Benji and How to go Back to Being Vegan

[Rory17]

Benji and How to go Back to Vegan Without Being Hard on Myself

Hello ,
I have Autism and anxiety.
Anyhow, I went vegetarian at age 13 and then vegan at about 20. I then went back to veggie as I kept cheating with cheese. I am now 24.
I have been thinking of going back to vegan again for a while. The other day, when I was on a walk, I came across some bullocks in a field. I named one of them Benji and gave them pieces of apple (apple is safe for cows, just not whole apples and not too much ). I also promised to Benji that I would go vegan and do my best for them and all the animals.
However, my anxiety has been really playing up about going vegan being too hard on me (I love cheese) and it not being doable for me to save Benji and the others and going against what my parents would want (I plan on starting a kind petition to save the animals to the local farmer, and my parents aren’t vegan and might not approve).
I have used strategies and have decided to go vegan with cheats at least to start with (allowing myself the odd proper halloumi burger, allowing myself some cheese sometimes and other people’s birthday cakes, etc).
What advice can you give?
May you, Benji, all the other bullocks and all the other animals, and all sentient beings everywhere be perfectly well, healthy, happy and safe forever .
Best Wishes to all,
Rory.
Have the best day and night ever!

 

[Lou]

Not all the vegans here or anywhere agree with me but here is my opinion.

• Veganism is not a product or a result. It is a process.
• Veganism is not the goal. Compassion is the goal. Veganism is the path. (I know - very zen)
• The definition of vegan includes the word "Strive". That means try hard. It doesn' mean succeed.
• The definition of vegan does not require 100% compliance. It expects less. there is that clause that includes "Possible and Practicable". You get to decide what is possible.

So.... IMHO you are vegan. You are on the path. Actually, it sounds like you have been on the path for a long time now. So it is not easy for you. But what is that saying? Nothing worth having comes easy.

There is another saying that I like. Don't let perfect be the enemy of the good. If you don't know what that means, google it. There are lots of good essays on it (even books). It has a lot of business and creativity applications. But I like this little example. Don't be one of those people who can't enjoy the forest cause all you see is the weeds.
Or another way to put it, don't sweat the small stuff.

 

[silva]

What is the most achievable and habitual is the best thing to work on. I have anxiety and a bit of ocd. I had been on/off vegan for so much of my adult life, but used to obsess so much it ruined me. I remember losing my mind when I saw a label of vegan on just two of the bulk section lentils and beans. Sure I logically knew the other beans & lentils were vegan, but that kind of thing traumatized me. Finally I sat myself down and said I would no longer let this rule my life or ruin the good in search of the perfect. I didn't allow myself to go crazy because I didn;t notice honey or gelatin in something I bought, or natural flavors. I wouldn't worry about "may contain" or where the sugar came from in products. I also didn;t call myself vegan.
I actually like the use of veganish, or mostly vegan, at least in many places. There is such a wide swath of people who go by vegetarian it doesn't seem right to get pinned into that when you eat so little that isnt animal related, like the occasional by product
Keep your mental state in mind and balance it with your ethics. I think you'll also find this will help push you closer to vegan than if you pushed too much too soon.
Good luck and keep Benji, and all like Benji, in your heart.

 

[Lou]

What is the most achievable and habitual is the best thing to work on.

YES! And that reminds me of something that might help Rory.

Back in the day companies would have workshops about The 7 habits of Highly Effective People. It was required reading in some classrooms. One of the principles is that it takes 30 days of continually doing something to make it a habit. Most of the Vegan Starter programs are about 30 days. And I know that Goudreaux made her program 30 days with 7 habits in mind.

Cheese has some physical addicting properties. (anything with high amounts of fat and salt is addicting - but cheese is even more so). So not eating cheese and eating something else instead for 30 days could break you of that habit and addiction.

 

[Luis Halson]

Try vegan cheese (these are plant-based milks coagulated with non-animal rennet)

 

[Hog]

People with strong autistic perception have a heightened ability to appreciate the value of animals. Social people perceive the world more in terms of rituals of pride and humiliation. Autistic people have a whole spectrum of emotions that are not accessible to most "normal people." Thus, you probably possess an enhanced capacity for understanding the suffering of animals.

You might want to read the book, Autism and the Crisis of Meaning, by Alex Durig to more fully appreciate the theory behind what I just said. The guy published in very prestigious places at a young age. I spent nearly a year tracking down that author. We later met up in Las Vegas and spent a few days chatting together. Alex is now a recluse who rarely talks to anybody.

Rory, my intuition tells me that you are following the right path.