Hello, and Happy New Year to you!
And.... HAPPY VEGANUARY! :)
Taking inspiration from Veganuary, and since veganism is something really important to me and my values, for January, I am dedicating the podcast episodes to talking about veganism with some awesome vegan humans.
Starting off this 4 part series, I had the complete joy of talking with Jackie Hunter (@_plantfriends on Instagram) who is a vegan food content blogger, based in Detroit, Michigan.
Jackie has been sharing vegan recipes and other content for around 2 years and has been vegan for about 5 years.
Jackie's Journey Into Veganism
When Jackie was in college, there were lots of stressors and weird eating habits, she had allergies and sinus problems that she’s always dealt with in her life, but with everything that was going on, she found that these problems had become even worse.
She suffered with sinus infections and allergies, and had to take lots of antibiotics which messed with her intestines and mental well-being.
Jackie decided to go to a nutritional healing centre that was nearby, and it was the best thing for her. She was advised to reduce her dairy, so she decided to go completely dairy free.
She noticed how dairy was in so many things, and then she began making more switches until she was vegan. Once making these changes, the problems with her allergies and sinuses started clearing up.
Going vegan had a huge positive health impact for her.
How Her Family and Friends Responded
The response was very half and half - some were really supportive e.g. her mum was really accommodating, but her Dad not so much – he accepted her choice but along with it came a lot of vegan jokes…
Over time he softened in the heart, and has started cutting out animal products himself.
Friends – super supportive! Many of her friends are open to exploring and going to vegan places. But they’re not vegan.
She talks about how with some friends she doesn’t talk about veganism, and they don’t tend to eat together, which feels weird to her because food is such a social thing and she feels like she misses a bond with these friends. Other friends are really curious which she really appreciates it.
This curiosity adds a layer of respect, openness and less defensiveness which can cause conflict.
Vegan Cooking Inspiration
This inspiration emerged from watching Youtube videos, seeing and hearing other people's journeys and challenges was so valuable for Jackie, supported her journey and made her realise she wasn’t alone.
Jackie then wanted to this for the people close to her because she realised not that many people around her were into veganism, so she wanted to raise awareness and connect with other vegans around her.
Once she started sharing information, and researching she found many other vegans in her area she could connect with.
She wanted to offer to other people what the people she found online had done for her when she started her vegan journey.
Challenges she Faced
Making a lot of switches in the beginning was difficult for Jackie. She didn’t feel able to make all the switches at first. Trying to find balance and be kind to herself, respecting where she was. She found it hard to find the kindness and patience.
Skincare and hair products – trying to find cruelty free/vegan alternatives to products she’d been using for so long. This was especially challenging finding hair products that worked as well for her and meant she could still feel confident and good in herself.
For her, she found the whole first year was a little shaky. You’re breaking so many habits you’d never questioned before, and it can feel like a lot at first. But you have to be kind.
Re-finding herself – this for her was a spiritual journey as well in a way.
Jackie began questioning - what did she want to replace, what did she want to let go of overall?
Delving deeper into her spirituality – something she found developed when she went vegan. She found her mind was changing and the way she was thinking about things was shifting, she was still in college so she decided to take a class called Food Energy and The Environment.
That curiosity completely changed her compassion for the world. Jackie learned so much about how products were affecting other people and the planet, unpicking consumerism and the effects of so many things.
Jackie was so taken aback thinking about her impact on animals and the environment. It made her think about her impacts on people that she didn’t see but was still affecting through her actions.
It made her want to focus on being more intentional in her actions, trying to create less waste, and changing her mindset on so many things. And with this she began to feel so much more connected to the natural world.
It made her become more empathetic and prioritise finding peace.
As soon as you challenge one of the disconnects that maybe going vegan helps you recognise, you suddenly start seeing all the other disconnects.
Following on from the Course
Jackie was thinking about her body, her health, and how her actions were impacting on the world around her.
She wanted to eat better, but not gain or lose weight. This was difficult for Jackie as her friends expressed concerns about whether she could be healthy being vegan.
It also encouraged her to try to live more sustainably, reducing her negative impact on the world.
She also began reading more!! She wanted to learn and explore so much more. Things seemed hidden, and she wanted to know more about what was going on in different fields.
Being healthy on a Vegan Diet
Eating more and understanding you will digest plants more quickly so you can eat more, more often and you won’t feel sluggish.
More well-balanced meals, understanding what foods you can get the nutrients you need from.
Jackie's Food Recommendations
-Oatmeal with hemp seeds, chia seeds, fruits, nuts, cinnamon etc. you will feel full and have lots of nutrients. Quick and simple.
Oatmeal cookies – recipe on her account – SOO GOOD, super quick and simple.
- Ramen veggies, sauce, noodles or over rice or quinoa. Veggie with random sauce type of thing.
- Cauliflower bites!! Can put rice flour on them, seasoning, then in the oven. Quick, simple and awesome.
- Mac and cheeze (stove top) noodle, cheeze, vegan butter vegan milk, frozen veggies.
- Breakfast burritos – tofu scramble, potato hash, kale. Wrap it up in foil, in freezer then just pop in the oven in the morning and it’s ready.
Super quick and simple recipes 😊
Tip – Jackie buys fresh veggies cheap from the market, chops them up at home and then freezes them so they are chopped and ready when she needs to use them.
Being vegan doesn’t mean just eating lots of raw vegetables, you want to be aware of all the other foods you can incorporate to support a healthy, nutritious diet.
Jackie found that a food journal really helped her see what foods made her feel good, when she would get hungry etc. to help figure out what her body needed to feel energised and well fuelled.
(If you have a history of an eating disorder, this could be more triggering, so definitely seek advice from a health professional who could support you in transitioning to a vegan diet without you having to focus too much on your nutrition in a way that could be triggering)
Jackie shares wonderful wisdom about how fear isn’t something we should be ‘afraid’ of.
“Fear is just something in our heart that wants attention, it’s not necessarily a good or bad thing. It encourages us to be alert and be aware, it shouldn’t cause us to stop and not do anything”
Don’t allow fear to dominate your decisions. “Sometimes we get caught up with our thoughts and our ego, but we know what we need inside of us… take a moment to be calm and hear it”
Information is just the foundation, you need to explore these things yourself see how it works for you, and not be afraid to try things.
Vegan Misconception that Frustrates Jackie the Most
That people believe the food isn’t good – crazy!!! The vegan industry surely wouldn’t be taking off if the food wasn’t good.
Also, food is seasoned with plants. All the seasoning and spices are plants!! So, of course it’ll taste good.
People can think it’s a hard, sad sacrifice, but it really doesn’t have to be.
So many sweet treats you wouldn’t even know they were vegan.
If you have one bad experience of vegan food, please don’t let it put you off and assume all vegan food is horrible! There’s so much good stuff, I promise.
Although Jackie came into veganism from a health perspective, now she would say that from the more she has learned there are many other reasons that are motivating her veganism.
She found so many things that made veganism worth it.
Advice to Those Considering Veganism
“Don’t think about it as an all or nothing thing” she advises to just make some switches, find things that you like that are vegan and incorporate them into your diet. Slowly, these changes will add up.
For example – if you’re wanting to get some ice cream, give a vegan version a try. Or even your bread, just check you’re getting one that doesn’t have eggs or dairy in it, just to see if you can like that instead. More often than not, you will like the thing that you try.
Pinterest recipes for inspiration!!
Coffee – switch the milk!!
Look for the simple, manageable switches and start there 😊
Look up a vegan pantry list before you go to the supermarket, and see what you can find in your local stores – you may be surprised by what you find! Your grocery store will likely have beans, nuts, rice, sauces, bread, veggies, lots of the staples! You can normally get these fairly cheap as well!
Don’t be afraid to speak to the store clerks and ask them for help! If they don’t have the item you’re looking for, there may even be the possibility that they can order it in for you, especially if it’s a local store. But if you never ask, you’ll never know!
Veggie broth is super expensive, but you can make your own from veggie scraps! Just freeze the scraps and use when you need.
Be adventurous!
Rather than feeling hopeless and defeated, you can feel powerful knowing you can make these changes.
“Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional”
Where we can, we should try to shift our perspectives:
“If we can change our world within, then there’s no way we’re not changing the world around us. Saving your own world will change the world too”
How Jackie Finds her Little Bit of Lagom
Jackie finds her little bit of Lagom in having her crystals with her reminding herself to be present. The energy she needs is within herself and around her.
“It helps me feel I’m not lost in the sauce, lost in the world of feeling and ideas and plans”
She finds it helps ground her in the hear and now, and bring her a peace and perspective that is so often needed.
Thank you so much to Jackie, it was an absolute pleasure talking with you and you left me feeling uplifted and filled with much more positive energy!
Additional note - I think it's super important to be more open to talking about veganism, and be respectful towards each other and where we are on our journeys. these conversations are sharing our individual experiences, but of course everyone's situation and experience is different so we need to be respectful of that, learning to be kind to ourselves and each other.
if you have any thoughts, questions, are looking for any advice, want to challenge any of the content, please don't hesitate t get in touch - you can find me on Instagram @alittlebitoflagom or you can email me alittlbitoflagom@gmail.com I'd love to hear from you :)
Warm Wishes x