I used to be that i thought being vegan just meant not eating meat or dairy products. Now I have to worry about leather in clothing and shoes, furniture, soap, shampoo, chemical ingrediants at the very bottom of the list, it just goes on and on. Have you ever felt overwhelmed trying to be vegan?

honestly, no, but, when i first turned vegan i didnt know any other vegans, the internet didnt exist so it took a while to work stuff out, like what was in certain products.

knowing you make a difference and arent contributing to animals suffering and dieing makes it all worth it.

Not really. What I find most difficult about veganism is not the list of things I need to look out for -- there is so much vegan food, clothing and other items available to me that that has never been a problem (and there are also more and more products available as time goes on) -- but the social aspect of how people react, what to do in various social situations etc.

I think when you look at the big picture and say I have to make all these changes and be a different person right this second it can be very overwhelming, the trick is to take it slow and go step by step.



Just make one change whenever you can. Use up a product and buy a cruelty free one in its place, experiment with new food and replacements for old favourites, give up one animal food at a time, etc.



That's what I did, and before I knew it I was vegan and it's as natural as breathing



Change is always hard at first, but once you get used to it it's hard to change BACK, you know?

It becomes second nature over time. And fortunately, there seems to be an ever increasing variety of vegan options for nearly everything.

i used to hassle a company over here in the uk to make a fake egg! i know it can be done, like you said theres nearly a fake everything else, but not an egg!

a vegan fried egg would be awesome!

I have to agree with you on that, one, Stanie!

Good point!

I make an excellent tofu scramble with onions, mushrooms and spinach, and the very best eggless egg salad, so I do get my cravings for "eggy" stuff met with those two recipes. But, a fried egg or a hard-boiled one is definitely hard to duplicate.

the company is redwoods, pester them! im going to

it would be hard for us, but im sure a company could do it, the white of the egg could be tofu, and the yolk, im sure it would be easy for those clever guys!

I'm not quite vegan yet (almost, almost! ), but I find the social aspect the hardest. It's always an awkward one when people go "Oh you're vegetarian! Well, at least you're not one of those vegans, I think they should all be burned!" Me: "Erm, I'm working towards being vegan by December..."

Got any recipes for a new vegan?

I understand what the OP is saying. There have been a couple times when I got overwhelmed about monitoring every detail of my life for animal products. It was enough to drive me mad, and it almost derailed my veg*nism completely. I have realized that I do not have to be perfect today, as long as I am working towards the end goal, which is eliminating any products that contain animals or were tested on animals. So, I have cut out eggs and dairy completely, and I am working towards finding substitutes for products with trace ingredients. As far as household items and toiletries, as I use something up I am replacing it with a vegan and cruelty free product.



For me this is a journey. I don't know when I will get there, but I feel good about the changes I am making. It is not practical (or environmentally sound) to throw out everything and start over, so this is my way of working towards living a cruelty free life.

I will be taking a short road trip next week. At this time I am completely overwhelmed at how I am going to eat vegan with the limited "attraction" type locations I will be in.

+1



I try to keep my focus on the animals. That's who I do it for. I keep them in mind and realize that any trouble I am going through is nothing compared to what they go through.

I hate it when people (omni's) have to make vegetarians and vegans feel awkward, its nothing to do with them , what we eat and what we don't eat. If they understood how animals are tortured just so we are able to eat them or drink them, they would definitely be vegan but they choose not to believe it.

My only near meltdown was in the bread aisle at the grocery store my first week. I had read on here that it was pretty easy to find good vegan bread, but loaf after loaf contained honey.

No, it's as easy as breathing for me. Kind of unconscious or subconsciously who I am.

Mt first week or two, yes. Not really anymore.

Kind of yes... I'm also scared because this is my second try at veganism.

Well, I've only been vegan for a week and a half, and yes, it can be overwhelming at times, but it's worth it in the end. Knowing that you're not participating in animal cruelty makes it easier for me to move along.

No. I thought I would but I'm not. It's just a part of my lift, same as anything else.

Yes, I get overwhelmed all the time and have to remind myself to relax and take it one day at a time.

Food wise, it was pretty easy for me. However, it was socially very difficult. It seemed like my new diet kept coming up, for example, I used to share groceries with roommates and I had to tell them I no longer ate the type of bread, salad dressing, etc... they bought. That made them really angry and they kept accusing me of being 'difficult'. I felt so bad the other day when my boyfriend offered to get his mocha with soy milk so that we could share, but I had to inform him I probably still wouldn't have it because they was most likely dairy in the chocolate syrup or whatever they use. That made him very frustrated.

Actually I have never felt overwhelmed because it was more of an exciting thing for me and now it's just my lifestyle. I do feel overwhelmed seeing how others eat and how much I wish the masses would stop this insanity.

The assistant at the supermarket did it yesterday, it took all my energy to not rant. I tried being friendly about it, asked why he has a problem with vegans, and apparently it's because "they think they're better than everyone else". Oh christ I was so wanting to rage, but I just said to him "Not all vegans are like that, what you actually have a problem with is people who are arseholes, and that has nothing to do with what a person eats."



Seriously, do people really not think before they speak?!

I know what you mean, I've been invited to go on some motorcycle road trips with my hubbs and his friends. They know I'm veg, but I'm thinking it may be rather hard to find some food to eat, unless I can hit up an Indian or Mexican place along the way. I'm not yet fully committed, so really not sure if I'm going to do them or not. there's always the Luna or Lara bars I guess!



My hardship with the veganism, is not the foods I make, it's the trace ingredients in stuff.....whey and egg whites are in everything! I totally miss the little miniature chocolate candy bars, because there is dairy in them, even the dark chocolate. So I buy Ghiridelli chips or the 70% coca bars to munch on. Honestly, I still don't have the makeup products down yet. But I haven't bought anything new in ages.

This. I always do really well at the vegan thing for the first month or two, but socially it becomes really difficult for me to maintain after that. I confess that lately I've been trying to focus more on just being vegetarian than completely vegan because I was finding it difficult to keep up with. It might be different if I lived in a suburb somewhere, but I'm 20 and I like to drink and smoke and party. I eat out a lot. I know it's all pretty unhealthy, but that's kinda the way I live. Sharing food with boyfriends and roommates and friends is really difficult when you're vegan, not so bad when you're just vegetarian. You can always order the meatless pizza, but if you're vegan you got lots to worry about. And nutritionally I'm paranoid. I'm not very healthy, but when I'm on a new restrictive diet, I can't help but worry if I'm fitting in everything I ought to. Being vegan tends to translate into cooking at home all the time, which doesn't seem to fit in with what I do. I feel left out. It's like a complete lifestyle overhaul that I admit is overwhelming enough to make me feel unsure if I can really stick with it. Especially when most of the people I know are total rednecks who like nothing but to fish, hunt, and AV and don't get what the hell I'm on about over here. lol.

PhotoJess, Luna and Larabars it is! I stocked up on those and other super healthy yum goodies to bring along. There will be a LOT of eating out so I'm really going to have to work hard to order right.