Not that I'd go straight to veganism cold turkey, but that's my overall goal. However, I have a problem. It's not that "meat is too good to give up" or anything, but every night for dinner we almost always eat dishes containing meat, and I never ever have the courage to just say "I'm not eating that anymore" to my parents, I guess I fear their reaction. Is this too weird, or is it a bit common? I guess it kind of has to do with my fear of changing anything about myself because I'm concerned about how they would react, but this is something that wouldn't be totally surprising to them. In fact, my mom has said to me before "With all your animal rights stuff, I'm surprised you're not a vegan!" but then when we were in washington dc I said something about not really liking meat or something, and she just said to me "if you didn't eat it, someone else will." So has anyone else had to deal with something similar? I'd really like some advice!
you just need to give your parents fair warning time to get some veg*an groceries. If they refuse to cook a meal for you, cook one yourself. You should really consume what you want to consume, not what other people think you should. Stand up for yourself and tell them how you feel. The "if you dont eat it someone else will" argument is BS, because by not buying meat you are slightly lowering the demand for it. If all the Veg*ans started buying meat all of a sudden, meat prices would increase until more meat could be produced.
I tried telling my mom that wanted to be a vegitarian, and I wouldn't eat her meals containing meat and made stuff for myself. And her meals contain a LOT of meat, my family is consisted of a bunch of carnivores. But, she started acting insulted, like her cooking wasn't good enough for me until I just had to start eating what she was cooking again. I'm trying to get back into it and for now I've given up all meat except chicken. But now that I'm back home for the summer, I'm finding it really hard to eat without "insulting" my mom. This house has literally NO fruit or vegtables!!
Sit down and discuss it in a calm sensible way, backing up your points with statistics etc if necessary. As Tree said, give them advanced warning. Dinner time is not the best for discussing lifestyle choices. Be strong. You might well get some knockbacks but that goes with the teritory. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. Your parents could well prove very suppourtive (as my mother is) or be jackasses (like my Dad). Even that's okay, because if you can cope with parents anyone/thing else is easy. Keep learning it will strengthen your knowledge and conviction. Here are some sites to get you started. www.peta.org www.cok.net www.animalvegfaq.tripod.com www.vegweb.com Good luck, you'll be just fine. TTFN Sage
you need to come visit me, I'll make you good meals seriously though, I understand your pain. My family eats a lot of meat meals, cheese meals, grain meals, etc. I do not eat any of that stuff, except on rare occasions. Having your family understand a special diet can be tricky, especially when they believe what they are eating is good for them
Lol yeah that's great. So simple yet so pertenent. Go on, be brave, start tomorrow. Then report back. TTFN Sage
Just stop eating meat and dairy if that's what you want to do. Be prepared to deal with whatever drama may arise from your family. Explain to mom that it means a lot to you and that you don't want to be a part of it anymore. Just beacause other people eat meat that you won't doesn't mean you won't be making a difference, it means that there's one less meat eater in this world to add to the carnage of the other omni heads. Be strong in your convictions and don't give in to your family's pressures. Trust me.. your mom won't let you starve to death. If she sees you're serious she may have more respect for your decision and allow you the freedom of diet you are entitled to. But if you keep eating meat to appease her she won't take you seriously. To quote Bob Marley "Get up, stand up.. stand up for your right. Get up, stand up.. don't give up the fight". Good luck my veggie spirited friend! And keep us posted on your progress.
yea, i think that every vegan goes through those types of things, my best advice is to do what you feel is right and read up on the nutrition/diet information and know your facts! - also learn how to cook- i'd recommend getting a good vegan cookbook like 'How It All Vegan' - even if you don't go completely vegan right away you can always use it regardless. just keep in mind that your parents can't force you to eat meat, but you can't force them to do anything different either - so be prepared to cook for yourself Good Luck! ~Dan
Thanks for all the support, I'm really grateful Anyway, I was wondering what would be some good vegan groceries to get? We're going shopping this weekend, and God willing tomorrow I'll be telling my dad, lol. Not that it's some huge deal. Anyway, does anyone have any good reccomendations?
My parents eat many meals that are almost nothing but meat, it actually pushes me to go further than i normaly do and eat like a raw vegan, cause if i dont want to spend the time cooking or spend much money, i can always buy some carrots and pears and stuff like that pretty cheap and just eat it without cooking.
Get soy or rice milk, tofu, vegan margerine, vegan mayo, vegan egg replacer, veggie burgers, TVP, fruits, veggies, beans, rice, vegan pasta, vegan bread. You should be able to cook and bake everything you used to with these ingrediants.
uh, that could work, myself i prefer not to get imitations of stuff, and tofu starts to get kinda bad after a while. Id sugest things that have the same food value but arent necisarily modeled after it, get some letuce and or spinach for a salad, if you want to cook get some carrots potatos and celery and stew them in a pot, thats always good, and get whatever fruit you like, its all good.
