One Month Mark

I've officially been following 80/10/10 for one month today! Hooray! I've learned so much in the past month, and I feel as I still have so much more learning to do. I've had a few struggles, but so far no real big obstacles. I have a feeling the obstacles will come more as I get out more and socialize.

With my friend passing I've been making an effort to see mutual friends to support them through this rough patch. I had not been intending to be so social yet but it was probably good to start because it was a huge fear of mine. I've gone to 2 restaurants so far. I didn't order anything, just brought fruit that I ate instead. I never even bothered to speak to a waiter/waitress, I was always with a big group so they probably didn't even notice that they forgot to take my order. Most of my friends know now that I'm eating this way, so they understand when I reach into my bag and start eating fruit. I've had to be a bit firm with a few of them when their joking around went too far, I'm a very lighthearted person and I can take a joke, but sometimes I just want to enjoy my meal as they probably want to enjoy theirs.

One thing I was not prepared for was a backlash on how healthy 811rv is. I've been hanging out with vegans and vegetarians, and several have been inspired by my journey and want to be "more raw" because they see how happy I am. However there have been some people who really challenge that it's what my body needs. I was shocked that several people think I'm not getting enough protein, since this is a myth that all vegans deal with from the SAD crowd. It's too bad that so many vegans have been continued to be brainwashed by this as well. I've also been challenged by several people for not buying all of my produce organic. For me it's a money issue right now and I'm really doing what I can. I had one person go so far as to tell me that if I'm eating foods bathed in pesticides, I'm not "really raw". I turned it around and told him that cow manure is used to grow produce, organic or not, so is he "really vegan"? I was hoping to get more support from people who have dealt with these struggles in their own lives, dealing with SAD folks, but it seems some people have some growing and learning to do. I want to emphasize that not everyone has been negative, there has been some really positive feedback too and that has been encouraging.

I did have one day where I was out of the house longer than I intended, I hadn't eaten enough before I left and I was in a rush so I just grabbed a few things really quickly and left. I ate my fruit, but I could tell it wasn't going to be enough and I panicked. I started getting hungry and then got a bit dizzy, I needed to eat something or leave quickly. I was cranky and stressed and was afraid I'd have a panic attack (I've had a couple lately). I told a friend of mine and she said I should go to the store and buy some fruit, thankfully we were very close to some fruit stands. I didn't want to call attention to myself, but all of my friends followed me to the store. I managed to get some more fruit, but then I had nowhere to eat it. It's cold outside and we had just left a restaurant. Someone suggested a cafe and I was very happy for it. It took a while to get settled in and sit down and in that time I got very cranky because I was sooo hungry! I had not let myself get that hungry and I really didn't like the feeling at all. As I pulled out my fruit there were some comments again and I quietly said "now is not the time" and started to eat. I felt better after some fruit, but I felt so embarrassed by the incident.

The one thing that really gets to me is the amount of planning. If this had happened to me before becoming raw I could have just ordered a big burrito and wolfed it down, and I would have had plenty of calories. Fruit just takes longer to eat, so even after I started eating I didn't begin to feel better right away. It would have been nice to have a smoothie just to ingest a lot of calories, but I can't really keep a blender with me at all times. I didn't think to ask at the cafe, it turns out they had fruit smoothies available although I'm not sure if they used fresh fruit or syrups/powders. I just don't bother looking at menu's anymore because I assume there's nothing decent they could offer me.

I want to end on a positive note. On the weekend a few friends of mine had me over for dinner. I had already been telling them about my dietary changes and they insisted on making food that we could all enjoy so I provided them with an exhaustive list of things I eat and do not eat. They understood raw (we have other raw friends) so that was really helpful, no suggestions of steamed veggies or cooked rice! I told them the easiest way to think about it was that I can eat all sweet, ripe fruit except pears, peaches and strawberries (because of my thyroid). They meal they made was outstanding and I really appreciated the effort. They did serve fats (small amount of avocado) with sweet fruit (including melons) and I noticed my stomach did not handle it well. I did not want to make a big deal about it, but I did try to gently inform them that it's not ideal for digestion. I'm so grateful to have such loving, caring friends who went to this effort to make me feel at ease. I feel truly blessed!