The joyful vegan How to stay vegan in a world that wants you to eat meat, dairy, and eggs
Book - 2019
Many people choose veganism as a logical and sensible response to their concerns about animals, the environment, and/or their health. But despite their positive intentions and the personal benefits they experience, they're often met with resistance from friends, family members, and society at large. These external factors can make veganism socially difficult--and emotionally exhausting--to sustain. This leads to an unfortunate reality: the majority of vegans (and vegetarians) revert back to consuming meat, dairy, or eggs--breaching their own values and sabotaging their own goals in the process. Colleen Patrick-Goudreau, known as "The Joyful Vegan," has guided countless individuals through the process of becoming vegan. Now, i...n her seventh book, The Joyful Vegan, she shares her insights into why some people stay vegan and others stop. It's not because there's nothing to eat. It's not because there isn't enough protein in plants. And it's not because people lack willpower or moral fortitude. Rather, people stay vegan or not depending on how well they navigate the social, cultural, and emotional aspects of being vegan: constantly being asked to defend your eating choices, living with the awareness of animal suffering, feeling the pressure (often self-inflicted) to be perfect, and experiencing guilt, remorse, and anger. In these pages, Colleen shares her wisdom for managing these challenges and arms readers--both vegan and plant-based--with solutions and strategies for "coming out vegan" to family, friends, and colleagues; cultivating healthy relationships (with vegans and non-vegans); communicating effectively; sharing enthusiasm without proselytizing; finding like-minded community; and experiencing peace of mind as a vegan in a non-vegan world. By implementing the tools provided in this book, readers will find they can live ethically, eat healthfully, engage socially--and remain a joyful vegan.
- Subjects
- Published
-
Dallas, TX :
BenBella Books, Inc
[2019]
- Language
- English
- Main Author
- Physical Description
- xi, 290 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm
- Bibliography
- Includes bibliographical references.
- ISBN
- 9781948836463
- Introduction: The Making of a Joyful Vegan
- Section 1. Becoming Vegan
- Chapter 1. "Don't Tell Me. I Don't Want to Know"
- Blissful Ignorance and Willful Blindness
- Chapter 2. The Awakening
- The Epiphany That Changes Everything
- Section 2. Staying Vegan
- Stage 1. Bearing Witness
- Compassion Fatigue, Self-Care, and the Voracious Consumption of Information
- Stage 2. Guilt, Regret, and Remorse
- Finding Peace and Choosing Self-Forgiveness
- Stage 3. Coming Out Vegan
- Explaining the V-Word to Family, Friends, and Yourself
- Stage 4. Evangelism and Fundamentalism
- Knowing the Difference Between Enthusiasm and Zealotry
- Stage 5. The Angry Vegan
- Dispelling the Stereotype and Understanding its Roots
- Stage 6. Finding Your Tribe
- Embracing Your Identity, Building Community, and Feeling a Sense of Belonging
- Stage 7. Finding Your Voice
- How to Talk to a Hunter (Or Anyone Else with Whom You Disagree)
- Stage 8. Stretching Your Comfort Zones
- Expansion of Awareness and Skills
- Stage 9. Finding Your Place
- Advocacy and Activism
- Stage 10. Integration and Adaptation
- Identifying as a Joyful Vegan in a Nonvegan World
- Acknowledgments
- Special Recognition
- Resources and Recommendations
- Endnotes
- About the Author