Expansion of Awareness and Skills
What can take place without change? What then is more pleasing or more suitable to the universal nature? And can you take a hot bath unless the wood for the fire undergoes a change? And can you be nourished unless the food undergoes a change? And can anything else that is useful be accomplished without change? Do you not see then that for yourself also to change is just the same, and equally necessary for the universal nature?
—Marcus Aurelius, Meditations
T here’s no denying that becoming vegan requires a massive shift in perception and a change in behavior that most humans resist. Change is one of the most difficult things for humans to cope with—even when that change is positive—and most of us are unaware of how habit-and routine-oriented we are until we actually try to change our patterns. As a species, we naturally value comfort and predictability and find solace in the familiar, and our habits provide this—they make us feel safe and secure. They allow us to tackle everyday challenges and keep our stress levels in check by giving us structure we can rely on and rules we can adhere to. From an evolutionary perspective, habits save us time and free up our mental energy so we can focus on more complex thoughts and goals. In these ways, our habits are a blessing. They can be a curse, however, when the support they once provided becomes a crutch, a limitation, and a barrier to anything new. In these ways, our comfort zones become a prison; routines become rote; habits become addictions.
Clinging firmly to old patterns, people, and perspectives, we are terrified to let go—to change—until we’re absolutely forced to, and indeed it’s often only some kind of trauma, tragedy, or unexpected event that knocks us out of the familiar: a death, a job loss, a breakup, an illness. Some of us experience our vegan awakening despite never having sought it out, stumbling into it because of an accident, a doctor’s recommendation, or a physical ailment. Some of us go into it not just reluctantly, but kicking and screaming. We anticipate restriction, expecting to have very few options when it comes to food especially, but once we make the leap, we discover the most exciting and unexpected aspect of becoming vegan: that it naturally expands your awareness and your skills.
What you think will be a restrictive way to live and eat actually turns out to be more expansive than anything you could have imagined—in terms of the perspectives you discover, the options you have, and the actions you can take. You see yourself and the rest of the world through a much broader lens and inevitably ask, Why didn’t I do this sooner? Exploring unfamiliar territory becomes a quest, and what you thought would be a challenge becomes an adventure.
You try cooking for the very first time (and realize you like it!). You buy your first food processor or high-powered blender and experiment with new ingredients. You try new cuisines and create new recipes. You become more interested in nutrition, take a certification course, or start a vegetable garden. You begin to challenge your body in new ways—by taking up running or bodybuilding, yoga or Pilates.
The most exciting and unexpected aspect of becoming vegan is that it naturally expands your awareness and your skills.
It’s not just your behavior that changes; it’s your thinking, too. You discover new interests, you challenge old ideas and notions, and you feel your relationships with others deepen. You recognize the connections between this issue and other social issues and begin to learn about the history of the vegan and animal protection movements. If you became vegan for health reasons, you start to see animals in a new light. If you became vegan for ethical reasons, you begin to want to eat more healthfully. Although one door has closed, many more have opened; everything feels new and novel, especially when it comes to food and eating.
I’ve heard people say they don’t want to be vegan because they would get bored eating the same foods again and again, as if monotony is unique to vegans. Everyone—regardless of whether or not they eat meat, dairy, and eggs—gets into food ruts. Most of us buy the same foods week in and week out, go to the same restaurants, order the same favorite dishes, and rarely venture out of our comfort zones. In fact, research shows that because we cluster in tight, like-minded communities and increasingly receive advertising messages customized specifically to our preferences and past purchases, our tastes are narrower than ever—even though we have more options than ever.1 There’s nothing wrong with having a familiar routine and rotating favorite foods—as long as that rotation includes a variety of healthful vegetables, grains, fruits, nuts, and seeds to ensure you’re taking in the greatest number of nutrients—but we all need to make a habit of injecting flavor, fun, and diversity into our routines, no matter how we eat. And that just requires being open, which is one of the gifts of becoming vegan and one of the secrets to staying vegan.
One of the things that tend to happen very naturally when you become vegan is that your palate and preferences expand and an entire world of food opens up—foods that were available to you before you became vegan but that you ignored because you were already set in your ways. When you shift your gaze from one direction to another (from animal products to plants), you realize there are cuisines, flavors, textures, aromas, and experiences you never tried before. You discover Ethiopian, Burmese, Indian, and Thai cuisines. You’re more culinarily adventurous and try making new dishes at home. You realize there’s a vegan version of everything, including artisanal cheeses and meatless meatballs, hot dogs, and burgers—even seafood.
“I used to cook zilch before becoming vegan. I never really learned and did not enjoy it at all. Since going vegan, I’ve discovered so many new ingredients. It’s changed my whole lifestyle and even made me like cooking!”
“Another benefit to this new change is that I learned how to cook!!!”
“Once we moved into our apartment, I immediately ordered my first vegan cookbook and began ascertaining what foods would be replacing the eggs and cheese we so heavily relied on. Within weeks, I was so thrilled with how many new foods I was discovering! Not that I didn’t know what they were; I just wasn’t accustomed to eating many of them—like tempeh, tofu, seitan, parsnips, and Swiss chard.”
“Thank you for making what I thought was going to be a miserable experience into a joyful and empowering way of life. The food I have been preparing has been colorful, nutritious, varied, and delicious. I’ve never been a confident baker, but your book has changed even that! I couldn’t be more thrilled—and neither could my coworkers, who get to eat the treats I bring to work!”
“I love cooking and have found new pleasure in discovering new foods to eat and new ingredients to play with.”
“I’ve learned so much on my journey so far. I feel empowered and full of energy, and better yet, a whole new array of flavors has opened for me.”
“What I’m loving about this vegan journey is that I’m eating food and seeing recipes that are global in nature. I’m learning more about other world religions and cultures that have different dietary preferences that align with the values of eating vegan. I feel my heart is becoming more open and connected to people of other countries like I’ve never felt before.”
I often put “vegan food” in quotation marks to make the point that “vegan food” is food we already eat and love—it’s fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, beans, lentils, mushrooms, herbs, and spices. Yet because of their association with vegetarians and vegans, some of these foods tend to be compartmentalized as foods only vegans eat, especially tofu, seitan, and tempeh—as attested in some of the letters above. These foods have been enjoyed in their countries of origin—China, Japan, and Indonesia, respectively—for hundreds and thousands of years by vegetarians and nonvegetarians alike, but in the West, we don’t tend to eat them until and unless we become vegetarian or vegan. Another food you don’t tend to eat until you take the vegan plunge is cheesy-tasting nutritional yeast—aka “nooch” or “gold flakes,” as it’s been affectionately nicknamed—a nonlive yeast fermented on molasses. I had never heard of it before becoming vegan, and now I don’t eat popcorn without it. But truth be told, in the family, culture, and time I was raised in, I had also never heard of dates, quinoa, or sushi. It wasn’t until I became vegan—and thus began trying new foods and cuisines—that such delicious foods became a regular part of my repertoire. That’s not to say I would never have tried them had I not become vegan, but once meat, dairy, and eggs were no longer options, it encouraged me to explore other gastronomic realms.
“Vegan food” is food we already eat and love—it’s fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, beans, lentils, mushrooms, herbs, and spices.
As your palate expands, foods you never thought you’d try become favorites, and foods you never knew existed become staples. In fact, a lot of things you never thought you’d do become part of your routine and things you’d never thought you’d buy become counter-top favorites:
You buy a pressure cooker and swear it’s changed your life.
You make your own plant milks.
You buy a soy milk maker and try your hand at making tofu.
You make “nice cream” (“ice cream” made simply from frozen bananas).
You buy a slow cooker and an air fryer.
You make kale chips and “sweet potato toast.”
You make desserts with avocado and black beans.
You eat hemp seeds, chia seeds, spirulina, and spelt.
Quinoa becomes your go-to grain.
You drink kombucha (a fermented tea beverage).
You discover aquafaba (the liquid in a can of chickpeas, used in place of eggs in baking).
You photograph and share every meal you eat.
Again, none of these things are unique to vegans, but there’s no denying that once you venture into this world, you embrace new and novel things.
It’s not just tangible experiences like eating and cooking that are expanded; having removed a veil from in front of their eyes, many vegans talk about seeing things more clearly and feeling things more acutely. As many of the following letters reflect, when you become vegan, you tend to feel an increased connectedness not only to your own values but also with other humans, other animals, and other causes, as you recognize the links between violence against animals and violence against humans. You endeavor to reduce waste, use less plastic, and live more mindfully. Your relationships deepen, your empathy expands, and you feel more attuned to the natural world—and more inclined to protect it.
“The world looks so different to me—the awareness I now have is astounding. I’m finally living my truth, and I cannot tell you how different I feel inside and out. I have an astounding appreciation for all life on this planet and for each and every creature. I have never been happier with a choice that I have made, and I will never, ever look back.”
“I feel in alignment with my values. I’m learning to stand up for myself and my beliefs in a way that I would never have expected. I’m learning that it is okay to ask for what you want (nicely, of course!) and to have strong opinions. I’m finding my voice not just in connection with veganism, but in so many areas of my life. I don’t feel deprived; a world of choice and love has opened up around me.”
“Being vegan changes your life; you literally observe everything around you with a different perspective—through a different set of eyes. Your awareness increases, and it’s like being able to see for the first time.”
“I started out thinking this was going to be a healthy diet change, and I now truly see how very important this is for our world. I now see the connection to climate change and to the health of our planet. I am even more committed than when I started and more passionate about it than I ever thought I would be.”
“I feel like my heart opened more to my fellow humans, and I have to say this empathy developed tenfold after I became vegan.”
“Learning about the oppression animals experience makes you aware of all of the humans who are also oppressed. I truly found my humanity when I went vegetarian—and more so when I became vegan!”
As we settle into our newfound veganism, our reasons for staying vegan also expand. If you become vegan for ethical reasons, you invariably learn more about eating, cooking, and nutrition; if you become vegan for health reasons, your heart and mind open to learn about the ethics. The fact is, there are a number of doors through which people can walk to become vegan, and not all of them appeal to everyone, but once you’re in and looking through a new lens, you begin to make connections you weren’t able to make before. Willful blindness is a powerful thing; it requires us to be very self-protective and avoid seeing the forest for the trees. But once you stop participating in the behaviors that create the cognitive dissonance (that is, once you stop eating meat, dairy, and eggs), you’re able to let down your guard and become more vulnerable, more open, and more aware. What you may have avoided looking at before becomes just one more reason to support your decision. Most vegans will say that though there may have been one thing that sparked their desire to be vegan, they remain so for many reasons. And indeed, we don’t have to pick just one—we can care about many things at the same time.
“For me, the ethical component was the most important one, so I guess I would have become vegan no matter what, but thanks to your helpful advice, I also started to think about health, nutrition, and how fun it can be cooking delicious food at home!”
“Unlike other people who have written to you, I have not been a lifelong animal lover. I don’t have pets now and frankly in the past didn’t really like other people’s indoor pets. I didn’t become vegan because of my affection for animals; I became vegan because of my belief in justice. However, what’s amazing now is I can’t pass a dog walking down the street with his human companion without stopping to admire or pet him or her. This has opened up a whole new appreciation for nonhuman animals that is as surprising to me as it is to everyone who knows me.”
“I was initially motivated to change because of the shocking environmental impact of the animal agriculture industry which I had been largely ignorant of . . . then I became increasingly affected by the disgraceful treatment of animals (which I probably knew about but, like everyone else, chose to bury my head because I don’t like change). Now I feel proud to be part of a community that boycotts this horrific slaughter and astounded that it doesn’t even feel like a sacrifice. I’m loving the challenge of experimenting with new ways of cooking and feeling excited about the obvious health benefits that vegan living affords. It’s win-win, and I still have so much more to learn!”
“I didn’t truly believe in the ‘compassion’ element of changing my diet until I completed the 30-Day Vegan Challenge. I considered myself a healthy eater before the challenge and had previously cut all meat but fish out of my diet. It was more difficult to do that than to go vegan because I didn’t have any ethical ties to vegetarianism. But what happened was so surprising and enlightening: once I started taking care of my health, I was able to see the need for me to take care of our environment and all living creatures.”
You may have become vegan for one reason, but you stay vegan for many, and in fact, research indicates that having more than one reason may actually increase the chances that you’ll remain vegan. According to Faunalytics,
People who maintain a veg*n [vegan or vegetarian] diet are more likely to have multiple reasons for doing so than those who lapse. In our recent study, current vegetarians and vegans reported a broader range of motivations for their diet than did lapsed veg*ns. While a majority of former veg*ns cited only health as their motivation, a majority of current veg*ns identified a number of motivations: health, animal protection, concern for the environment, feelings of disgust about meat/animal products, and taste preferences.2
Although I do believe that people’s perspectives expand naturally once they stop eating meat, dairy, and eggs, I have noticed that people who are motivated by health can sometimes be reluctant to learn more about the ethical issues related to animal agriculture—perhaps because they feel they don’t need any other motivation since they’ve already made a huge change, or perhaps because they don’t want to witness animal cruelty (who does?). Some purposefully identify as “plant-based” rather than “vegan” to avoid being seen as sanctimonious or moralizing, as reflected in this excerpt from a letter I received: “When people found out I was vegan and would roll their eyes, I would quickly say, ‘Oh, I’m not that kind of vegan. I’m just doing it for my health.’”
Not everyone stops eating animal products for the same reason, and that’s fine, but just keep in mind that if you intentionally limit your reasons for not eating meat, dairy, and eggs, you may increase the chances that you’ll start eating meat, dairy, and eggs again. You don’t have to identify as “vegan” if you don’t want to, but there does seem to be value in at least having more than one motivation for eschewing animal products, and that may require being willing to look at how the production of meat, dairy, and eggs affects the animals themselves.
A recent study that focused on “lifestyle choices of individuals following a vegan diet for health and ethical reasons” found that people who go vegan for ethical reasons are more likely to remain vegan than people who go vegan for health reasons.3 According to the authors of the study, “Ethical vegans reported following the diet for an average of about eight years, whereas health vegans kept to the diet for about five and a half years.” While the exact reasons are unclear, the findings reminded me of a story I heard many years ago on National Public Radio about how empathy or, even more specifically, awareness that someone else suffers because of your actions is the most motivating factor when it comes to behavior change.
The study focused on which factors contributed to success when it came to quitting something like nicotine—and staying quit. The people who had the most success remaining smoke-free were the ones who had internalized exactly how their smoking hurt those they loved. The study looked at people who hadn’t had a cigarette for many years but who started desiring one not from a physical need—after all, the nicotine was well out of their bodies—but from an emotional need. Despite the temptation to smoke, what stopped them from picking up a cigarette again wasn’t concern about their own health but rather the awareness that if something happened to them because of their smoking (lung cancer, heart attack, emphysema), it would cause immense pain and suffering to their family members. One woman said she was overwhelmed with sadness when she thought of how devastating it would be for her daughter to lose her. That was enough to keep her from lighting another cigarette.
Something similar may be happening for people who become vegan for ethical reasons: they may be more motivated to stay vegan because of their awareness that returning to a nonvegan lifestyle would cause suffering to another. Of course, it’s not that people who become vegan for health reasons are selfish (a common insult hurled at “plant-based dieters”); it may be simply that they have not yet borne witness to the suffering of animals. Being open to looking and learning about how animals suffer on factory farms and in slaughterhouses may be beneficial in preventing a return to eating meat, dairy, and eggs.
To be fair, it’s not that there is no recidivism among people who become vegan for the animals. There are plenty of reasons why both groups return to eating meat, dairy, and eggs, but this one might be a clue to reducing recidivism among “health food vegans.” It’s also one of the reasons I recommend periodically bearing witness to the plights of animals. Not only does it serve as a reminder of what may have inspired you to become vegan in the first place, it can also serve as additional motivation for staying vegan—whatever your original reasons were.