Becoming a vegan? How to deal with criticism from friends/family?!

Best Answer - Chosen by Voters

Just stick to your principles.

If you were Jewish or Muslim and often went to dinners with your in-laws who were big pork-eaters, would you "slip up in your diet" in that case? Would they, knowing you don't eat pork, still expect you to eat it? Sure, veganism is not a religion, but most vegans feel just as strongly (probably even more so) about what goes into their stomachs as do those with religious dietary proscriptions.

If you were suffering from a food allergy, say gluten intolerance, and your in-laws were huge bread and pasta-eaters, would you cave in and eat what they had on the dinner table, just so it wouldn't offend them? Would they expect you to? Sure, veganism is not an allergy to certain food groups, and eating them probably wouldn't cause you any physical harm, but I'm sure (based on your posting of this question) that you will agree that it can cause you emotional distress (and this can often lead to physical symptoms).

Do the in-laws know you are now a vegan? If they do, and still expect you to eat "whatever is on the dinner table or nothing", then they need to have a good talking-to - tactfully, of course. They might not worry about what they eat, but you are the opposite. I suppose that it's not a family tradition with your husband's family, but bringing a dish or two of your own to share is a good *new* tradition to implement within the family. It will guarantee that you have something to eat, and also might tempt the in-laws to try something different.

Your friends and family, in spite of their reservations about your new dietary choice, will eventually get used to the idea. Let's face it - they'll *have to* get used to it!

Vegan!

being made to feel uncomfortable while a guest at someones house is an affront to the ancient law of hospitality. if people give you dirty looks for your diet then they are just bad people. its not about you its about them. ignore the disproving looks and glaces. ignore backhanded comments. if they are gross its not your problem.
imagine if u went out to eat with them and then started groaning and eyerolling every time they bit into a piece of meat or sipped some milk. it would be absurd. its what they are doing to you in reverse!

Don't worry about them, they don't understand. If they bring it up, defend yourself! Explain to them why you're a vegan. It's not right for them to criticize you, after all, you don't bother them about their dietary choices.

If it becomes too much of a problem, sit them down and have a talk. Best of luck!

bring your own food with you.

Watch this:
http://veg-tv.info/Earthlings

I'm currently in the same situation. Some of my family is just being ignorant about the situation. My uncle who hunts always is trying to get me back to eating meat. I try to explain to him why I am vegan but he always ignores me and makes up an excuse that doesn't even reflect on what I just said. You just have to ignore them and move on from their stupid remarks. Hopefully your family gives you vegan food when you visit them because my family tries to give me hidden meat in a dish on purpose. What idiots, right? It can be really hard dining with them on holidays too since all they make is food derived from animals. I just can't wait until I graduate high school and move far away from this stupid town I live in and go to a great college just to show them how independent and intelligent I am.

I'd say the main thing is to relax. It's OK if you're not "The Perfect Vegan" and you'll gradually learn what works best for you.

As to your family not being fully on board with you being a vegan, I think a lot of the time, people think that if you're a vegetarian or vegan you are sitting in judgement as they eat and that can make them a bit defensive. So it's probably best not to sit at the table with "Meat is Murder" printed on your forehead. However, it doesn't mean you have to eat meat to make them feel better.

I so feel you!!! I get flack for being vegan (just about six months now for me!) all the time from friends and family who just don't understand. Once I went to a social dinner where I was told there would be vegan food available only to find that every single dish including the salad had either meat or dairy or both(bacon and cheese in the salad alone). Perhaps it might be nice to invite family to your house for dinner and include some vegan items on the menu for family members to try. This is not the time to cook kale and bean balls, but to bowl them over with your legendary vegan brownies or mouthwatering stew or enchiladas or whatever it is that you make that one might not suspect is vegan. Or offer to bring along a side or dessert (or just show up with one as a thank you for being invited) that you could eat and can be shared with the rest if the family. And of course to avoid potentially offending well meaning family members, always thanking the host for providing such tasty food so that they know you really do appreciate their cooking. I find that including others in your vegan cuisine (especially as a thank you or if they aren't expecting it) is the best way to help them better understand that being vegan doesn't just mean being a picky eater or only eating twigs and berries.

Personal experience