Black/White or Grey?

I've been getting a lot of questions from my relatives lately. People have fallen ill, or have friends that aren't well, and have asked me my advice on things. Knowing how I am now, their first reaction is "Should I tell him/her to be vegan?" Umm, I have no idea. I think people confuse my personal opinions and beliefs (and sometimes they are written with a very strong opinion) as gospel for health. And that's just not the case.

Look, I don't pretend to know much, I'm not a doctor, and I'm not comfortable giving medical advice to people that are ill. I can point you to information, implore you to try and educate yourself better, and make more conscious choices, but in the end, it's really up to the individual. I don't look down on anyone who chooses to believe or choose differently than I do, in fact, I respect their choices, even if they are diametrically opposed to my own.

The main reason for this is simply that each person will react differently to change. What works for me, may not work for you or someone else. It doesn't mean I'm any better or worse, just means that we're making choices based on what works for us individually, and that's fine. Now, the thing I want to stress is that so many people, my relatives included, don't make a conscious choice, and are not educated about what choices there are. They simply do what most do, live a normal life here, and sad to say, that has led to less than optimal health and wellness. Years of abuse with no conscious choices take their toll, and that's where I take a stronger stance. No matter how old or young you are, take notice of your health and wellness, make changes and experiment, see what they do for you. If they work, great! If they don't, no worries, try something else.

And by all means, keep your doctor involved. My nephew asked me if they should stop feeding their newborn son milk and bread, and I vehemently said, "No!". Not unless you're armed with enough information, alternatives, and consultation with your doctor to try. If anything, you try it for a few weeks, and observe how your body reacts, if you like how you feel, then maybe, for you, that's your answer.

Even for my immediate family, whatever they choose is okay with me, as long as it's a conscious choice. There's no right or wrong answer (vegan, non-vegan, whatever), just your conscious choice and what works best for you.

For me, being Vegan has been a godsend, probably the greatest gift and choice I've ever done for myself. I'm most proud because my Mother followed my lead, and took care of herself so well these past few months. She gave up diet soda, milk, dairy, meat (not that she's 100% extreme or anything, she just very conscious about what she eats now) and her blood pressure and diabetes issues have literally gone away or improved greatly. So much so, her doctors don't believe that she did it by diet and exercise alone, in just a few months. Her example motivates me to continue, because I want her around for a while.