MY VEGAN JOURNEY

When I first became vegan I was so overwhelmed by feelings and thoughts that I nearly drowned. There were just so many questions. Why didn’t I know? Or why didn’t I want to know? Why did nobody tell me? And why the hell is nobody doing anything?
I was angry at myself and everybody around me. But that’s just a natural reaction. Once you realize and understand how unfair this planet, or better, the humans on this planet treat animals you cannot remain calm.                                                    
Animals are living beings with feelings. I never thought about that while eating a chicken sandwich or tuna sushi but indeed chickens and fish do have feelings! We, humans, don’t have a hard time understanding that dogs have feelings so why is it so difficult to admit that chickens, cows, pigs etc. have feelings too!? Maybe they are not as cute as dogs, but that doesn’t mean they are worth less!
So then what is my and everybody else’s justification for eating animals that were brutally murdered although they did not want to die?
I need the energy and the protein? I am sorry but that’s a joke. There is plenty of protein in plants, beans, soy, mushrooms etc. No honestly, what is our justification for raping, cutting off bodyparts, ripping out testicles and murdering animals while they are still conscious? Farm animals suffer from the moment they are born until the moment they die! Realizing and admitting this to myself I just became incredibly angry, sad and embarrassed.

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To be true, I was never a big fan of meat, occasionally I ate chicken and salmon and well I used to love yoghurt. However, I changed my eating habits in just one night. I literally became vegan overnight. Watching documentaries for 12 hours straight, I decided I could not go on living like before. This was more or less one year ago and since then so much has changed.
My body, my soul and even my skin feels and looks differently. I have become a happier, more satisfied me. Finally, I am seeing this world with my eyes wide open and am doing what is natural and healthy for my body, my mind and my soul, not just pretending to, but genuinely loving all the creatures around me and nourishing my body with plants, fruits, grains, rice, pasta, nuts and so much more natural delicious foods.
 
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want to blame anybody for not being vegan, I totally understand that it is hard in nowadays meat-eating society to go vegan. Lots of my close friends are vegetarians or not even that. In my opinion becoming vegan is a process that can hardly be done overnight, especially for people with habits of eating a lot of meat. Nonetheless, I strongly encourage everybody to inform yourself about veganism and all the benefits that is brings with it. Step by step you can try to eat less meat until you finally realize you do not need it in your diet at all.

There are lots of great videos, documentaries and books out there to get to know more about veganism. My favourites are: 
Beyond Carnism and towards Rational, Authentic Food Choices by Melanie Joy 
101 Reasons to go vegan by James Wildman 
Meet your Meat, Full Version, All Parts
Best Speech you will ever hear by Gary Yourofsky
Cowspiracy by Kip Andersen

The videos are different in nature, some are more focused on environmental issues, some more on animal rights and others on health issues. Which ever one you decide to watch, you can be sure that it will make you think and reflect a lot. You don’t need to be vegan to watch them, but it is always worth widening your horizon. I will put the links of the videos in the comments below.
Also there are great books about veganism, Skinny Bitch by Rory Freedman is a very funny, easy-to-read book that I definitely recommend to anybody interested in the topic. Currently, I am reading Peace Food by Rüdiger Dahlke, mainly talking about the health benefits of veganism and about studies proving that meat consumption is bad for both, body and mind. There are so many delicious meat and dairy-free recipes out there, I promise you won't regret trying some of them.
Also, if you are thinking about going vegetarian or vegan and have doubts about anything don’t hesitate to contact me via e-mail, Twitter or Instagram, I am happy to help where I can. ​