3 Psychological Barriers-Going Vegan

[Lou]

"Committing to veganism is nowhere near as easy as it looks. Here's why."​

What? Wait! who said it looks easy?

KEY POINTS​

• It can be difficult for vegetarians and prospective vegans to go completely vegan.
• Lack of knowledge can be a major barrier to making the transition to veganism.
• Other contributing factors include ingrained dietary habits and fear of losing out on pleasure.

3 Psychological Barriers That Make It Hard to Go Vegan

Committing to veganism is nowhere near as easy as it looks. Here's why.

www.psychologytoday.com

 

[Brian W]

This is why I chose to not give anything up but to explore the positives instead. It gently deals with those difficulties without even being aware of it.

 

[Lou]

I thought the article was spot on.

 

[Emma JC]

yup great article - it was until listening to Dr McDougall and feeling allowed to have tons of starch that I felt comfortable making the switch

Emma JC
Find your vegan soulmate or just a friend. www.spiritualmatchmaking.com

 

[Tom L.]

From the article, section 3:

Another significant factor hindering the adoption of veganism is the lack of social support. The societal acceptance of a vegan lifestyle is often limited, leading to concerns about potential stigma, criticism, or isolation.

This actually wasn't a problem for me. Although almost none of my relatives, friends, and (former) co-workers (I'm retired) are vegetarian, let alone vegan, I've never had serious problems with them. The second point (lack of knowledge) was my problem: I never thought about what happened to hens and cows when they stopped "producing", nor about what happened to most roosters and bulls.

 

[Rohan]

Really good article. I remember the cheese being a big one for me. I lived on cheese, pickle and salad sandwiches for 20 years as a veggie and the thought of giving that up was something I remember a slight battle with.

But when I finally realised my vegetarianism wasn't enough, I gave up the cheese pretty easily over a couple of weeks. I just kept thinking about the cows and the calves and what I now knew.

It really is a brutal case of just forcing yourself to face the truth!

 

[Lou]

From the article, section 3: This actually wasn't a problem for me.

Not a big problem for me either. but just judging by the people who drop in here for advice - it is a problem for a significant number.

 

[Lou]

Really good article. I remember the cheese being a big one for me.

Cheese was not a big problem for me. but just judging by the people who drop in here for advice - it is a problem for a significant number.
And If I had a nickel for every time I spoke to someone and they said, "I could be vegan but for the cheese...."

 

[Rohan]

Cheese was not a big problem for me. but just judging by the people who drop in here for advice - it is a problem for a significant number.
And If I had a nickel for every time I spoke to someone and they said, "I could be vegan but for the cheese...."

I think the thought of no more cheese was worse than actually stopping ... and the reasons for me going vegan massively outweighed any taste issues anyway. I expect it's my memory of the transition that is more extreme than the reality actually was

 

[ewomack]

Interesting article.

The cheese factor didn't apply to me because I was deemed lactose intolerant at a relatively young age (i.e., early adulthood). Not to mention that cheese tasted great, but also made me feel awful, so I wasn't really all that excited to eat it. After about 5 years of not eating cheese, it also began to smell bad. Walking by the cheese section at a grocery store began smelling like walking by a locker room at the end of a game. Most cheese, except the most mild, still reminds me of feet to this day. So, the loss of cheese doesn't last, but lactose intolerance makes the transition much easier.

Social stigma hit me the most. People in my area, and in many of my places of employment, associated veganism with "crazy liberal hippy dudes" and immediately assumed that I smoked a lot of pot (never have) and was a card-carrying commie socialist (I have read "The Communist Manifesto," does that count?). These stereotypes seemed to instantly appear the moment I said "vegan," so I stopped saying it. I replaced it with "I don't eat a lot of meat for health reasons" and then people generally accepted it. Some people even said they felt sorry for me. Strange world.

 

[KLS52]

I never found it easy so it's nice to be validated. I feel like most people I come across online...whether it be forums or social media outlets...make it sound like it is so easy, which would end up making me feel bad, as if the fact that I sometimes struggle or feel deprived means I'm a bad vegan.

 

[PTree15]

I never found it easy so it's nice to be validated. I feel like most people I come across online...whether it be forums or social media outlets...make it sound like it is so easy, which would end up making me feel bad, as if the fact that I sometimes struggle or feel deprived means I'm a bad vegan.

Everybody has different levels of difficulty, and you shouldn't ever feel bad about your struggles. I suspect many vegans don't really admit how difficult it can be because they don't want going vegan to seem tough, especially if they want more people to go vegan or they are looking for social/family acceptance. The fact that you have persevered is a testament to your strength and commitment.

And I still miss a really greasy, (dairy) cheesy pizza!

Interesting article.

The cheese factor didn't apply to me because I was deemed lactose intolerant at a relatively young age (i.e., early adulthood). Not to mention that cheese tasted great, but also made me feel awful, so I wasn't really all that excited to eat it. After about 5 years of not eating cheese, it also began to smell bad. Walking by the cheese section at a grocery store began smelling like walking by a locker room at the end of a game. Most cheese, except the most mild, still reminds me of feet to this day. So, the loss of cheese doesn't last, but lactose intolerance makes the transition much easier.

Bold emphasis mine. This made me chuckle only because as kids we used to call that nasty grated Parmesan in a can (Kraft, I think the brand is/was) smelly feet cheese! I always hated that stuff, lol.

 

[g0rph]

Interesting article.
But it doesn't really resonate at all for me.
They touched on the "social support" thing and to be honest that's number one for me by a country mile.

Or rather "lack of social agreement or inclusion". I have nobody in my circle of friends and family who are close to vegetarian, let alone vegan. I even know a few hunters.

Giving up cheese was easy. Even though Friday nights used to be "Get out the crackers and Brie and Stilton and Gorgonzola and Cheddar" day.
I loved cheese. I just as easily stopped eating it (mammal milk variety anyway). Melted Violife on toast is more than enough now

There was almost no lack of knowledge re: diet. Although I did make sure to understand what I "might" need to be careful with.

As for habits... Sure, for the first 6 months or so I would dream about eating a juicy rib-eye. My subconscious was letting me know in no uncertain terms what I was craving. But when awake...Yes but no.

It all happened very quickly for me.
I was inspired actually by a flexitarian. A woman I knew who was plant-based at home, but would take anything offered at parties.
I thought, yes, I'll try that. For the first 2 weeks I was plant-based, but chose prawn as the protein in Asian take-outs.
Then it all hit me. Why do I need to even do that? Now it's usually tofu or Oumph (another soy based product).

It took a little while longer to make sure the bathroom was vegan, and I will still take a glass of wine if offered, without asking about the label.

Many don't regard me as vegan for my views on "pets" and service animals (and maybe the lax approach to wine)...Do I care? Nope.

 

[Rohan]

These stereotypes seemed to instantly appear the moment I said "vegan," so I stopped saying it.

I often think we need a new word to replace 'vegan' just because there is so much stigma attached to it now.

 

[Rohan]

I still miss a really greasy, (dairy) cheesy pizza!

Lol ... that's interesting. I really don't miss it at all. In fact, the thought of it makes me feel slightly nauseous now.

 

[KLS52]

Lol ... that's interesting. I really don't miss it at all. In fact, the thought of it makes me feel slightly nauseous now.

I feel that way about eggs. I live with two omnis and the smell of eggs cooking is yuck to me. I still cry over the loss of cheese and it's been 19 years lol.

 

[Tom L.]

I often think we need a new word to replace 'vegan' just because there is so much stigma attached to it now.

Maybe. I wonder about that. Veganism does deviate significantly more from conventional eating patterns than either pescetarianism or vegetarianism do, but it has an inherent logic... a rationale. Convention, or conformity, or conditioning/upbringing are powerful for most people. But if consuming cow's milk (for example) were not a commonly accepted thing, at least in European and North/South American culture... imagine how weird it would seem to most of us! It would seem at least as strange as an adult human drinking human breast milk. As it is, almost nobody would think about drinking the milk of an elephant, horse, cat, or dog, although they all produce it (at least in very small quantities).

(Just typing the previous two sentences made me feel slightly queasy, so I apologize).

 

[Rohan]

I still cry over the loss of cheese and it's been 19 years lol.

Ha ha. Those casomorphins have a deep hook into your subconscious mind!

 

[Rohan]

Convention, or conformity, or conditioning/upbringing are powerful for most people.

... and the animal ag industrial complex knows this so they double down on the rhetoric. A lot of people think vegans are annoying/sanctimonious/righteous/virtue signalling ... take your pick. A lot of that has come from social media. New generations come online and just hate vegans by default because they've been told to.

Hence the stigma around the word vegan. Not sure what the solution is apart from just not using the word.

 

[g0rph]

... and the animal ag industrial complex knows this so they double down on the rhetoric. A lot of people think vegans are annoying/sanctimonious/righteous/virtue signalling ... take your pick. A lot of that has come from social media. New generations come online and just hate vegans by default because they've been told to.

Hence the stigma around the word vegan. Not sure what the solution is apart from just not using the word.

To be fair, this is often true. Just take a look at some vegans on reddit.

Then you get the ones who have taken the "Liberation pledge".
Then you get the anti-natalist vegans and those that refuse to eat in any restaurant that isn't 100% vegan (one wonders where they buy groceries or fuel?)

Then you get the whack-jobs emptying milk cartons in supermarkets.

Sure, these people are probably a minority, but as with anything, it's the noisy minority that leave the impression on others.