Staying Vegan

[Daphneduck123]

Going vegan was fairly easy but now after about 10 years I'm losing grip over things. Like life is just slipping past me. Time flies I suppose its just a matter of reliving those moments that may mean something. Anyone else in a cycle as if the same thing is happening twice? Now slowing down is key to staying sane but not that slow. Anyway, I just want to stay vegan forever and live forever in happiness.

 

[Lou]

Going vegan was fairly easy but now after about 10 years I'm losing grip over things. Like life is just slipping past me. Time flies I suppose its just a matter of reliving those moments that may mean something. Anyone else in a cycle as if the same thing is happening twice? Now slowing down is key to staying sane but not that slow. Anyway, I just want to stay vegan forever and live forever in happiness.

Is this a vegan issue of a live in general issue?
Anyway, not really sure what you mean. Would you mind elaborating.
sometime just writing it down helps clarify things in you own mind.

 

[Emma JC]

welcome to the forum (love your name) - it will be 10 years for us also, in a few months and we are still very determined and very happy with our decision - it has definitely changed many things in our life and we still choose to be content with those changes and even thrive - wishing the same for you...

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

 

[ewomack]

Life does that. It changes relentlessly. Stability seems like more and more of an illusion with age. It seems to happen to most people. Something that felt like an easy decision years ago now seems less easy given new circumstances. It happens. Decide what truly makes you happy. You may need to adjust this feeling to new situations. What are your true boundaries? Reality doesn't always align with our ideals of happiness. Years ago I went fervently vegetarian and then vegan. It worked great for a while, but life changed. The decision did permanently alter how I live, but I decided that I do have some tolerance for not following these strictures absolutely and always. I allowed for a few - a very few - exceptions and it allowed me to relax. I decided to ignore everyone who considered me evil or an apostate for a minor adjustment. I'm probably 98% vegan now (though I know many see veganism as all-or-nothing, I don't find this realistic, productive, or helpful for many people). I'm comfortable and happy within these boundaries. You need to determine within which boundaries you can still remain happy.

 

[Daphneduck123]

Life does that. It changes relentlessly. Stability seems like more and more of an illusion with age. It seems to happen to most people. Something that felt like an easy decision years ago now seems less easy given new circumstances. It happens. Decide what truly makes you happy. You may need to adjust this feeling to new situations. What are your true boundaries? Reality doesn't always align with our ideals of happiness. Years ago I went fervently vegetarian and then vegan. It worked great for a while, but life changed. The decision did permanently alter how I live, but I decided that I do have some tolerance for not following these strictures absolutely and always. I allowed for a few - a very few - exceptions and it allowed me to relax. I decided to ignore everyone who considered me evil or an apostate for a minor adjustment. I'm probably 98% vegan now (though I know many see veganism as all-or-nothing, I don't find this realistic, productive, or helpful for many people). I'm comfortable and happy within these boundaries. You need to determine within which boundaries you can still remain happy.

Strict veganism makes me happiest yet being in a world where it is so strongly opposed has lead me eat dairy and some meat that makes me sad. It just doesnt align with who I consider the real me, the happy me.

 

[Lou]

"Nothing worth having/doing comes easy"
- Teddy Rosevelt

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." It is widely attributed to the renowned American cultural anthropologist Margaret Mead.

“If you expect life to be easy, challenges will seem difficult. If you accept that challenges may occur, life will be easier.”

"Do what is right, not what is easy nor what is popular," by Roy T. Bennett i

"What is right is not always popular and what is popular is not always right." — Albert Einstein

"There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must take it because conscience tells him it is right." — Martin Luther King Jr.

 

[ewomack]

Strict veganism makes me happiest yet being in a world where it is so strongly opposed has lead me eat dairy and some meat that makes me sad. It just doesnt align with who I consider the real me, the happy me.

Then you know what your tolerance and boundaries are. You should strive to live in accordance with those principles as much as possible, if that's possible. I find allowing myself an exception here and there, but sticking with it 98% of the time, which still means making sacrifices, putting myself in socially awkward positions, getting made fun of, being ostracized once in a while, and sometimes feeling like an outcast, works for me. 98% of the time is pretty close to 100%, so don't think I'm not making sacrifices to get there. I make exceptions mostly for my family situation, which I won't go into here. I choose to be openly honest about it. That works for me. You have to live what works for you. My point is that some people find 100% overly demanding and they think that 98% or 90% is some kind of humiliating personal failure. It's not. I've seen people revert back to their old lifestyle if they can't uphold vegan standards 100% of the time 24/7/365. Better to allow a flub here and there than to lose it altogether. I've seen vegans pressure those trying to be vegan to never let their guard down, never allow an exception, otherwise you've "let down the movement." I think anyone who is striving in that direction - because you're right, the world puts up a lot of opposition to it - deserves praise, whether they miss here and there or not.