My Vegan Story
This has been a huge year for me. I made a lifestyle change that saved lives and helped spread a powerful message. 2014 was the year I became vegan (and let the world know about it!).
For my last post of the year, I want to share my vegan story and what influenced me to embrace this beautiful and rewarding lifestyle. For the first time in my life I am truly passionate about a lifestyle and am finally discovering who I want to be. I am looking forward to continuing this journey to health in 2015 and sharing my experience with you along the way.
The question that I am most often asked about becoming vegan by family and friends is “What do you miss the most?” My answer is always very simple, I don’t miss anything. It’s really easy not to miss foods that hurt you, hurt animals and hurt our planet. Once I educated myself and took the responsibility to learn about what’s in my food, the game completely changed. The real question should be “What did you gain?” I gained a purpose, sense of community, connection with nature, curiosity for trying new things, love for exotic fruits, passion for creating recipes, appreciation for health, awareness of raw foods and the list goes on.
Planting the Seed
My co-worker, who went vegan last year, encouraged me to watch the Forks Over Knives documentary. She told me it completely changed her perspective on food and health. I put off watching it for months. I was actually too scared to watch it. No, it’s not a horror movie but come to think of it, in some ways you could consider it as one. It’s pretty horrifying to learn about how damaging animal products are to your health and how much evidence there is to back it up. I guess that’s the scary part for most people, knowing the truth about your health and having to do something about it. The what you don’t know can’t hurt you mentality does not apply here. You need to know this stuff. It’s important. Very important.
One day I was flipping through Netflix and decided it was finally time to see what this documentary was all about. It wasn’t as “scary” as I had imagined it to be. That fear was all in my head. Forks Over Knives made me want to learn more, see more and find out more. The film explains how many of the diseases that exist in the world today can be reversed by adopting a plant-based diet. My curiosity was sparked, but I wasn’t ready to make the switch to veganism official yet. I dove more into researching online; Google was my best friend. Eventually, I came across several vegans on social media. I was so fascinated with this lifestyle and the community on Instagram really got me. People were posting vibrant food photos up like it was art! It was all vegan and far from boring. I wanted to be a part of this movement. Now the wheels were definitely in motion.
Time to Get Vegucated
The final push to become vegan happened when I watched the documentary Vegucated. My life was about to change forever. At this point, I had watched a number of documentaries and seen the ugly side of the food industry but I wasn’t completely ready to take the leap yet. My reasons for wanting to become vegan were initially just for health but once I saw the mistreatment of animals in Vegucated it was a done deal. There was a moment during that movie when I completely lost it. I felt their fear, pain and suffering – I thought to myself, what I’m feeling right now is magnified 1000x for these animals. I was not going to take part in supporting animal cruelty any longer. Seeing the pain inflicted on helpless animals will forever be ingrained in my memory and serves as a reminder of why I chose this lifestyle.
The world really does work in mysterious ways, the timing of everything was perfect. Lent was starting in a few days and I still hadn’t decided on what I wanted to give up for 40 days. This was a great opportunity to explore the vegan lifestyle but not fully commit to it. Commitment came easy once I began the lifestyle, there was no counting down the days until the end of Lent this time around. This lifestyle is amazing because it is rewarding in so many ways – for the people, animals and planet.
I could of course go into greater detail about all of the things that led me to this lifestyle but I wanted to write a quick overview of the different things that changed my perspective. If you’re thinking about going vegan but not sure where to start, I’ve created a list of recommended resources, books and documentaries that you can find here. Thanks for taking the time to read about my vegan journey, I’d love to hear your story!
Hi!
I’ve been following you on Instagram for a really long time but, originally it was becauseI loved your colourful pictures. I never considered being vegan because I thought it would be too hard with scho but, lately I’ve been reconsidering becoming raw vegan and where else to look first than your blog! I can’t wait to begin my journey. Thank you so much for the inspiration to do this! I will definitely watch some if those documentaries that you’ve suggested.
xx
Denver
(denver.1999 on IG)
Sorry for all the misspelling in that comment, I was trying to type it on my slightly broken phone!
Hi Denver!
WOW! Thanks so much for sharing your story with me :) I am thrilled that I can be a part of your journey. Congrats for taking the first steps towards this lifestyle, it’s so rewarding <3 Good luck love! xx
This blog is amazing! I am super interested in going vegan and want to read up on it as much as possible and your blogs have helped a lot! I was wondering if eating a lot of fruit has had any negative impacts because of it’s sugar content. I love my fruit, but is it possible that I could eat too much fruit?
Hi Emily,
That’s great you ask this, I just posted something about it on Instagram the other day. All sugar is not the same! Sugars from fruit and refined sugar are each digested very differently in our bodies. Natural sugars from fruit provide essential nutrients whereas processed sugars have very little nutritional value since it is stripped of vitamins and minerals. Fruits contain water, vitamins, minerals, fiber and phytonutrients that all work together to digest properly. It’s important not to confuse the two. I could go on, but I urge you to do some research on your own so that you feel invested. xx
I loved reading your story Amanda – our stories are so similar! I watched Vegucated first and then Forks Over Knives after amongst the others. My life was forever changed after Vegucated though.
You are such an inspiration to thousands of people and I’m so happy we could connect through this wonderful lifestyle :) The world definitely does work in mysterious ways!
Awww thank you Shannon! Your heartfelt words mean the world to me. I love that you have a similar story, those documentaries are seriously life changing. I’ll never forget the way I felt when I first saw Vegucated.. Can’t wait to see more amazing things from you girl! Thanks for being so supportive and such a wonderful person to connect with. Much love and blessings xx
Hi I was wondering if you could please make some low-fat raw vegan granola/muesli bars that would be good for a school lunch? I make bliss balls for a snack in my lunch but they don’t last the whole week without using up loads of ingredients :(
Hi Jenni!
I have been working on some granola recipes lately actually! You can get a few ideas from my Instagram page, I’ll need a little more time to get the measurements perfect but should be ready to go soon! xo
Thanks for sharing your wonderful story, Amanda! I’m sure it will inspire a lot of people to make the leap into going vegan. All the best to you in 2015!
Hi Sara,
That means so much to me, thanks for the warm wishes. I appreciate your kind words and hope you have a wonderful 2015 as well! xoxoxo
I don’t typically share my story because those that have never experienced this lifestyle would think it too weird to consider. When I began to feel really bad I was told by doctors it was menopause. My body kept telling me that the food I was eating was dead (that’s where I lose people). I tried taking green smoothies with me to work which drew negative attention. It’s amazing how critical people are of healthy food. I ran across Ani Phyo’s new book and gave her plan a spin while my daughter was visiting. Within days my daughter and I began to thrive, with energy, even and happy moods, stamina, muscle strength, satiety, and joy. That was my introduction to raw foods and a major life changing event for my daughter and me. I could write with more detail about my story which would highlight all the things that I have learned listening to my body. But for now, this is my vegan story in one paragraph!
Hi Belinda!
I can totally relate with having struggles in talking about my personal vegan journey, but I am so happy you have shared it here! What a beautiful story you have, especially since your daughter has experienced it by your side. The transition to a raw foods diet is really an eye opening experience that teaches us how much we can thrive on living foods. Thank you again for sharing! xo
Hi Belinda :)
Your story resonate so much with me because I am continually antagonised when eating in front of people whether it be dinner parties, lunches, or snacking on my healthy treats. It was so tiresome having to explain myself every time I ate. It got the point I often ate in secret so I wouldn’t have to justify menu. It’s a shame people are so sceptical when others adopt a healthy lifestyle. For some I guess it’s better to poke fun, rather than embrace. Who knows. What I do know however is how wonderful eating raw and real food is – the energy, the alertness, and even physical transformation is inspiring.
Raw Manda, your page is such a welcome blessing and the community you speak of is a gift. Nothing will every get in the way of good health, support and life! xx