad I changed my ways. Them old lists were quite shocking and disgusting. I had more milk than I thought too and I never thought i did!! Just look at what you ate & bought then. Now thats a lot of change!

[ogonzoo]

i found that it was easier to go vegan than it was to quit smoking... amazing.

[Laura-Louise]

I actually really enjoyed making the transition from omni to vegan. I discovered loads more foods that I didn't know I liked, I started having to cook and found I quite liked it and wasn't half bad at it!

[Declan]

Omni -> lacto-vegetarian -> vegan. Omni to lacto-veggie was easiest.

I went veggie while still living at home and my parents still did most of the cooking so I didn't really have much to think about, really. Vegan was a bit harder, just because of the manufacturers slipping some form of milk into EVERYTHING! But by then I was out of home and living in Glasgow, which makes things a lot easier,w e have a lot of good shops and restauraunts for vegan food and a lot of other vegans too

[tresu]

I went from omni to vegan on Sunday... it is now Wednesday night. I woke up on Sunday and had some fruit for breaky (as usual), somehow ended up coming across a whole bunch of reasons to be vegan on the internet and by lunchtime 'was' vegan... It has been sooooooooo easy, I think mainly because what I have been eating has been really yummy and I have been able to eat whatever and however much I want. I had tried it before when I was younger but that was to lose weight, it never lasted long and was a huge chore. Now I love it... I know it's only early days but I have never loved my overall diet so much. And I have never been able to get out of bed as soon as I wake up before either!!! yay........

[seamus]

went from a rampant meat eater to vegan.
being a chef in training would make it difficult.
but i found it easy enough. had a few problems in the ol' system and ended up in hospital but everything is grand now and very, very happy in my new life

[songlife]

One day I suddenly had no desire to consume flesh, not to mention the other products of the heinous acts of torture committed continuously today. I wanted no part in it, and none of it inside me...

I was pescetarian for a few years without any dairy products or eggs, because I'd been fed the cock-and-bull story that fish and crustacians don't feel... well... we were lied to! It's been discovered that they do in fact have the neuroreceptors for pain. And I learned about how the industry really works, and it made me completely and permanently loose my appetite for eating any seafood at all.

seriously, the rediculous things people are willing to put into their bodies. It's so easy to be vegn after knowing the truth.

[Dylan Mulenburg]

"Less difficult than it would have been to continue not to live according to my viewpoints" I have been vegetarian since fall 2004. I don't remember when I stopped eating eggs, but it was long before I went vegan. I became vegan in early 2006. Going veg and going vegan were both actually really easy (even though before I was vegan almost everything I ate included cheese! lol)

[littlewinker]

I've been veggie since conception so no category for moi

I first tried to become vegan when I was 9. I'd thought about how it didn't make sense that the cows didn't suffer and needed to be milked (which was what I'd been told) because it's obviously unnatural and thought it was just wrong cows being used like that and not getting anything for it. I also thought as cow milk was from the wrong species it must be bad for you. Since I first asked, as a very very young child, if we could not eat anything from animals my mum basically said that vegans are too strict andit was very difficult. She made this reality when I was 9 - she just couldn't be bothered with my little phase and every time I asked if there was anything vegan I could eat she said "erm...no, nothing" and it made me feel like there was nothing else in the world I could eat.

For the next few years I put it to the back of my mind again, convinced it was unrealistic.

I had a half-hearted attempt when I was 13

I was vegan for quite a few months age 14-15. It was reallllly hard because I made the mistake most new vegans do, I tried to eat the same diet as I always did, cutting out the things that weren't vegan. I didn't realize there was so many foods available that were already vegan. Since I failed age 15 (I felt terrible and hollow as soon as I bit the cheesey pitta bread) I was veggie for a bit, then promptly cut out milk for health reasons, starting with cheese and stuff what had a lot of dairy, then all dairy, then eggs, then anything with eggs in, and during those few transition months I inadvertently learnt a lot about vegan food and have been willing to try looooooads more things. Now I've been vegan for about 13, 14 months and it's reallllllllllly easy

So, I would say that it's hard if you make the mistake of thinking you can eat what you always ate only cutting out the animals, but as soon as you realize how much is available it's easy.

It was easier cutting out milk than eggs because I had the health incentive

[harpy]

So, I would say that it's hard if you make the mistake of thinking you can eat what you always ate only cutting out the animals, but as soon as you realize how much is available it's easy.

That's a really good point, littlewinker.

[Dylan Mulenburg]

It was easier cutting out milk than eggs because I had the health incentive

Eggs are unhealthy too!

[clueless]

I went from omni to lacto-ovo-veggie, then I went to vegan. It was harder for me to go to lacto-ovo-veggie than to go to vegan. I found it relatively easy to go vegan (did it overnight) probably because I knew it was the right decision for me. Plus, the book I read was very convinving... lol.

[ms.vegan]

well, it was easy-peasy, really! much, much easier han I thought it'd be. I returned to vegetarianism much earlier this year, and immediately dropped the milk for soya, and illiminated the eggs, as much as possible, because of something that happened to me when I was a kid . . . my mother cooked an egg that was fertile, and described the "black bit" inside, to her blind daughter, (me), and I've never forgotten that! dropping the cheese was a little harder, and losing egg ingredients from everywhere was the most difficult bit, but I set myself a challenge to be "fully vegan" by 4th October, the birthday of my celebrity vegan inspiration, and am proud to repot that I was at least 10 weeks ahead of schedule! this wasn't meant to be an essay lol! xxx

[Reed]

I went from omni directly to vegan. Overnight. I never watched a documentary on meat being murder and never intend to. I simply decided that I could no longer live my life in a destructive manner, not caring about the consequences of my actions.

It was incredibly easy to change everything "cold turkey," with no incremental phases. Once you've made a true decision, there simply are no alternatives. I don't think enough people understand the literal definition of the word.

Decision \De*ci"sion\, n. [L. decisio, fr. dec[imac]dere,
decisum: cf. F. d['e]cision. See Decide.]
1. Cutting off; division; detachment of a part. [Obs.] --Bp.
Pearson.
[1913 Webster]

Once you've made a true lifestyle decision, your entire world changes. I cut the destructive patterns of action out of my life. My body and mind thanked me for it and I've never regretted it, or even been tempted for a second to go back to the way I was. There is no temptation when there is no alternative.

[Vegan220]

I actually became a vegan yesterday. 3 years go I started to cut out certain foods I was eating for various reasons (I had stomach problems from certain foods) and cut out milk, soda, cereal, etc. And after watching Oprah yesterday, I just could not be ignorant anymore and decided to stop eating animals and to stop supporting the torture, slaughter, and abuse of animals for profit and pleasure. I'm so glad I decided to do this and wonder why it took me so long (but I'm glad). I can also now fully say that I am a true animal lover and before it was such hypocrisy because I was eating animals (it makes me want to cry thinking about it). But for me, the decision is easy. I am very dedicated to what I do, when I say something I mean it and just the pure fact that eating an animal is not a choice for me anymore and the fact that I want to spread the word to others is easy enough for me. I think most people are just ignorant to the fact that they are consuming an animal and just don’t want to face the facts and want to be in denial. We go to farms to play with animals and as children learn the words and even have toy pigs, cows, chickens, etc. yet we as a society also eat them. I remember as a kid I just could not believe that I was eating an actual animal. But I finally came to terms with what was going on yesterday, I guess it took Oprah to allow me to see that I was eating an innocent animal, even though I wouldn't have starved if I didn’t. I find the process pretty easy though, I’m not big on dairy and I’m really into fresh food to begin with. By the way, I'm new here =). (I feel so ashamed for not going vegan sooner and it makes me want to cry now when I see meat in commercials or ads for milk and beef).

[fiamma]

I found it quite difficult actually - I was craving cheese for a long time and would keep slipping back.

[Manimal]

Physically - Easy
Mentally - Easy
Socially - Continously Extremely Difficult

I guess we all enjoy a good challenge...

[behindblueeyes]

i went omni > vegetarian > vegan. none of the transistions were hard in terms of actually eating. i would say going vegan was probably hardest for all the shit people give me about it. making jokes, starting extremely frustrating and ridiculous ethical debates, etc.

[Chiaroscuro]

I went omni - pescetarian - vegan quite recently. I found the vegan transition easy.

I think there were several things that made it easy:
1 - I'd done a lot of reading about the reality of how animals are treated, and by the time I made the decision I was completely passionate about what I was doing. I don't really have cravings (even for cheese!) as I've managed to revolt myself at the thought of eating any part of the flesh or bodily fluids of an animal.
2 - Prior to making the switch I did a lot of research on the right types of food, correct nutrition etc, and went out and bought lots of yummy vegan friendly food. Luckily I enjoy cooking and to me eating vegan was an experience in amazing new healthy and delicious food combinations rather than feeling deprived of old ones.
3 - As soon as I went vegan it just felt right. Physically, I felt so much healthier and more alert. And I felt more at 'one' with the earth in some way.

I think the combination of preparation, passion, and increased physical and spiritual wellbeing made it easy. The only hard bit is eating out.

[Tsura]

Hey wait...

there's no Carnivore -> Vegan. Easy... !

Pfft!

He He ^.^ I guess I'm an odd ball errr something.

[Enchantress]

If you used to eat nothing but meat then yes, you are pretty odd.

[*live*&*let*live]

Personally I think the poll is too restrictive not enough options. I love being vegan, no issues other than when out of course. Feeling awkward when with friends for eating out....though if I were a meat eater I would happily eat alternatives for my friends when we go out! It's not as if I can eat the alternative for the night is it

[Kate1978]

Yeah I agree L&LL, I always think that about polls. Either I can't decide between 2 answers or there isn't one that fits me

Back on topic... I found going from veggie to vegan easy in every way apart from socially. In the UK, it's easy to be ovo/lacto, practically every eating place will have some sort of option for you. Nobody says anything, it's accepted.

But socially, vegans are still treated as a breed apart. I think this just echoes what other posters have said. I have friends who I choose not to associate with as often as they have a problem with me being a vegan. Going vegan was a contributing factor in the breakup of my long term relationship last year (we had grown apart in other ways too, but the vegan thing summed up our different attitudes to life).

In a more positive way, I have made new friends through such things as the North East Vegan Gathering, local veggie groups and online here and on Twitter. I've got to know who my true friends are and those who are really bigots. I've expanded my culinary expertise waaaay beyond traditional British cuisine and ready meals, which I may not have been motivated to do were I not vegan. I walk my talk. I don't sponsor the abuse and murder of innocent animals.

Life is good.

[*live*&*let*live]

I walk my talk. I don't sponsor the abuse and murder of innocent animals.

Life is good.

Ace! I'll second that

[Tsura]

If you used to eat nothing but meat then yes, you are pretty odd.

Ya, pretty much LOL. I did start drinking soy milk back when I was 10ish because of neighbors drinking it, so I got used to it. The only fruit I would eat were apples, as for veggies broccoli and carrots - only sometimes I'd eat them. I hated salads, or anything else that I never tried before.

Trying new things is fun! I tried soy nuts... omg they're so yummy, sunflower seeds, pinenuts, etc. Had Tofu for the first time last week, tried out this miso roumen soup.... and I could go on but anyway.... LOL...

[Johnstuff]

Easy like following my true nature.

[Tiffany]

I was initially an omnivore, born (arguably so) and raised that way (most unfortunately...). Since as long as I can remember I have been obsessed with animals and animal rights, so it was only a natural choice for me to make the switch to a half-way vegetarian at age 10 or 11 (I ate only fish). Then when I was about 15 I stopped meat entirely. By age 17 I had completely unmasked the horrors of the egg and milk industries and henceforth became Vegan. I got a lot of hell from my family, but my boyfriend at the time was vegan as well, so it was much easier then than it is now, living back with my family and a boyfriend who isn't even a vegetarian.

*sigh*

[phact0rri]

food has never really been a big thing... so really the diet bit was easy as hells for me. The phasing out material items seemed to be dreadful cause I had this pair of boots that took forever to be worn out so I just donated them eventually and got a new pair exactly like them except they were vegan.

Not sure with others but my biggest stumbling block was my family. To this day (fifteen years vegan btw) my family still likes to tell me I'm thin and fair complected cause I don't eat meat... and love to make jokes about me and my dietary habits.

But I don't have to hear it to often now. my mum quit calling up and asking if I quit being a vegan, cause at this point I'm sure its pretty obvious that this is my choice for how I want to live.

so yes and no. but everyone is different. I think the main thing in helping any one go vegan is not to focus on yourself and what you are going through in your vegan struggles. cause our non-humans are being born in captivity and suffering their lives for no reason but selfish greed. I don't think giving up cheese is that big of a deal in comparison.

[Korn]

cause our non-humans are being born in captivity and suffering their lives for no reason but selfish greed. I don't think giving up cheese is that big of a deal in comparison.

Well put.