Veg*n Wanna change everything upside down!

[Catayn]

Well, I really need a change in my lifestyle.
I am always sick, I smoke too much, I never slepp, I take too many pills.
Now that's enough!
I've tried many times to become a vegetarian, but I always ended up at the hospital. I had a nutritionist following me, but apparently that wasn't enough.
I've been following Atkins diet for about 2 years. I lost 35 kilos in 2 months and I've never got them back. I'm very afraid to eat fruits and get fat again. But I also don't think I should keep with it.
I'm worried with environmental issues, rather than saving animals, and my health. I believe laws around here are very hard on slaughter houses and so on. So I believe they do not suffer.
I don't eat much meat, though, I like cheese and milk. But again, you have to raise cows to get milk, right?
I have no idea how to start this. Any suggestions?
I'm also gonna stop smoking, tomorrow. It's gonna be hard because my husband smokes too and I don't think he feels like giving up.
I also intend to give up on many of my pills. I'm gonna have to face reality someday, aren't I?
Is it too much to do at once?

 

[xoLauraox09]

My step dad smokes eighty smokes a day! :O And he will *never* give them up!

 

[Piggynovice]

You need to talk to your doctor about this, not a bunch of guinea pig lovers.

 

[Tdchewy]

My step dad smokes eighty smokes a day! :O And he will *never* give them up!

Holy Cow! That's 4 packs a day! How does he have time to do anything else?

 

[xoLauraox09]

Holy Cow! That's 4 packs a day! How does he have time to do anything else?

He just does everything when he is smoking. It turned me off smokes for life! :yuck:

 

[akstrohm]

I believe laws around here are very hard on slaughter houses and so on. So I believe they do not suffer.

I am certain they still suffer.

 

[Catayn]

You need to talk to your doctor about this, not a bunch of guinea pig lovers.

I'm sorry, I thought this would be the vegetarian part of the forum. I also thought that it would be nice to get some tips from paople who are actually vegetarians, but I guess I was wrong about the purpose of the forum. I wasn't expecting such a strong thumbs down. Did I by any means offend you because I want to be a vegetarian? I'm sorry, that wasn't my intention at all.

xoLauraxo09: Oh my, that's awful. I hope he doesn't smoke close to you or people in your family! I probably smoke a pack a day, but it really depends on the day and I would never smoke near non-smokers, or my pets.

 

[Catayn]

This site sounds great. If anyone else is interested. But it's for vegans, though.

(broken link removed)

 

[JD In Van]

This site sounds great. If anyone else is interested. But it's for vegans, though.

(broken link removed)

Before making radical dietary changes, especially if one is on medication, one should ALWAYS speak to their doctor. Period.

Also, if you want to be healthy you should ask him while you're there for tips on quiting smoking.

 

[Kipsie]

I agree with the JD person over there. If a diet on the veggie side of things is cool with him (sorry for my young-people lingo), then you can take things slowly. By that, I mean eating less and less meat gradually instead of switching coldturkey (NPI, no pun intended). You can still eat cheese and milk if your doctor thinks it's fine. Some people even eat fish and are called 'pescatarian'. You can still eat eggs according to your doctor.

 

[Ly&Pigs]

You need to talk to your doctor about this, not a bunch of guinea pig lovers.

I very much agree with the above statement. While the site does support those who are veg*n's or vegetarians or those who wish to be, it is always in an individual's best interest to talk with their doctor about making these kinds of changes in their lives. You have more going on it seems than just making dietary changes. If you are on medications for medical reasons, then you should not go off of them without consulting your physician. With some medications, they need to be tapered off because you can suffer serious effects if stopping them cold turkey.

I also would also think about everything you want to do at once. It can potentially get overwhelming so you may want to take steps and do one thing at a time.

I see no where that anyone is giving you a thumbs down, they are concerned and want you to do it right and consulting your doctor would be the first step in this process. And I doubt anyone is offended by your wanting to become a vegetarian.

 

[PiggieMamaKelly]

Good for you Catayn! It's very hard to change your lifestyle so radically but I am sure you will be feeling great.

Best of luck!

 

[xoLauraox09]

xoLauraxo09: Oh my, that's awful. I hope he doesn't smoke close to you or people in your family! I probably smoke a pack a day, but it really depends on the day and I would never smoke near non-smokers, or my pets.

He smokes right beside me all the time! I have a cough nearly 24/7 :sad: The dogs do snore in their sleep because of it. But my guinea pigs are in my room so no smoke get to them at least.

 

[1frankie7]

Well Ly and JD coverd about everything else.


So Good luck, I think it's GREAT that you are try to go veggie again:cheerful:.

 

[Catayn]

Well I went to see my doctor today and tell him about my intentions. I also asked about tips to quit smoking and gues what he did.
HE PRESCRIBED ME MORE PILLS!
I just had to ask him what was the problem with him or if I was not using a clear Portuguese when I said "I DON'T WANT ANY MORE PILLS"!
Is it so hard to understand?
Is it like I'm gonna be treated as a machine forever?
Sad? Take a pill.
Stressed? Take a pill
Sleepy? oh, why don't you take a pill?
I actually still feel like taking a pill for everything, but what I want and what I should be doing are quite different things. Is it like, there is nothing I can do by myself? Am I not strong enough?
I started taking antidepressives when I was 11. Then sleeping pills. Then I had to take pills to treat anorexia when I was 14. Then because I was borderline, when I turned 17. Then for maniac depressive behavior when I was 18 ans some months later came an anti pshycotic. Now I am developing crazy phobias, and guess what, they wanna give me more pills for that. They just do not seem to be helping at all, if not making me even worse.
I've ssen all doctors and therapists I could for years and they all seem to be together in a conspiracy to keep me doped.
Anyways, my doctor does not want me out of any of my medicines. I guess he's gonna have a very big surprise when he finds out that I haven't taken 2 of them today. Ssssh...
After such I pleasant appointment I wen to see my psychoanalist (please, it's hard to spell that in English) and she just said: I think this whole vegetarian thing is just an excuse for you to hide going back to being anorexic. Now that's why I hate this kind of doctor! Wat does it have to do with anything at all?
I am SO angry! But still keeping strong, no smoking today...

 

[couchon]

I just wanted to say that the Atkins diet is REALLY bad for your health, and can cause really serious problems.

 

[Catayn]

I know couchon, but it was the only one that worked for me. And because it is so bad, I would like to stop it.
I ate a quarter of an apple this morning, I am so scared! Feels like I've gained 15 kilos. Of course not, but nobody likes to change.

 

[couchon]

Good luck! I would encourage you to read some books about how food relates to mood, sleep, etc. Changing your diet may help you in other areas as well.

Unless you plan to become a vegan or have any specific health issues that would prevent you from doing it, I would encourage you to have lots of dairy product in your diet as well. I know many people may disagree, but don't buy the low fat ones. There is some emerging research that suggest that the low-fat milk products, specifically in dairy, can actually encourage you to gain weight. Also, again, for dairy specifically, the quality is very important, as milk can absorb bad stuff (hormones, additives) very easily. Try to buy organic if you can.

One final thing, it will make you a lot healthier if you stay away from stuff like artifical sweeteners, etc. I don't know if you use them to begin with, but I just wanted to throw it out there. All in all, even though being overweight can be dangerous, what's equally if not more dangerous are the chemicals in foods. So, for example, if you are going to eat a frozen meal, don't buy one that has all sorts of preservatives. If you have an organic store, try to go there, especially for pre-packaged foods.

Again, good luck!

 

[Catayn]

Thanks!
I would like to have less dairy in my diet because my brother, mom, aunt, cousin and grandma are lactose intolerant and I don't want to take any chances since dairy seems to be what causes most cases of allergies in adults.
I don't like artificial sweeteners, I prefer having either brown sugar, or nothing at all.
I don't have an organic store nearby, but I live right across a public market and I can find some great stuff there. The only challenge would be making me eat them.
If this depends on me, I think I'll only live out of apples and tomatoes. I am very picky about food and I can't cook at all. But maybe that's a good thing. It might help me being friends with the kitchen.