Chapter 3: Transforming to Veganism ✓ You may go broke trying to replace every animal product in your home Donating or throwing away everything that was tested on or was once part of an animal can leave your cupboards bare and your house and closets empty Replacing the leather sofa costs money as will filling up your refrigerator with vegan food Think about how much you need to throw out to be truly vegan — and how much money you’ll need to spend to replace it ✓ You may make mistakes if you don’t the proper research beforehand You’re probably going to mess up in the first few weeks of being vegan If you go too quickly and don’t research all the foods, ingredients, and products you buy and use, you may continue using things that were tested on animals or that use animal ingredients Still, messing up isn’t a good reason to give up — if you trip going down the stairs, you swear off stairs forever? No You get up, dust yourself off, and start walking down again Keep it up, and you’ll figure it out And eventually you’ll be sliding down the banister! Taking a Slow, Systematic Approach Most new vegans find that a less abrupt, slow and steady transition approach works best for them Changing your diet and lifestyle completely can be really challenging, and doing everything at once can be stressful So, by taking your time, you’re less likely to make major, costly mistakes Advantages of taking your time Sudden changes to your diet can cause many surprising results, but making a slower switch to veganism can help reduce the consequences Here are some reasons why: ✓ You won’t stress out trying to substitute foods for every animal product you’re used to eating Consider giving up one nonvegan food category a week Cheese, milk, meat, eggs, and butter can all move out of your life slowly as you figure out how to substitute for them with new vegan foods Taking your time allows you to ask questions and discover new protein, fat, and nutrient sources as you move forward ✓ You’ll encounter less discomfort from detoxifying side effects The human body has incredible systems in place to help detoxify and release harmful foods, liquids, and chemicals The skin can sweat out impurities, the liver deals with unhealthy fats, and the bowels release waste It’s truly amazing what the human body is capable of doing to heal and cleanse itself, if given half a chance However, this “spring cleaning” effect can manifest itself with some unwanted symptoms like headaches, 29 30 Part I: “Ve-gan” at the Beginning fatigue, rashes, sleeplessness, fever, temporary loss of menstruation, diarrhea or constipation, increased methane emissions (if you know what I mean), and acne People who move to a vegan diet very quickly are more likely to experience these symptoms Taking your time will allow the body to work these processes slowly, causing less discomfort Going cold Tofurky can sometimes be pretty painful! ✓ You’ll ease the flow of money out of your new pleather wallet If you throw out everything in your house that was tested on animals or that’s made of leather, wool, silk, beeswax, dairy, meat, or eggs, your house may look the way it did the day before you moved in: Empty! Allowing more time to replace items that get used up, worn out, or eaten will spread the expenses out and make the cost more manageable Problems with pacing yourself As you probably know, transitioning slowly to veganism isn’t all daisies and sunshine You may run into a few problems, including the following: ✓ You may be impatient and find the waiting to be frustrating If you’re the type who likes to make a decision and jump right into new habits, taking your time to make your whole life vegan may be too annoying for you You may get bored or frustrated because you know what you want to and how you want to live, but you can’t afford to make all the necessary changes ✓ The prolonging of detoxifying effects may trouble you more than just getting it done and over with While the “shock and awe” method of quick detoxification can be too much for some new vegans, others may experience such painful physical problems that they’re ready to get their bodies cleaned out as quickly as possible When you’ve hit bottom physically, a few days of detoxification symptoms may be preferable to waiting weeks for relief The Nuts and Bolts of Changing Over Whether you’re going cold Tofurky or transitioning over time, going vegan is a life-changing event that requires you to and remember a few basic things to be successful I explain these nuts and bolts, including timing, education, planning, and experimentation with new foods, in the following sections Chapter 3: Transforming to Veganism Choosing your timing wisely Whether you decide to be 100 percent vegan tomorrow or make the transition over the next few months, you’ll want to make a plan to ensure that you don’t make big changes during inconvenient times Going vegan right before a rehearsal dinner at a steak house may be tough Similarly, if you’re about to go on a three-week vacation to Brazil, you’ll find it much more difficult to eat a vegan diet if you’re not experienced in choosing vegan foods In other words, go vegan slowly over a few weeks where you aren’t required to something important: take finals, present a paper at a business conference, or give birth — there’s no point in adding extra stress to an already stressful life Choose an easy week, and get started over the weekend so you have time to plan a week of meals, shop, and research your local resources You can make a commitment to eating one or two vegan meals a day for the first week, adding vegan snacks and more meals as you go forward Perhaps you have a three-day weekend coming up, or your job duties are going to be really relaxed at the end of a big project These times would be excellent for starting to cook more or to switch from cow’s milk to soy, rice, or hemp milk You also can add another change at this time, such as eliminating white sugar, which is often processed with bone char from animals, and honey and replacing them with agave syrup Keep building on these changes As you master one major item, try another Making time to cook on a regular basis can bring you many benefits Cooking your own food from scratch saves you money over time, because you can avoid relying on more expensive convenience items Getting down and dirty in the kitchen also connects you with your food on a new level and helps you appreciate new flavors When you have time to experiment, get creative with new produce and products to avoid getting stuck in a food rut Or check out the many vegan cookbooks and recipes online to get inspired Educating yourself and enrolling your comrades You’ve already chosen an excellent first step in educating yourself — reading this book! Looking at vegan Web sites, talking with other long-time vegans, discovering which ingredients to avoid, and buying a few vegan cookbooks also can help you prepare Understanding how to feed yourself, what to eat, and where to get the foods and products you need are necessary skills You don’t have to be a doctor to understand the foundations of healthy living; it’s easy to become a student of nutrition, food, and healing Plus knowing the facts about veganism helps you explain your decision to become a vegan when you’re confronted with questions and doubts 31 32 Part I: “Ve-gan” at the Beginning You may be the only person you know who’s brave enough to try a vegan diet, but it can’t hurt to ask for support from your family and good friends If they understand why this is important to you, what you plan to do, and what you may need from them in order to be successful, they’ll likely offer their help or resources Perhaps your father works with a vegan or your friend’s sister works at a vegan-friendly restaurant Cast a wide net and see what comes back to you! It’s not often that you get to experience a major shift in life and truly rely on the wisdom of those who have gone before you Making healthier decisions by planning your meals ahead of time Planning your meals in advance is the best way to make a healthy, less-stressful transition to veganism Your diet may be changing drastically from bacon three meals a day, or you may just be eliminating dairy from your already vegetarian diet Either way, you’ll feel much better if you set your eating goals and write down a week’s worth of menus And think how great you’ll feel when you stop buying bacon! By using a meal planning guide (see Chapter 9) and working from a list of foods you know you want to eat more of, you can sketch out a good idea of what you need to buy If you want to eat more leafy green vegetables, whole grains, or sea vegetables, choosing recipes that will incorporate those healing foods makes it more likely that you’ll accomplish your goal Reminding yourself why you’ve chosen veganism Display items that remind you of your dedication to living a vegan lifestyle Print a quote or picture to hang on your wall or refrigerator that will inspire you and confirm your commitment Some inspiring framed photos of farm animals enjoying a natural setting, kids frolicking with baby lambs, famous vegans, or brilliant philosophers can offer the visual clue you need to keep up your daily practice Try hand painting a stirring quote around the walls of your kitchen to inspire your cooking Albert Schweitzer, French philosopher and Nobel prize winner said: “Until he extends the circle of his compassion to all living things, man will not himself find peace.” This quote from Albert Einstein can offer great pride in any home: “It is my view that the vegetarian manner of living, by its purely physical effect on the human temperament, would most beneficially influence the lot of mankind.” Chapter 3: Transforming to Veganism Knowing what you’re going to make for dinner on Wednesday (or any other particular day of the week) helps you plan your daily schedule better so you’re sure to have enough time allotted to cook at the end of the day It also saves you and your family from bickering and deciding on takeout or veggie burgers yet again Keep in mind that it’s often easier to plan for bigger cooking projects on the weekend, because you’ll have more free time and fewer obligations to worry about And if you cook enough on the weekend, you can have leftovers to make the next week that much easier Purging nonvegan products from your life Some of the nonvegan foods you’ll be avoiding are pretty obvious: cheddar cheese made from cow’s milk? Chuck it Steaks in the freezer? Give ’em to the meat eater down the hall, or throw them away Most vegans start avoiding these foods immediately once they set their minds to it Other ingredients aren’t as easily avoided You may find out a few days into your new vegan diet that your favorite crackers have honey in them or that the skin cream you love is made with goat’s milk Sitting on your leather sofa or car seats may gross you out after you comprehend their origins Go easy on yourself when you make your decisions about what to throw away and what to use until it’s gone If you can’t afford to buy all new beauty aids this month, use what you have and replace each bottle of shampoo or lotion with a cruelty-free brand when the old one is gone Perhaps you don’t have anyone you can give your dozen eggs to and you don’t want to waste them — maybe it’s better to eat the rest of the package, say a prayer and blessing for the chickens, and buy some tofu next week instead You can stop using every nonvegan item today, or you can take your time It’s up to you, and no one should judge your decisions You’re already making more conscious actions, and you’ll continue to improve as time goes on Getting to know your new community Reach out and touch the faithful — vegans, that is By joining a local vegan potluck group (or even a vegetarian one if that’s all you can find), you’ll meet like-minded people who have similar values to yours Getting to know others who see the world as you can help you feel connected and as if you’re a part of something bigger The folks who belong to these groups know where to buy the food you need, can share strategies with you, may teach you new recipes, and can even point out possible pitfalls They also can help you find that fabulous vegan outfit you need for your high school reunion 33 ... resources You can make a commitment to eating one or two vegan meals a day for the first week, adding vegan snacks and more meals as you go forward Perhaps you have a three-day weekend coming up,... new foods, in the following sections Chapter 3: Transforming to Veganism Choosing your timing wisely Whether you decide to be 100 percent vegan tomorrow or make the transition over the next few... Going vegan right before a rehearsal dinner at a steak house may be tough Similarly, if you’re about to go on a three-week vacation to Brazil, you’ll find it much more difficult to eat a vegan