I want to eat meat after 10 years of vegetarianism/veganism

[Iwantasteak]

Another thread running right now has inspired this but I've been thinking about this for a while now. I feel so guilty to say that I'm considering going back to eating meat.

I have been a vegetarian and then a vegan since early teens and I feel like it's a part of my personality at this point. I don't know how people who know me will react, it would be so embarrassing to tell people.

I have a baby, who I'm not raising vegetarian, and I want to eat family meals together. I've also just been getting random cravings for meat and the eggs I let myself eat during pregnancy. I cooked a pork chop yesterday for my baby to have BLW style and it smelled so good. She loved it too.

Maybe there would be health benefits too? I don't know, I haven't eaten meat in so long that I don't remember what it's like.

I want a tuna baked potato.
I want fried eggs/dippy eggs.
I want a steak.
I want an egg salad sandwich.
I want a pork chop.
I want a proper roast dinner.
I want a chicken salad.
I want some haribo.

There’s a big difference between vegan and plant based eating but more people seem to think they are interchangeable these days. They’re not.

Just to say, hope not rude but is she taking supplements? I’ve been reading about bone health after having some issues and the teen years are the most important apparently for the formation of strong bones, affecting us even much later in life. I was a vegetarian (and a dieter) in those years, didn’t think much about the nutrients I was missing out on and now believe it contributed to my poor bone health decades later.

Kindly- no one cares/will care

I'm veggie not vegan and there is a big difference in food choice. If your choice not to eat meat is your choice then you can change your mind. I always choose quality though. My DC were brought up eating meat and fish, but will eat veggie if I am cooking!!

I’m vegan purely because I don’t want to eat the animals I really love , I don’t want to be a hypocrite , my children all eat meat and I still cook it for my 13 year old as it’s what she wants. Yes I try and buy higher welfare and I don’t like that I buy it , but it’s my choice to not eat it and it’s not my job to force how I feel on anyone else.
i don’t know about cravings as such because I see the animal rather than the food ,
you can only do what’s best for you and what you can do for your own peace of mind.

Do want you want to do. Other peoples judgement means nothing. I’ve been veggie for 25 years. Didnt bring my DD up to be one because it wasn’t my choice to make. I’m still happy with the choice I made but that’s my business and no one else’s. You do what feels right for you.

Oh a point I meant to make. Eating meat again might screw with your stomach and bowels for a bit.

Hi OP, late to the thread but I left veganism after about 8 years total. Was worried I'd be judged by family but no such thing happened, they couldn't have cared less and were relieved as we could share more experiences together tbh. Went to pescararian for several months which made the mental transition/acceptability easier and now eat dairy, eggs & meat (wild caught or organically raised from a farm near us after visiting it ourselves - they do exist and the animals are genuinely much better cared for than commercial farms).

Good luck with whatever your decision is, I doubt many people will care (in my experience most people assume that individuals cheat on these ethical diets on their own anyway!) and if they ask why you can make up some vague reason like digestion issues or an insensitivity to soy making keeping the lifestyle healthily hard.

DD went vegetarian as a teen, it was a right faff cooking the family meals as a result for ages. One day we were out for a meal and she just started eating one of the meat dishes (it was a sharing kind of meal). Said she fancied it. I was delighted as I’d been worried about her nutrition.

Just go for it. If anyone comments you can say you’ve read about how unsustainable all that almond milk/avocado farming/etc is and decided to eat responsibly-farmed meat occasionally

this is when i stopped being vegetarian, when i had a baby, a dh and me and wanted family meals

Why would prawns or chicken make her any less unwell than red meat? She hasn’t eaten any of it in decades

Chicken is the easiest meat on the stomach, less rich, less fatty than red meat. Prawns similar, assuming no allergies. White fish also. Eaten in small quantities to start would be less of a shock to her digestive system than the red meat she's craving.

Thanks all! I've since introduced animal products, including chicken, red meat and fish, and thankfully not had any digestion problems. I'm feeling really good about it, although, the first few mouthfuls were very hard.

It does feel like a weight has been lifted, not having to constantly check labels and put so much thought into what I'm eating is very freeing.