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Why I Went Vegan in the First Place
I care about animals and the environment, but that was not the primary reason why I went vegan. I went vegan to see how my body would react. Living a life with no regrets is something I deeply value. Experiencing what it’s like to be vegan was an experience I wanted to have. If I was vegan for some time, I could then connect with other people with dietary restrictions on a deeper level. This was my goal. I didn’t want to judge a person about their diet without at least living life in their shoes for some time.
So I bought a book on becoming vegan
Do Vegans Miss Meat?
This was the most common question I had when I was vegan. “Do you miss meat as a vegan?” or “Do vegans have an urge to eat meat?
Personally, no. However, there were definitely moments when it sucked to be vegan. One moment, in particular, I remember. I was on a fancy tropical island restaurant for a business meeting. Looking at the menu, I noticed that this restaurant only had animal-based meals. When I asked the waiter, “What Vegan options they had?” they responded with, “We don’t, but we’ll make you something.” To my surprise, when everyone got their exquisite dishes, I got a bowl of baby potatoes. THAT’S IT! BABY POTATOES! Not even kidding. This restaurant also didn’t have ketchup for the potatoes! It was the most embarrassing meal I have ever had. I was so jealous of the other meat and cheese dishes the other people at my table were having. But, I believed in veganism and quite literally began swallowing my pride, one bite at a time.
I did miss having pizza, though, when I was vegan. My friends and I had pizza often when we played our Dungeons & Dragons
Quitting Veganism
The truth why I quit is that I got sick. I caught what seemed like a really bad cold that stayed with me for a month. I had extreme levels of fatigue and just didn’t have the energy to get out of bed. Every medicine I was prescribed did not work. A friend of mine who got sick after being vegan for two years said, “Quitting being vegan was what helped her get better.” I didn’t want to belive this because I had tried so hard to make sure this didn’t happen. I knew what vitamins and supplements I needed to take and took them regularly.
But I couldn’t stand feeling so miserable for a month and knew that I needed to try something different since the medicine was not working. So after being vegan for about eight months, I decided to eat meat and cheese to see if I would feel better, and of course, I did. I was both relieved and sad to see it happen. Eating a vegan diet became a huge part of me that I now needed to learn to let go of.
What I learned from being vegan
There are health and environmental benefits that come with eating less meat. Check out The China Study
I was happy and proud when I was vegan. But I was never one who preached to others about how I was better than them because I was vegan. Yet, I still ended up getting picked on by friends and family due to my dietary choice. I feel like that is a given, vegans for some reason will always get joked and picked on.
After being sick for over a month, I concluded the vegan diet was no longer for me. I realized that our bodies are designed for the consumption of both plant and animal-based products. Vitamins and supplements can only help you so much before your body needs the real food it craves.
I eat animal products now, just consciously fewer animal products than I used to, and I feel great! I am glad I had the experience of being vegan. First, enjoying its immediate benefits, then realizing how wrong I was when my body began rejecting the diet. Now I am happy and proud to call myself an ex-vegan.
