If you’re wondering if you should vegan or starting out on your plant-based journey, it can be a big help and inspiration to read other people’s stories! I’ll be sharing a lot about plant-based lifestyle here on The Hopeful Generation, so I thought it would be helpful to share why I went vegan.
Looking back, the fact that I would one day go vegan seems inevitable, though at no point did I ever peg myself as a “future vegan.” In the years leading up to the switch, I found myself liking meat less and less. I especially disliked the fact that certain meats (like chicken and shrimp) made it obvious that I was eating an animal- as opposed to, say, ground beef.
Still, it took me a long time to finally give up meat, and I never imagined that I would cut way back on dairy as well. Why did I finally make the change?
All it took was a compelling enough reason to do so.
Finding My “Why”
While I’ve always liked animals and been pretty sensitive, it was ultimately environmental reasons that led me to veganism. I learned that cutting back on meat and dairy is better for the environment, and also a more sustainable way of eating for supporting a growing global population.
I’ve been blessed to travel to many amazing places with my family. These experiences have shown me that the world is a beautiful place, and it’s worth fighting to protect the planet and her people.
Veganism isn’t easy, but with compelling reasons to make tough lifestyle changes, it suddenly seemed much more appealing.
College Vegan Life?
In college, I felt increasingly called to being vegetarian. When I moved off campus and started cooking for myself I rarely, if ever, bought meat. However, I held off on making the ‘official’ leap to vegetarianism. The reason will be familiar to most young adults: free food. Lots of club events offered free meals, and it was hard to turn down a burger because it meant that I didn’t have to cook.
One of my good friends went vegan partway through college, which drew a lot of questions (and teasing) from our friend group. At this point, I still couldn’t grasp the idea that being vegan might be better than being vegetarian. I decided to ask him why he’d made that choice.
My friend pointed out that the reasons for giving up meat also apply to dairy. In the current food system, lots of dairy and eggs come from factory farms and require huge amounts of often-maltreated animals. While cutting out meat would remove some of those farms, the dairy industry meant that a lot of that damage would continue.
Unfortunately, I found that compelling. It led to a lot more research, since I was increasingly suspecting that I might be called to veganism. Still, I was hesitant to make such a big change.
In the fall of 2022, I was on the wardrobe crew for a musical (I was a costume design major) and had a lot of late nights to delve into this newfound rabbit hole. Over those few weeks, I discovered blogs that strengthened my resolve to go vegan and opened my eyes to the world of delicious vegan recipes. I discovered that there were vegan alternatives to lots of meat-based foods. I also did a lot of research into how I could go vegan and still have a healthy, balanced diet.
Maybe I could do this after all.
Friendly Support
Well… It wasn’t that easy. First, I had to break the news to my family that I was going vegan. My mom, a doctor, was particularly skeptical. My siblings just hoped that I wouldn’t make them eat any vegan food.
In time, my family came around to my new way of eating. We discovered recipes that could be adapted for both vegans and meat-eaters. Exploring local health-food stores gave me a lot of exciting new vegan options to try!
Two Years Later: My Vegan Philosophy
Though I’ve been “vegan” since the fall of 2022, I’ve struggled to fully give up dairy. I’m coming to peace with it, though. After all, I went vegan to make the world a better place, not to make my life miserable. And if that means eating some cheese at a party or non-vegan baked goods, so be it. I cook entirely vegan for myself and only eat dairy sometimes if somebody else is cooking (and sometimes at restaurants).
Because of that, I’ve long struggled with whether to call myself vegan or just vegetarian. Here’s what I’ve decided: since I’m striving to live a mostly vegan lifestyle, it’s easiest to describe myself as vegan. I can always describe my more nuanced approach to plant-based eating if it really matters in a particular situation.
Being vegan is natural to me now, and I don’t have intend to restart eating meat anytime soon. I’m committed to facing the challenges this might bring, especially since I love long-distance running (another sentence I never would’ve thought I’d write!).
If you’ve read this far, I hope my story inspires you in your own sustainability and plant-based eating journey. Let me know if you have any questions or your own story to share!