Telling your family and friends you're vegan

One boring thing of being vegan is to confess your family and friend you’ve embraced this lifestyle. You might feel you need to explain or justify yourself many times. And there are the not-so-brilliant questions you need to answer too…

" How so?"

The first thing they ask is this… How so? Why? How come?

And yes, you tell them again your reasons… ethics… health… the planet… you spend precious time telling them you’re reflected quite enough to the point you know you can make a difference. Sometimes you even believe they’re understanding you and that they will respect your views and will not treat you like radical activists that will tie themselves to a farm’s entrance. But deep dow, you know, by the expression on their faces, that’s exactly what they’re thinking.

"What do you eat then?"

Our habits and the way we’ve been raised make us stick with some very old and inaccurate ideas about nutrition that are really hard to shake. The glass of milk, the steak, the piece of fish or cheese, all tied up to the caption “proteins” and your momma telling you that all these things are good for you and that you need them to grow and be healthy. These are the main tools the food industry takes to its advantage to charge you for expensive type of food that might be even harmful to your health. The only way of fighting this is with information. A good quality one.

"Don't you eat too much carbs?"

Yes, when you thought you’ve heard it all, they throw this bomb on you. At the beginning I was astonished about how misinformed a person could be. But then, after several people asking the same, I decided I had to learn to be patient and explain everything about amino acids, proteins and plant-based food.

Do they understand you?

The answer is “no”, not at the beginning. Most of these conversations take place in a barbecue, a restaurant, when visiting friends. It’s not the ideal moment for a masterclass, definitely. They usually listen to your wise words while they wear these face “Oh, the poor crazy baby”, while they are not getting the slightest thing.

After the gathering, they’ll just comment to their partners: “Oh, you know, this crazy guy (your name) has converted to veganism? Can you believe it?”

The partner will make a condescending joke about you and they’ll forget the incident.

But... you know what?

It’s OK they don’t get it in the first attempt. The idea will be just there. The next time they see you, they will probably talk about it again. They’ll see information about veganism somewhere else and will remember you and they will probably talk to you about it. With time, they will make up their minds and start learning whatever they need to so they’ll start seeing you not as the crazy hippie but as someone who has done their research and made a conscious decision that is favorable to the planet, the animals and your health. Hopefully it goes like this. Thanks for being there.