My 9 month anniversary!

[paulwalkersgirl]

I went off meat cold turkey last April. Before I did that, I researched vegetarianism for about a month so I knew what I was getting myself into. ;) haha.

I don't have gelatine or animal rennet... and I use animal ingredient-free & no animal testing shampoo and conditioner. Ah, I also have vegan margarine... we have it because of my brother's vocal cords... he's had nodules on them, and his doctor advised him to have vegan margarine, soy milk & soy yoghurt.

I still have the majority of dairy products (including that i now eat vegetarian cheese at home!) and eggs (even though i only really have them in cakes etc... i have them at home once in a blue moon lol) though. I'm really wanting to go off dairy and egg soon... but I think this is gonna be much harder than I imagine. So much of my favourite foods (cakes, biscuits & especially chocolate) have them in it... should I take my time being used to be lacto-ovo vegetarian before I go vegan? I feel crappy that I can't simply go off milk and egg just because of my favourite foods... and I feel like I'm letting down animals that are treated appallingly. :cry:

[JennyO]

CONGRATULATIONS! You are an inspiration (I'm only one month hehe). As far as the converting to vegan thing, I can't really help you because I'm also lacto-ovo but you shouldn't feel guilty because cutting out meat is such an accomplishment in itself! As I've been browsing through recipes I've seen Vegan versions of lots of different desserts (cookies, cakes, etc) so you might wanna check the recipe board on this site (I think there is a dessert section). Good luck with everything!

[animallover7249]

Congrats on 9 months! :nana:

[Animosity]

First off, Congradulations. Secondly, Take as long as you need, You don't want to jump into something you aren't ready for and end up reverting back. Maybe start by buying some egg replacer and making your own sweets and baked goods with that instead of dairy, Buy some soy, Almond, Hemp, Oat, Rice or other type of milk (It'll take some geting used too and you'll probably have to try a few different types and brands before you find one you like.)
If you don't like it by itself at first try it in a recipe where you won't really taste it or put it in a cup of coffee, That's how I got used to it. Maybe have a 'vegan day' every week where you eat nothing but vegan friendly foods. Invest in a good vegan cook book or look through the recipes on here and on other websites, (If you learn how to make all the things you like now in soy form you won't have to miss out on your favorites. Thus, Less temptation to revert.) If you use honey, Try Agave Nectar instead. If you like yogert buy some soy yogert, I actually find it taste better than regular (I use SO delicious brand.) They also make really good soy ice cream. Soy cheese, I'm not to sure of all the brands since we don't have a good selection but i'm sure you can easily find some form of substitute for that. Veganism has come such a long way they have substitutions for pretty much anything you can think of.

[SupersonicSheep]

I want to do this too. I've only been vegetarian since June last year and like yourself I'm finding it easy with toiletries and cleaning products but making the dietary switch to vegan is much harder. I eat totally vegan at home but when I go to someone else's house or go out to eat it's very very hard to eat something which is vegan. In fact most vegetarian dishes in restaurants and vegetarian ready meals (which I get given when I go to other people's houses to eat) are loaded with cheese! People seem to think that if you aren't eating meat then you must have cheese instead!

The way I'm going to do it is basically eat as vegan as possible. I'm going to give my friends and family time to adjust to the fact that I'm vegetarian first and then maybe once I've been vegetarian for a year I'll tell them I want to go vegan (I'm sure that won't go down too well though as it will just make me even more 'awkward'!). I need to get used to vegetarianism first myself though if you know what I mean. I still find it hard if I have to ask for a meal to be altered in a restaurant to suit me. I hate seeming like I'm being fussy. I also still feel guilty that people see me as awkward to cook for at home. I offer to take my own dish but some people get offended by that, even though they then just serve me up a crap sugar, salt and dairy laden ready meal instead of something they have cooked. Anyway I'm rambling now! All I meant to say was don't worry there are others in the same boat as you. I guess just take things as slowly as you need to. Any small thing you can do in terms of being vegetarian or vegan is better than doing nothing at all.

[Doktormartini]

Congrats! Keep up the good work and good luck getting of those darn dairy and eggs!

[Ann22]

Congratulations! I hope one day I could reach my 9 month anniversary

[Tymps]

Congratulations! :D Remember, just by going veg, you're helping a lot of animals. Take all the time you need to give up dairy. Rome wasn't built in a day, remember? ;)

[Adam777]

Congratulations, I wish I can make it 9 months as well. I keep trying and trying, but it's so hard. This year, I finally made a New Year's resolution. So far so good. :)

[Doktormartini]

All you guys/gals can make it to 9 months! Don't say you wish because you know you can :)