Becoming a vegetarian was something that weighed on my mind a lot these past couple of years. I would go off on rants how terrible it was and then continue eating meat as if I didn't care.
It all happened when I saw a video of men abusing cows at a Dairy Farm. I thought wow what a bunch of terrible people and said "that would never happen in Canada." I soon found out that that video not only was shot in Canada, but was shot in my hometown. I couldn't believe that happened and thought for sure these men are going to jail. Since then I started following Mercy for Animals.
The more information I learned from following them the worse I felt. I soon realized that the amount of humane farms in the world are pretty slim unless you do your research and visit the local farms to make sure, but I was past that. It suddenly became obvious - why the hell am I so upset with all of these farm animals getting abused and getting killed - but ok with eating them? Why is the life of all of these animals only worth a meal for me?
On New Years Eve I decided I'd get myself a meat lovers pizza as a farewell. I figured I'd try being a vegetarian out for a month no strings attached - this was a huge deal for me! It wasn't like I was a massive meat eater but I just had no idea what it was going to be like...
That month was hilarious. I thought I was adventurous with food but I literally ate the same things I would have with meat - but with the meat taken out. If you think vegetarians are always healthy think again! I don't think I ate a vegetable for the first 2 weeks! There was a lot of cheese pizza's and kraft dinner. (NSFVegans) After the two weeks of vegetarian crap I started eating real vegetables, rice, fruit and a lot of peanut butter.🍍🍌
Well it's November 28th and I'm still meat-free! After the month I had no urge to consume chicken or meat and actually got quite turned off of it. I slowly started enjoying natural foods more. Tomatoes, basil, broccoli, carrots, beets etc started tasting better. I didn't need bacon or chicken to add to something- I just filled my meals with more flavourful items. I also quickly noticed that I had NO MORE STOMACH ACHES! Since I was born I've always had stomach aches, I've been through hundreds of tests and doctors could never find out what's wrong. All I had to do was stop eating meat!
After the month of being a vegetarian I decided to be a Pescetarian which means I don't eat meat or chicken but I do eat seafood. I only want to eat things that I could get on my own. I would never ever kill a pig because I love pigs - so why would I eat them? I would and have fished before.
I respect other peoples decision to eat whatever they want and in this year I haven't got into any arguments about it. My fiance still eats meat and that's totally up to him. I would never push anyone to do anything unless they wanted to.
There is however some things that still bug me - like the milk industry. I try my best to limit the amount of milk I consume - almond milk, soy lattes and sometimes even vegan cheese. That part of it is the hard part for me but I'm so glad I made the decision to become a vegetarian and I couldn't be happier!
If anyone reading this suffers from IBS or any kind of stomach issues - I urge you to try either limiting your meat/chicken intake or try the month challenge of being a vegetarian. Anyone can try a month no strings attached - it's also a fun challenge to switch up your meals and make it more interesting.
A new month is just around the corner - Do you think you could do it?
