Don’t Label Me a Vegan
Four weeks ago I cut out dairy, to my delight and interest of friends. But I’m don’t call myself a vegan. Here’s why.
I’ve always heard people talk about labels in a negative way. “I’m not into labels”…as in designer clothes or being associated with the traits of a group of people. I love vegans, and would love to be associated with them! However, I don’t think all vegans are equal. For example, every one has different reasons for choosing not to eat animal based products. I can think of a few off the top of my head including: respect for animals, concern about environmental and personal health impact to name just a few.
But what happens if someone tells you “I’m a vegan” and you see them wearing leather shoes? Do you immediately judge them for proudly showing you their vegan badge and deciding they don’t deserve it?
That happened to me a few times as I was telling close friends about cutting out dairy. That’s always how I’ve thought of it and described it. I cut out dairy just on a suggested 10 day challenge after attending that Tony Robbins Unlease the Power Within event, where they suggested for the next days, try to reduce your meat intake and drink more water (and other stuff I can’t remember). Since I don’t eat meat anyway, I thought, why don’t I try reducing my dairy? Two years back I watched a documentary called Forks Over Knives in which I learned how detrimental over consumption of animal based protiens (which includes dairy) was to my body. I had always known of the absolutely cruel way dairy cows are enslaved in order for us to enjoy a glass of their breast milk. So I thought this would be a great time to cut it out completely.
Even though I started with the suggestion to reduce it, I decided to just eliminate it. The results were amazing to me. I found I had more energy, I found I no longer relied on food — I just didn’t feel hungry! That alone was amazing to me. In three weeks of eliminating dairy from my diet, I lost 4 pounds. Of course I also cooked at home more and reduced the processed foods I was eating, plus I started working out. But the one action of eliminating dairy started a series of actions that led to me feeling stronger and in control.
I realized also after not eating dairy for a while, that I absolutely had a certified cheese addiction. I remember clearly wanting a snack and going for the cheese in my fridge. Melt it on chips and add some salsa for quick nachos. Melt it on salsa and eat it with chips for a quick dip. No chips? No salsa? Just melt it on a plate and eat it straight. I kid you not. And I could never stop at just one serving. I would go back again and again. What is that if not an addiction?
So as I told friends about all these wonderful results and how I cut out dairy and how great I felt the response I’d get was ‘Oh, so you’re a vegan.’ But that word would make me uncomfortable. It felt dismissive. Like someone now instantly understood every choice I had made and struggled with. But I didn’t get upset about it, I simply explained that I don’t use labels and I simply am a person that doesn’t eat meat or dairy. I’m not going to go nuts and examine everything in existence to make sure there is no trace of animal products in it. I do live in the USA of course, but I’m going to do my darnest to avoid it every moment I can and be proactive in what I choose to eat and not leave myself up to the mercy of a restaurant menu.
I was on the set of movie (don’t get excited, I was simply a background actor) where no one was fed until 5pm when filming wrapped. We did get a short break, in which the extras got things like fresh fruit chips, cereal and peanut butter and jelly and bread to snack on. I of course, brought my own food. Healthy snacks, water, hummus and carrots and and an apple. It kept me going. Everyone else around me though (and there were 400 extras in this particular shoot) was angry. They were reprimanding the staff for not taking care of them (as if they called the shot), they were bitching to each other (yeah that’s going to make you feel better). And I was offering to share my food with others, plus I felt sorry for them. Why should you go into any situation expecting you’ll get fed? And beyond that, get food that is actually good for you? Even if someone invites me to their house, I will eat before I go. I no longer want food to be the center of my social life, I want people and experiences, and I can’t do that if i’m obssessing over what to eat or stuffing my face.
I met a woman at UPW who said she ‘always wanted to be a vegetarian’. I told her not to worry about the label, that it was holding her back. She agreed and said what she really wanted was to have more veggies in her diet. So I said — that’s awesome, do that! Don’t worry about ‘being vegetarian’. That label that she was aspiring to pin on herself was creating feelings of guilt and shame and stress that she didn’t need. I didn’t want that for myself either. So don’t call me a vegan. I’m just a person that’s focused on being the best in mind and body.
