Hey guys! New here :)

[Shad0w]

Hey everyone, my names Kim, I'm 17 and I'm new to the board. I've recently become very interested in the Vegan way of life, and have been a vegetarian since I was 6 so...I figure it couldn't be that hard to switch over!

[Mary]

Hi Shadow.

I answered your other thread, but thought I would say hello here as well. If you went veggie for animal rights reasons you will find it easy to go vegan, as it is the logical thing to do for an ethical veggie - though I should point out that veggies don't eat chicken and fish. I understand though that if things are anything like they were for me at your age you get a lot of pressure put on you not to offend family, and sometimes concede things against your wishes, which you would prefer not to. I wanted to go veggie at seven, and never got anywhere near it until I got going to University. So well done on sticking to your guns! That shows strength of character.

I am absolutely certain that if you hang around this board you will gain a wealth of information which will help you go vegan. Billyoffspring means it - as do I. Any questions at all that we can help you with, let us know. I am a vegan campaigner in the UK, and know perfectly well how intimidating the first steps can be. Believe me, you can do it. You are obviously a compassonate and strong person, and with a bit of practise veganism will become so much second nature to you that you will wonder how you ever ate non vegan food!

And your health will benefit immensely if you eat a really good wholefood vegan diet. Look at the diet forum for some really good ideas.

Lovely to have you here, and I hope you enjoy it.

[Renecarol25]

going off topic.. what do you say to someone who eats fish. Like I have a friend who has been vegetarian for about a year and is nearly vegan no meat, eggs, or cheese. But was recently pressured into eating fish. The person feels bad about it and has no intentions of doing it again. Not even thinking about mercury and PCBs and all kinds of poisons in fish. I can say I'm highly disappointed in them but what good does that do if they already feel miserable about it and don't intend to do it again. I know I did the same with ice cream about a year ago. Around that same time this friend had succumbed to pressure to eat meat at a party where everything had meat in it. They felt I was being hypocrytical when I was having such a hard time going vegan myself. Which again I don't think is the same thing. They hadn't been veggie long about a month and just weren't prepared for the situation. If it had been me I would've ate before hand.. brought something to snack on. Had a side salad or fruit or something to hold me over until I could eat a real meal. Eating an animal carcus wouldn't even be an option for me.
just rattling on some thoughts. What I said was.. one piece of fish won't kill you and you'd probably have to eat a considerable amount of fish over the course of at least several months for any kind of fish to cause any kind of noticable brain damage. I think I made my point eating animals (especially fish) is just stupid and think about what kind of poison you are putting in your body the next time somebody starts pressuring you.

[Mary]

Everybody makes mistakes, especially at the beginning, and if he/she feels awful about it perhaps they will realise that the guilt completely outweighs the convenience or pleasure of eating it. This will make it easier not to do it again.

I did it once, as a teenager, and got so discouraged I gave up. Sounds like your friend is stronger than I was then. Let them know it is not the end of the world, and that they should forgive themselves and move on. (Was drink involved by the way? People slip more in social situations that involve booze.)

[Rhiannon]

welcome Shadow! I'm fairly new here myself. This is a great board. Great people!!

[Strix]

renecarol25, I would say to them just what you said in your post -- eat before, bring something, etc. Just give them pointers on how to deal with those situations. Also, tell them to inspect the food and see what might be vegan and quietly ask what's in it (so as not to make a big ta-do about it), if he/she is comfortable doing so. I often eat just side dishes at functions. I usually eat before or bring something if it's appropriate.