I went vegan eight years ago, back in 2015.Â
Needless to say, it changed my life completely. I went from a pizza-eating-Coke-drinking fast food junkie to a healthy and balanced version of myself. Like, a really balanced version of myself, the one that eats tofu and salads and drinks smoothies.
That does not mean I am completely healthy. No one in this world is completely, perfectly healthy. It is impossible to achieve that state as we all live in a polluted world, eat microplastics and struggle with mental health.
But as far as my well-being goes, I am healthier than 99% of people.
No matter how sick I ever got, though, I never wanted to stop being vegan. No matter how depressed, anxious or upset I was, it never occurred to me that eating a steak could solve it. It cannot do that.Â
I am aware that many people struggle with mental health, the same as I do. Yet I wonder also how many of these people (ab)use their mental health as an excuse not to make moral and ethical choices every time they sit and eat.
Are they seeking help from a therapist, psychiatrist or a psychologist? Are they taking medicine if necessary? How interested are they in improving their well-being without going back to consuming non-human animals?
Too many individuals go straight back to where they were, without consulting with a professional or a doctor of any kind.Â
You see, I have been anaemic since I was like four years old. I literally have papers that state that and guess what, I only went vegan in my twenties. Veganism isn’t to blame for my pale skin and lips, but it didn’t help it either.
The easy thing would be to give up on my ethics and stop being vegan, right? Except that I knew there are other ways to fix this problem and I looked for them.Â
First, I went to my doctor to check my blood and see how serious it was. Then, I started eating more leafy greens. Third, I began taking iron supplements.Â
Yes, it is that easy. You just go to your doctor or a nutritionist, explain that you are vegan and would like to remain one, and then work through your health problems with their help.Â
Of course, sometimes it will be more difficult but what I am trying to get across is the fact that there is always a vegan solution waiting for you.Â
Before you stop being vegan, seek solutions and remember that everything is figureoutable, as Marie Forleo says in her fantastic book.Â
Staying vegan forever is possible, I promise.
Tanja
