How do I get my family to respect my choice ?!
Answers: My family are vegetarians.. I am vegetarian don't plan to change this but the problem is I want to go vegan. They can't make me stay vegetarian but all they say is negative things and I have to live with them everyday... any advice? Some positives about veganism would help me...... thanks.
Re: Milk
I have to address this issue first. Let's put it this way: humans are the ONLY species who eat the BREAST MILK of another species. Cow's milk is solely for the purpose of growing calves into strong cows. How weird would it be if we fed human breast milk to calves??
It is NOT for humans and our bodies do NOT properly absorb the calcium we require from it. In fact, it is quite a sh!tty source of calcium. Some sources will even tell you that it leeches calcium from our bones. Me, I'm not going to push that point because I can't say for sure, but what I will say is:
There's TONS of calcium in things like sesame seeds, soy products etc. See the link below.
So please, PLEASE don't let them get you down on the milk thing. When you think about where it's coming from, it's kinda gross and not really LOGICAL.
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As for getting them to accept your decision, the simple answer is that you can't. I have been veg for 10 years and my omnivore family STILL think I'm being ridiculous. They don't respect my decision... the easy thing for me is to BYO food when I visit them because mum loves to make a drama out of my eating habits.
You are quite lucky that your family are at least vegetarians. Chances are, without knowing it, that at least 50% of their meals are already vegan anyway so at least it's not going to be a huge inconvenience...
im a vegetarian and just say its for the animals
if they are your family they will respect your decision and move on
Tell them that just as they wouldn't want to be made fun of by omnivores, you don't want to be made fun of by them. Besides, I don't see why they have to complain. You're only cutting out milk, eggs and honey. Okay, so no more omelets or Pizza Hut but life moves on and you guys will still have 80% commonality in your diets (I hope they don't live off of milk and eggs b/c that's not healthy).
Just explain to them why you want to go vegan, and then don't make a huge deal about it. It's up to you what you eat, so just tell them and then move on with your life.
Honestly, you can't force your family to accept anything. I found a good site about a lady who went vegetarian, and then went vegan. She gives awesome, real, reasons for going vegan.
I hope this helps, and good luck.
Try googling "reasons to be vegan" and see what you get.
i don't think i have ever heard of a vegetarian not supporting someone going vegan.
just tell them that you are doing exactly what they are doing, but you are taking it one step further.
what kind of negative things do they say?
Mez, the attitude problem your family has may not have anything to do with your choice...other than the fact that you chose something DIFFERENT from their own preference. All the "positives about veganism" in the world might do no better than bug them even more. In other words, it sounds like your family is, as a group, using OSTRACISM as an attempt to control you to meet their standards.
"Differences" are generally persecuted by groups throughout the world of the living. A herd of cattle may try to run to death one of their number that has a broken leg (I saw this growing up on a ranch). A drug user who quits will find it necessary to round up an entirely new set of friends; same for drinkers, or smokers, or rebel American colonists who decide they are no longer willing to be dominated by the King of England: THOSE folks had to create an entirely new COUNTRY!
Family, of course, presents a special case: In most cases, we don't want to have to go find an entirely new set of relatives just because we no longer eat eggs (or whatever). The only options I know about (considering that you must live with your people daily, as you say) are:
1. Ignore their comments completely. With some people, this works. With others, it just makes them angrier and HARDER to live with.
2. Learn to skilfully debate the issue, NOT from a "which eating choice is better" angle (which is not actually likely to help), but from a FREEDOM of CHOICE standpoint, such as (for example):
You: "Folks, do I remember you saying your carnivorous, meat eating, cow killing ancestors were upset when you became vegetarians?"
Them: "Say Howdy! Why, the first time we mixed up a salad with different stuff in it and no steak on the side, they about had a cow themselves!"
You: "I really admire the courage it must have taken to go against that..."
Them: "Yeah, it really--HEY!" (Suddenly suspicious)
You: "Exactly. I'm really only asking the same freedom to...."
Now, WILL this help? Maybe. Maybe not. Depends entirely on the level of consciousness of your family, and no two are quite alike. But at least it MIGHT make them think over time (might)...and it very likely WILL make you feel better about surviving day by day.... If you CAN'T get them to respect your choice(s), the best you can do is to strengthen yourself.
However, part of your question did ask about benefits of veganism, so I'm including a link to some of those below as well.
Good luck with your challenge. I've had a few with my own family over the years. Other issues, but the same process. Nothing so in-their-faces as a major difference in eating choices, though--except for my refusal, from age 6, to eat sardines. Oh, and my move to a completely different religion. Um, and six divorces. And....well, like I said: Good luck!
Ghost32
u cant change others opinions....thats what they r opinions not facts.....educate urself on veganism and then educate them....i am a vegan with no vegetarian in my immediate family at all...at least u have that!....just go vegan you have the will power! its extremely healthy....trust me!
My dad was the EXACT same way, and he too is a vegetarian.
Why would a vegetarian protest against one being vegan? I myself don't know the answer to this question. You would assume that vegetarians are extremely open minded, but I guess there are occassions to every situation.
I would just tell them that they will have to accept your decision, and that you do not want to here them bashing you with dogmatic comments about why being vegan is not healthy. Hopefully they will support you (like my dad currently does).
-Good Luck