Reaching your goals: a non-cheesy inspirational tale from a 30 year old vegan.......

I just yesterday received a letter from my college saying that I'm a qualified nutritional therapist and that I passed with merit.  Words cannot describe how happy I feel right now (so see my picture!). It's a truly wonderful feeling to have taken on something so challenging and to have succeeded.  I had no idea doing a course could stir up so many emotions.  I just want to take a look back through my journey to this career path.

What to do with my life????

In secondary school, my grades were mostly fine and I was a fairly promising student.  I did, however, suffer from a severe lack of confidence and had no idea of the career direction I wanted to go into.  I did French, Psychology and English Language at 'A' level.  French was my strongest subject but I wasn't strongly interested in French culture and didn't know what I would do with a degree in it.  I didn't have any particular passion for English language either and so my decision to do a Psychology degree was just by process of elimination. I would always look at other people who knew what they wanted to do with envy and admiration.

I enjoyed the parts of the Psychology degree that were relevant or useful to me (self-esteem, body image, positive psychology) but there were modules that were compulsory that I had no interest in at all and I just did not make any effort.  When it came to the scientific modules I remember feeling like 'I didn't come here to learn about action potentials and synapses, I want to learn about human behaviour! this is so dull!' and I either failed or got marks in the 40s.  I got ok marks in some modules but the scientific modules dragged my overall degree mark to a 2:2.  Which makes it quite ironic that I ended up studying something scientific in the end!

After finishing university I had some vague thoughts about possible career directions but I really just felt completely lost.  I thought about perhaps doing something to help girls/women with self-esteem issues (like me!) and counselling seemed like an obvious direction to go into. I knew, however, that it would involve doing further training that would cost money I wasn't willing enough to part with for something I wasn't sure of.

Because of this, I applied for a full time position where I was working as a library assistant.  It felt good to be earning a full-time salary but I wasn't particularly passionate about the job and felt it was silly that I went to university, only to continue doing the same job I'd been doing since I was 16!  I really didn't feel good about myself and would dread bumping into people I went to school with, teachers from my school and social situations where the inevitable first question people ask is 'what do you do for a living?'

After 5 years of being full time at the library, with a bit of help from my then boyfriend, I made the decision to become a nutritional therapist. I thought it would be a wonderful combination of my passion for food and desire to help people.  I had some savings that I thought would maybe end up going towards a deposit on a flat but decided to use them to pay for my course fees.  I knew I wouldn't be able to go on as many holidays and that it would mean living with my parents for longer than I would perhaps like to.  I also didn't have it worked out how I would fit in studying with work.  I certainly hadn't saved up anything like enough money to pay for the whole course and so I knew it would mean doing the course whilst working full time.  In spite of all these potential barriers, I chose to do it anyway, because I knew it was the right thing to do and I was determined.

I had to do a science access course because I didn't have Biology and Chemistry 'A' level.  I had never enjoyed science at all in school or university, it always just felt like memorising names of 'things' and found it hard to understand how anyone could find things like the periodic table fascinating.  But I had to get past that stubborn 'why do I have to do this?' attitude. I knew I had to get on with it if I truly wanted to be a nutritional therapist and so I worked hard and got a distinction in all modules.

my brain hurts!

I had done the science access course by distance learning, which was very lonely and difficult and so it felt wonderful when I started the nutritional therapy diploma and could meet and talk to other students. I felt very excited and inspired but also anxious and uncertain about whether I could succeed.  I also felt like everyone else I met had already got an established career to fall back on whereas for me I was only getting started and so that put a lot of pressure on me to do well in the course.

I felt (unjustifiably in retrospect!) ashamed of being just a library assistant and felt like everyone else was already so far ahead of me.  Then one day we had a clinical skills weekend in which we had to show how we dealt with clients (who were actors) with different personalities.  My client was the impatient character and everyone commented on how well I dealt with his impatience. I just said that I had lots of experience with dealing with impatient people (having worked with the London public from the age of 16 and all!).  All jobs give transferable skills!

It was a truly turbulent 4 years. I had some really good marks, some really bad marks, support and encouragement from some tutors, Simon Cowell-style feedback from others, feelings of inspiration, excitement and pride and feelings of failure, resentment and anger.

yep, this was me at a lot of points!

Being in clinic for the first time in my second year was absolutely horrendous.  After the first year I felt relieved that all the really abstract scientific modules were done and I no longer needed to learn dull facts about the molecular structure of carbohydrates, amino acids and fatty acids.  I was like, 'ah, the hard part is over!' HOW WRONG WAS I! I was completely alarmed by the complexity of the cases and the sheer amount of preparation that was required for just one client.  And all the paperwork! Doing consultations requires a multi-tasking ability that I just did not possess (I should supposedly have this ability because I have 2 X chromosomes, but I just don't!). Taking notes, asking appropriate open and closed questions, active listening, making eye contact with the client, trying to motivate the client positively, remembering all the legal and professional requirements..... it was absolutely overwhelming.  

On teaching clinic days we would undertake one consultation and observe other students giving a consultation to give each other feedback.  On my first day the other two students I was observing were brilliant and it just seemed to come so naturally to them and I was just thinking 'why can everyone else do it apart from me?'.  I felt really down because I thought I'd finally discovered my ideal career and it appeared that this was maybe not so and it was too difficult for me.  I was so upset that I had a big glass of wine with my lunch that day!  I decided to go on a clinical skills workshop to get extra support and discovered that many, many other students had the same anxieties and had burst out crying after or even during consultations.  & I was like 'oh, it's not just me then!'.  After the workshop I still had doubts and I said to my tutor 'It feels like I'm never going to get there' and she very wisely said to me 'Do not think about being about the end, think about taking little steps!'

And so I did take little steps and here I am now.  I never believed I could get through it at all, let alone pass with merit!

If you haven't fallen asleep yet, the moral of the story is that you can achieve your goals if you truly are determined.  As someone who always hated science and had a serious lack of confidence (and money lol) I still succeeded in becoming a qualified nutritional therapist. Seek support from those around you, screw the Simon Cowells of this world and don't be so hard on yourself. 

You can do it! :)

Can't we just all get along? A little about vegans, vegetarians and meat eaters living in harmony.

There can often be a lot of hostility and disagreement between people on different diets but I don’t think it has to be this way.

I would often wonder why when simply saying that I was vegetarian or vegan people would often make fun, get angry or search for leather shoes or some other kind of moral inconsistency in my lifestyle.  Then I think about how I feel sometimes when someone says that they abstain from something that I eat/drink/do.

Often when I meet somebody who says they don’t drink alcohol I automatically assume they think I’m a disgrace and think that if they disapprove strongly of something I really enjoy, we have nothing in common, I feel judged and it creates a barrier.  On my course there are a lot of students and lecturers who are on gluten free diets and it makes me feel incredibly guilty that I still eat gluten, even though it doesn’t cause me any symptoms.  But when I stop and ask myself whether anyone has actually said anything judgemental about me drinking alcohol or eating gluten, the answer is no.  The feeling of judgement has come from my imagination.

For this reason, I think it’s important for vegetarians and vegans to be mindful of this when mentioning one’s dietary choice to people.  There are many people (like me!) who tend to take things personally and might automatically feel judged before you’ve even opened your mouth.

Me & my very good friend Nana who I 

really admire. She eats meat but does

amazing paid and voluntary work 

for people with mental health issues.

Obviously I do think there is something wrong with factory farming and there is a reason why I am vegan, but that does not mean that I think meat eaters are malicious people. The way I see it is there are people who might eat meat but do positive things for the world that I could never do, for example, carers, doctors, surgeons & nurses, mental health workers, social workers, adoptive parents, police, fire fighters, disaster relief workers etc. I certainly don’t think simply being vegan makes me superior to them.  Most people grow up surrounded by animal produce and I do understand that moving to an entirely plant based diet would be a very dramatic step for many. It took me several years despite not even liking the taste of many animal products.

My vegan strawberry daiquiri birthday cake lovingly made by
Maria who features in the photo at the beginning of this blog.
  She's my super-close friend of  nearly 26 years and a non-bitter ex-vegan.
She's not teetotal, just not quite the cocktail connoisseur that I am & we
don't judge each other.

If you are a vegan who feels really passionately about animal rights (which I can understand), try as hard as you can to put your judgement aside when talking to meat eaters, lacto vegetarians or ‘pseudo’ vegans.  Judging people is likely to lead to alienation and will not win you any converts. 

The important thing is to promote your diet in a positive way.  Learn to cook a few delicious vegan meals, snacks or desserts to help dispel the idea that you have to choose between tasty food and ethics.

Meat eaters do remember you’re not necessarily being judged!  If you’ve had bad experiences with self-righteous vegetarians or vegans before, don’t take it out on all of us! 

And for those few who like to tease vegetarians and vegans, those ‘carrot killer’ jokes are old, unfunny, infantile and moronic (and any such comments on my blog will not be dignified with a response!)

Me & Louisa, friends for 25 years.
Me with mushroom fajitas, her with
a steak

What me & Louisa don't have in common: I'm vegan, she'll eat pretty much anything that moves

What we do have in common: We like a lot of the same old films and TV: (Labyrinth! (how could you not love David Bowie in tights!),The Dark Crystal, The Princess Bride (we all love a bit of Westley!), Clash of the Titans (old version!), The BFG, Edward Scissorhands, Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, Red Dwarf, Peep show, Ally McBeal, Simpsons)…The list goes on! 

In general: fondness for alcohol, going to old fashioned pubs, chips! (We are real potato appreciators!) frugality & being sensible with money (she is better at this than me though!), rebellion from our parents and authority in general (when we were younger!), not wearing make-up everyday, interest in different cultures & diversity, similar political views, having intelligent conversations, liking a lot of old music from the 60s & 70s more than modern music! 

The vast majority of my close friends and family are meat eaters (but who are open to trying my recipes!) which I think proves that vegans, vegetarians and meat eaters can live in harmony. 

me and my beloved meat eating siblings

I also think it's ridiculous that in the health professions there’s a lot of advice that pretty much all will agree with (everything in moderation, more fresh vegetables, less sugar and processed food) but yet people waste time having heated debates about whether a vegan or omnivorous diet is best! Not productive at all! Does not have to be this way people!

PEACE :)

Make Cookies not war! A slightly healthier way to enjoy baked goods......

Anyone who knows me at all knows how much I adore baked goods and always have done.  In the nutrition profession they are totally demonised by some for their high sugar, refined carbohydrate and unhealthy fat content.  Rather than exclude something I really enjoy from my diet I decided to experiment with ways I could make them healthier whilst still tasting nice.  Here's a simple cookie recipe I came up with that is free from dairy, eggs, refined sugar, refined grains (bar a little bit of white flour to roll out the cookie dough onto!) and hydrogenated fats.  

They can easily be made gluten free by substituting gluten free oats and flour.  I've tried using ground millet & buckwheat flakes before and they give a harder, crunchier texture.

So here's the recipe!

Low GI Chocolate Chip Cookies

6oz ground oats (can use a food processor to grind them, I’ve used my bog-standard smoothie maker)
1oz Self Raising flour
4oz sugar (I’ve used coconut sugar which is a low GI sugar that tastes similar to brown sugar)
100g coconut oil
100g chocolate buttons
splash of milk of your choice (I used Sojade vanilla soya milk)

Mix together the oats,  sugar and blend in the fat using a wooden spoon so that it is evenly distributed.

I've used a mixture of vegan dark
and white chocolate chips here

Add the chocolate buttons

Add a small amount of milk to bind the mixture together & mix well.
Add the flour to make the mixture less sticky.  The mixture should be dry enough that you can shape it with your hands.  Take a small cookie sized amount of mixture and roll into a ball & flatten with your hands.  Alternatively sprinkle some flour out onto a clean surface, roll out with a rolling pin & cut with biscuit cutters.

mmmmm cookie dough!

Lay out on a baking tray.
Repeat process until all mixture is used up.
Bake in oven at gas mark 5 (191 degrees celcius) for 25 mins (or until they appear done!)

Make cookies not war!

I've made some heart shaped ones here to spread the message of luurve

A good look at the girl in the mirror: a little bit about being judgemental as a health professional

I must get the hang of 
this 'selfie' lark

Throughout my years on this course I’ve become really passionate about nutrition and I have such a strong drive for improving the health of the nation.  I notice that sometimes because of this I can sometimes become judgemental of other people who I perceive to be less healthy than me. 

Sometimes when I’m in a supermarket I’ll take a sneaky glance at other people’s trolleys & find myself thinking in my head ‘Man, people eat so much crap!.’ (Bad I know!) But then I think of the times when I’m glad there are self-service machines so that no one can judge the crap I’m buying!

I have to be really conscious of this because clearly I’m not perfect and when people feel judged they are less likely to be compliant. So I thought I’d take a good look at myself.

this is the kind of stuff 
I eat most of the time

10 of my positive and healthy habits:

• I eat mindfully and slowly (most of the time!) and take care not to eat until I’m uncomfortably full
• I eat plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables.
• I cook from scratch and don’t really buy ready meals.
• I see alcohol as a treat, not something to have all the time and I don’t drink until I get sick (any more!)
• I get as much as I can out of food and only supplement what I think is necessary.
• I ensure I consume a variety of protein sources daily. 
• I like coffee but I don’t have to have it and am not dependant on it for energy.
• I rarely drink sugary drinks and drink mostly herbal or green teas, kombucha, home-made smoothies, water with lemon, and dairy alternatives.
• I buy predominantly organic food when doing my food shopping.



Thai curry bursting 
with green veg 
(& nutrients!)

• I also love to exercise (not just because it means I can eat more, it makes me happy!) and do it in some form every day.

Now for some of my not so healthy habits!

Foods I eat at least 5 times per week or daily:

• Biscuits
• Chocolate (all vegan, mostly dark 70+% cocoa).  Yes, it's high in antioxidants but it's still fattening!

Foods I eat more than once per week:

• CAKE! My favourite food in the world! I ate a whole cake by myself when I was 4!



oh yeah, that's the stuff!

• Baked goods generally: doughnuts, pastries, pies, tarts, cookies mmmmmmmmmm. Excuse me whilst I make some Homer noises.

Foods/Drinks I consume occasionally (less than once per week):

•  Chips! I love chips! Especially with chilli sauce and I add salt!
•  Chinese take-aways + Chinese buffets (including deep fried things like spring rolls & I don’t ask them if it has MSG in it! don’t care!)



mmmm greasy

•  Linda McCartney sausage rolls! Really not healthy but it’s very rare I’ll eat things like this. It will be when I feel sentimental or nostalgic for something British.
• Crumpets!  
•  Scones! 
•  Crisps! I like many kinds of crisps including tortilla chips      
•  Many white flour products: French sticks, garlic bread, focaccia bread, bruschetta, vegan pizza, hard dough (Jamaican) bread.
• White pasta! (wholemeal pasta is horrible & chewy if you ask me!) 
• Alcohol! Red, white & rose wine, Champagne, Prosecco, Rum cocktails (pina coladas, daiquiris, rum punches, mai tais,) midori, amaretto, martinis, vodka cocktails, brandy cocktails, caipirinhas, sangria, Pimms, mulled wine, ginger wine, sorrel (a Jamaican rum-based drink), Port, Muscatel, ginger beer, some kinds of lager, cider…… Basically all kinds of alcohol apart from ale, tequila, bourbon & absinth.
• Sweets. I don’t eat them often at all but I really like berry flavoured sweets, cherry drops, vegan marshmallows & cola bottles.  And fudge!
• Turkish delight especially pistachio flavour! (scarily high in sugar but I make sure I burn it off!)

  

  I am partial to a cocktail, me

  
  

Quite a few vices for a nutritional therapist!

Here’s some of my other general unhealthy habits:

•  Filling up on snacks because I’m too impatient to wait for my dinner to cook when I’m hungry. I do this ALL THE TIME and by the time my dinner’s cooked I don’t want it!
• I love to eat before I go to bed at night!
• I hardly ever go to the dentist (or the doctor for that matter!)
• I wear my contact lenses all day every day (my optician always tells me off for this!)
• I sit hunched in my bed with my laptop (which I am doing right now, lol) which is really not good for the spine.  Pilates instructors would be horrified!

So in short, although I lead a healthy lifestyle I am far from perfect & I should remember not to judge other people.  

I also am not mocking anyone who eats more strictly than me.  I can understand if someone has or has had a serious health condition and needs to eat a stricter diet but I don’t believe in strictly eliminating foods for no good reason. 

I can’t promise I’ll never be judgemental again but it’s always good to take a look at oneself before criticising others.

He without sin……………

Tofu, an acquired texture............

Ok, so tofu might not have the trendiest reputation and it may be considered a hippy health food, but cooked in the right way it can be an excellent, useful & tasty meat alternative. It’s well worth giving it a chance! I refer to it as an acquired texture because I don’t think it can be called an acquired taste, as it doesn’t really taste of anything by itself but you don’t avoid eating bread because flour tastes of nothing by itself.  Marinade & correct preparation save the day!

Benefits of Tofu

• It’s an excellent source of protein particularly for vegans, containing all 8 essential amino acids and being low in carbohydrate and fat. Many of the vegan sources of protein are either high in carbohydrate (beans, lentils, quinoa) or high in fat (nuts and seeds), meaning it’s easier to make well-balanced meals with tofu.
• Tofu may be beneficial for bone health. Firm tofu is high in calcium and low in phosphorus.  Whilst high protein diets based on animal products may have an acidifying effect on the body that may impede bone health if not accompanied by sufficient alkalising foods, tofu is a protein that does not have this effect.
• Its isoflavone (a plant compound found in soya) content may help to lower cholesterol.
• The soya isoflavones can be useful for ameliorating many female hormonal health issues such as the menopause and health issues related to oestrogen dominance (Endometriosis, PMS, Heavy/painful periods, Fibroids). + it does not make men grow man boobs!

No food is perfect! Things to be aware of:

• It is believed that unfermented soya (edamame beans, soya milk, tofu, soya based meat substitutes) may be detrimental to thyroid function.  The evidence is unclear but it’s best to avoid having it more than 3 times per week if you have thyroid issues and to ensure you consume sufficient iodine from seaweeds (in moderation).  Remember that nothing is good in excess! Not even broccoli!
• Unfermented soya also contains some substances called anti nutrients that can impair protein digestion and reduce mineral absorption.  Chewing thoroughly (aim to chew each mouthful around 20 times) and eating some bitter foods /herbs may aid protein digestion. Consuming vitamin C rich foods (red peppers, chillies, lemon, leafy greens) can help to improve iron absorption.

Considerations when starting out with tofu

• Aim to buy organic or at least ensure it states that it’s not made from genetically modified soya, which is harmful to health and the environment. 
• If you’re a bit of a novice cook like I was it might be an idea to try it once in an oriental restaurant just to assure yourself that it can really be nice if cooked properly.  I was never sure if it was just a horrible food or if it was just my crap cooking. (still in this stage with tempeh!) It’s very nice in black bean sauce in Chinese & Vietnamese restaurants.
• Try to buy the firmest kind you can find for a better texture. 
• Taifun is a particularly good brand available in health food shops, Waitrose & online.  Plain & ready marinated versions are available. Plain is much better value for money but ready marinated is useful for when you are rushed for time.

5 steps to tasty tofu!

You will need: Firm tofu, cornflour (optional) 2 plates, kitchen roll & time!  Don't do this when you come home from work starving!

1. Squeeze out all the excess water (I usually press it between two plates and then dab it with kitchen roll.)
2. Cut into slices and cover with your favourite marinade (Tamari, garlic & ginger or Teriyaki sauce for example).  Leave for at least half an hour in the fridge.
3. To give it an extra bit of crispiness, coat it in a little bit of cornflour.  To do this, put about a tablespoon of cornflour in a sturdy sandwich bag. Add the tofu, hold the end closed & give it a good shake. (I once did it with a not so sturdy sandwich bag & it split and the tofu just all fell on the floor. 5 second rule!)
4.  Heat a small amount of oil with a high smoke point (coconut oil, macadamia nut oil) in a baking tray or frying pan.
5. Either cook in the oven for 30 mins at Gas mark 5 or stir fry until it becomes brown and crispy.
   

·   The tofu can now be added to stir-fries, curries or other dishes to give your meal a real protein boost.

    
  Here I've quickly stir fried some chopped leeks, courgette, broccoli and red onion, added some leftover brown rice and a touch more soy sauce.  This is quite a big portion so this will do me 2 or 3 meals depending on how hungry I am. 

    

    Nutrients galore!

Me & Veganism

the wolf is in the wrong.....

but this is acceptable? help me out here!

Although I’m not the biggest animal lover (animals actually make me quite nervous!) I’ve always been a sensitive person and the idea of eating animals always made me uncomfortable from as long as I can remember.  

When visiting farms on school trips from primary school, I always found the idea of farmers and shepherds caring for their animals as if they’re family, only to then kill them for food totally strange, akin to eating one’s own pet or the witch in Hansel & Gretel who pretends to offer refuge to the children when really she plans to eat them.  I never understood why in children’s’ stories the wolf would always be depicted as ‘big and bad’ for wanting to eat other animals but it was supposed to be ok for humans to do so.

I also never liked the idea of bringing something to life for the purpose of killing it. But it appeared to be the ‘done thing’ & there was mention of animal sacrifice in God’s name in the Bible after all so I always wondered if I was just strange for feeling this way.*

*I have since discovered there is such a thing as an ‘empath’ or ‘highly sensitive person’, which is basically the opposite personality type to a psychopath [or sociopath if you’re American].  I totally am one! for more on this see my blog:
 http://samanthathesanevegan.blogspot.co.uk
/2015/05/depression-part-2-food-mood-and.html

I was brought up on a typical British meat and potatoes diet & thought I despised all vegetables. What vegetarians ate was a complete mystery to me.  Through friends, I started to discover different ways vegetables could be prepared through trying different ethnic cuisines such as Chinese and Indian.  At the age of 16 I read a book about factory farming and discovered how horrific it was and also the hidden cruelty of the egg and dairy industries and from then on I knew I wanted to be vegan. Being a child I had no control over what food I got to eat at home but started to choose vegetarian food at school dinners.  I was still highly unfamiliar with vegetarian food on the whole and knew there was no point trying to go vegetarian if I didn’t know what I was doing. As a result I began to push the thoughts of factory farming to the back of my mind, telling myself I would go vegetarian when I went to university. 

When I did go to university I lived in catered accommodation in my first year and the vegetarian options were often really poor.  I also found that when eating out the vegetarian options were usually full of cheese which I didn’t like the taste of and was ethically at least as bad as meat. Because of this and wanting to conform, for a while I found myself slipping back into eating meat sometimes out of my own choice.  In my second year I lived in a house share and so finally had a kitchen but I really didn’t know how to cook at all & didn’t know any vegetarians who could show me the way.  As a nutritional therapy student now, looking back I am appalled at how I used to eat! Oven chips, instant noodles, bagels + very few fresh vegetables.  Back then I thought I was being good because I was at least eating fruit and drinking fruit juice!  I didn’t know how to replace the protein in meat but I started to drink soya milk & I began to venture into the vegetarian sections of supermarkets trying out different meat alternatives. 

2004: Finally meat free! But not healthy! 

I eventually went vegetarian at the age of 20 in my third year of university when I thought I knew enough meals to make although at the time I was highly reliant on processed meat substitutes and did not eat anything like enough vegetables. When I moved back in with my parents after university I was still eating some eggs and dairy.  I had never liked the taste of eggs and never bought them myself but ate them in the form of cakes and quorn products that my mother would buy for me. Having had a milk allergy and lactose intolerance as a child, dairy products had never been a major part of my diet but I did build up a tolerance to it after a while and ate it sometimes in the form of desserts, snacks and pizza.  Although I was aware of the cruelty of the egg and dairy industries I wasn’t ready to make the leap and my parents were already upset that I’d basically rejected most of the food I was brought up on.  But I continued to gradually try new foods and tried to obtain information about the vegan diet from animal charities. 

It’s hard to pinpoint the first time I tried going vegan but around the age of 22 I met another vegan girl for the first time and this inspired me to give it a go. I never found it particularly difficult taste-wise, as I have never really liked cheese or eggs but inconvenience, comfort eating, going on holiday and wanting not to be difficult at other people’s houses have always been my pitfalls.  So I’m afraid to say that if veganism is a marriage, I’ve been an incredibly unfaithful spouse and had many affairs with cake, chocolate, desserts and sometimes pizza.

The book ‘Vegan Freak, being vegan in a non-vegan world’ by Torres & Torres is great but it comes down pretty hard on half-arsed vegetarian/vegans like I was for so long.  I understand that the word ‘vegan’ should not be misused but not being able to stick to veganism is not always to do with lack of willingness to give up certain foods.  Vegans face constant criticism and ridicule and if you’re someone with low self-confidence it is difficult to be surrounded by the 99% of people who do consume animal products.  You can feel really alienated and different, which is especially hard for those who, like me, were bullied or never fitted in at school.  

I think that because the animal charities feel so strongly about animal rights they are afraid of emphasising the reality of how impractical being vegan can sometimes be.  Unless you work in central London or another vegan-friendly big city, often for lunch there will be practically nothing that resembles a proper, balanced meal you can have for lunch and so you can end up: a) spending lots of time preparing food which is difficult for people with very busy lives or b) eating something like hummus & pitta bread or peanut butter sandwiches, which is not ideal.

Also, when meeting for example, a partner’s family for the first time it’s hard to make a good impression when you say you can’t eat any of the food they have made, which is a big deal in some cultures. When you don’t know other people who are vegan it can be difficult to keep up the motivation to stick to the diet. In short, the transition can be lengthy and challenging. That being said, choices for vegans are steadily improving, I absolutely love food and certainly don’t see veganism as puritanical in the slightest!

I have since started to attend London vegan meet-ups and changed my attitude towards ‘being difficult’ at other people’s houses. On my nutrition course there are many people on diets that differ strongly from the typical British diet for example, paleo & gluten-free diets. Many people have to eat a special diet because of allergies, diabetes, weight problems, religion or other reasons and there are plenty of people who are difficult just out of pure fussiness.  Given that there are strong ethical and environmental reasons for veganism and whilst there are some foods I don’t like, there is still a very broad range of foods and flavours I do like (Chinese, Thai, Japanese, Indian, Middle Eastern, Italian, Spanish Tapas, Mediterranean food in general, Caribbean, Mexican, Latin American) I don’t see why I should feel that I am ‘being difficult!’

My 10 year vegetarian anniversary will be in November and now that I have the knowledge and correct attitude, I aim to give veganism the commitment it deserves.

Mauritian gateaux piments mmmmm