Greetings. I spend most of my time here with the horse women group but have recently become vegan.

I have been all varieties of vegetarian since my 20's and raised my kids that way. I am now 61. I joined MFP in January and have been dealing with cravings, cleaning up my food, week by week.

I started to watch pro vegan, pro organic documentaries on Netflix! Oh boy! So much I didn't know or realize Vegan, well isn't that the next logical step?

To loose weight I don't use oil or margarine or anything processed. I am eating healthy starch, as recommend by Dr. McDougall. and I am trying to eat raw about 50 %... So much easier in the summer.

Week by week I am just trying to do more healthy things. I love the idea of reversing disease! I want to be riding my horse when I am 90!

Next non leather boots for the farm! HELP!

No more wool or silk! That should do it. Oh I dream of my own farm and I will welcome rescued farm animals!

Hi! I'm Lisa & have been vegan for 7 years. I was vegetarian beforehand- since I was 16 (I'm 41 now- so it's been awhile!).
I made the plunge to go vegan because I really wasn't sure why I wasn't.... a few video clips shown by my daughter nudged me along too. It just seemed like the right thing to do!
I'm always looking for vegan or veggie friends, so feel free to add me!

Hello all! My name is Kimberly I'm happily married for almost 11 years and have 2 kiddos. I'm excited to see a Vegan group here- I feel all lost and alone as a vegan in the midwest!

I became a vegan at the age of 34 on September 1st 2012- not that long ago at all! I originally went vegan for health reasons- I suffered from debilitating daily migraines for years and was a medical guinea pig- up to 17 pills a day at on point just trying to prevent them. It wasn't working for me- just giving me fun side effects like hallucinations and randomly fainting- and who knows what else so I decided to try something different. After some research this is what I landed on.

I woke up Sept 1st and told my husband my plan- told him I'd happily keep cooking for him but I was tired of not being able to live life and enjoy my family. He said "Okay- well then we're all doing it." And from that evening on we've been doing it together. I was scared as a full blown carnivore who use to give a pitiful look and say "oh I"m so sorry" anytime someone told me they were even vegetarian- I was raised knowing that vegetables consisted of potato and corn. I had no idea how I would ever live without cheese. Yes- I was that person. So I guess I deserve all of the comments and looks I get now. All I know is- I was so wrong. This has been the best thing I have ever done for myself in my entire life. (not the best thing I ever did- i have 2 great kids and a fantastic hubby afterall). It was a struggle going cold turkey- I cleared out my fridge, freezer and pantry that night and was cooking pure vegan by lunch.

It was a surprise for my family to do it with me- the kids being 9 and 5 really had no idea until we told them a month later, and explained everything. Through more and more research and recipe testing I feel I've become very firm in my resolve to continue on this path for good. My migraines stopped after the first week- I think I forgot to mention that. And with that I also opened my eyes to the truth of the food industry and refused to shut them again. Ew. I"m happy to be now living a cruelty free life- ignorance may have been bliss for me at the time but it wasn't for the animals and it wasn't for my health. My list of items I thought I"d never live without has gone from 1000000 things to maybe 2-5. I would love to know how to make a fake french dip, where the hell we can get a good cheese substitute, and if mai wah crab/shrimp is any good- really. I need to know before I pay 80 dollars in shipping .

Originally I tried to not use many fake meat products- but my hubby has been traveling a lot the past 2 months and I"ve fallen into that fast and easy rut and feeling guilty about it. I'd like to use them no more then once a week so my current push is to get back on track with that even if the hubby isn't home. I'm thinking my solution might be to double the meals I make when he's here and freeze them for when he's gone so I can just reheat that when he is gone for the kids and I, but I've not yet put that into practice. I"m happy to have suggestions.

Thanks to the instant "but where do you get your protein" question I'm also back to a panic about if I"m feeding the kids 100 percent right so hopefully the food track here will help me calm those worries- I do know it's ridiculous but still as a mom I worry. I've had a hard time with friends- sometimes still do. I feel like I'm always defending my choice and that there is always an eye-roll thrown my way. I swear I don't even bring it up, unless asked. Though I swear I'm about to get a t-shirt made that would respond to all of the remarks I typically get: "yes you can live without cheese. yes there is protein in vegan food. yes it has flavor- probably more then yours. No, I don't care that the bible says animals were made to be eaten (does it really say that??). Yes, I know I'm fat- yes I'm seriously vegan. No, I don't think I'll become a pasty colored waif. No, I don't think my food is better then yours- I think it's healthier then yours and soooo much less cruel. Yes- there are issues with the manufacturing of soy and rain forests have been destroyed- but 80 percent of the current soy production is for livestock. No I don't eat grass and twigs . I didn't bring it up - YOU DID! " That might be much for 1 t shirt, maybe and I"m sure I missed a few.

I'm still figuring it out and this isn't the best location to do it- we don't have any vegan restaurants or groups here that I know of so I'm happy to have found this group and hope to get to know ya'll a bit !

-Kimberly

Hello I'm Sarah
I have been vegan pretty much my whole life, I have severe food allergies and I'm allergic to all animal products. I also have gone gluten free since I was diagnosed with Endo. I'm new to MFP and looking for friend with the same interests.

Hello Everyone!

I'm Kay and I've been a Vegan off and on for almost the last year. I started last summer just to challenge myself and help me lose some weight for a month. I had read the Vegan lifestyle was good for people with similar health histories as I have so I gave it a try. After that one month, I was pretty hooked, but I have recently have had a hard time staying on board. My family doesn't like me being vegan all that much and dinners or other meals with them is hard. I'm lucky enough to be single and have whatever foods in my home, but eating at family functions have been difficult and sometimes a beggar can't be a chooser. So I am here to find support, try some new food/meal options and look for ways to stay strong as a Vegan. I really do love and prefer this lifestyle. It has changed my body for the better. I have lost 22lbs so far and the adult ache I once had is now gone for good. Any words of advice and support would be wonderful.

Thank you!

I am Renee and I recently decided to stop eating unhealthy for a lot of reasons, two being a bad gallbladder and weight loss. I have been basically eating vegan for the past 2 weeks and have dropped weight when I have tried everything else to no avail. This is now a part of my lifestyle whether or not I lose my gallbladder. Since this is a new thing for me, I will need a lot of support.

Hello, my name is Cassandra and I am a 32 year old on again/off again vegan, though this time around i plan to stick to it permanently. I have a 16 month old daughter who is my world and I am vegan mostly because I want to be around to see her children and the other part is because I am against factory farming. I am pretty over weight and again, my drive for losing is to be here for my daughter. I am always looking for other vegans to network with since i don't have many around me.

Hi there!
My name is Veronica, I am 39 and vegan for 18 years for ethical (respect for animals) reasons. I live in Manchester, UK and I am Spanish.
I have been gaining weight again gradually so I have come back to MFP after a 2 year gap to have the same success I had last time.
Please feel free to add me if you are also vegan.
Cheers!
Veronica

I an new to the vegan world Jan. 2012. So far I am liking it. I became vegan for health reasons. I wasn't digesting meat and had issues with dairy. I don't think I am a true vegan, I still eat honey and other things made by animals I guess. Just no meat/dairy. I have always been a veggie lover so it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. I was forced to learn to cook however. Learning to like things I didn't think I'd like i.e. quinoa, beans etc. Love them and learning different ways to eat is kind of exciting. I look forward to sharing with this group! Maybe more learning I would guess! :happy: :ohwell:

Hi! My name is Patricia. I have been a vegetarian for 9 years. But I was eating too much crap- processed foods, carb heavy foods, oreos, chips, sweets, etc., so Oct of last year switched to a plant based diet.
I went total vegan 4 weeks ago when I started the Eat to Live plan. Cheese and yogurt addiction has been the hardest so far. To date I have been able to walk away from it with no issues.
My weight is falling off quickly since I changed to plant based. I just want to make sure I can make this change permanently, and not revert back and gain the weight back, which is what I had done in the past.