My beginnings towards veganism and rawfoodism

Part 1 of 3 about my lifestyle changes!

180° switch way of thinking

From 2015, my diet and my way of thinking have changed enormously.
I started to see the world as a whole where all living beings is connected to each other and perfectly balanced. If something bad happens on one side, the other side have consequences.
I aspired to a lifestyle that fully respects the nature in which we live and belong. A way of life that respects human and non-human animals.
I wanted and wish to live in a world with more compassion and no more actions against the human body, the environment and non-human animals.

I began to see the weak points of modern medicine; the conception of the body (as a machine) and the mind (emotions) as two separate entities. Get rid of the symptoms instead of knowing the cause of the symptom, etc. I felt that I had to unlearn everything to get the best for myself and others. I decided to take my and animals well-being in hand.

During 2015, I switched from a conventional animal-based diet with many industrialized products (animal parts, cows milk product, products containing gluten, juice made from concentrate, crackers, sweet cereals, cookies, pastries, chips, fried things, etc.), to a more home-cooked vegetarian diet (for about 2 months), to a mostly cooked vegan diet containing many home-made meals, legumes, vegetables, nuts, seeds and fruits ( about 6 months), to an increasingly raw and lively diet containing more and more fresh raw fruits and vegetables, raw nuts, seeds and sprouts.

Thanks to my ethics course at Cégep de Trois-Rivières (Québec, Canada) for improving my awareness and letting me see the obvious, the unnecessary suffering we inflict on our fellow, the other animals! Back then I was already interest in ecofriendly and natural skincare products. I wanted to use non-toxic and healthy products that respect our home, the earth. I will no longer contribute to the cruelty of animal testing. The more I thought about it, the more I was feeling hypocrite not to use products tested on animals, but helping to kill them by paying someone (the butcher) to kill them for me just to consume their flesh. It was wrong than and so it is now. I became vegetarian.

Nobody desires or deserves death and suffering. taste and pleasure don't worth sacrificed lives.

Facebook groups on plant-based diet and veganism, associations and documentaries quickly showed me how deadly the industry of eggs and animals dairy was (and is). Not to mention the pollution caused by the animal "food" industry. Even though I was a cows dairy addict, consuming the breast secretions and placenta (constituting eggs) of another species was (and is) repugnant to me! Here I was (and am) a plant-based eater and even vegan, because I had already stopped buying products tested on animals and I did no longer participates in the animal exploitation of circuses, aquariums and zoos.

To know more about veganism, there's the Q&As.

On my way to rawfoodism

During 2015, I discovered the raw food diet thanks to the recipe book wrote by David Côté owner of Crudessence (restaurant in Montreal which is not raw at all any more, sale and buy). I discovered it at the Montréals Expo Mangez Santé et Vivre Vert (Eat healthy and live green expo). Rich in nuts and rather expensive, these recipes were more complex and it bothered me a little, but I was still impressed and fascinated by this diet, this lifestyle. By becoming interested in the subject, I discovered vloggers, such as Fullyraw Kristina and Thierry Casasnovas, Facebook groups like Vivons Cru au Québec (Live raw in Québec) and En santé avec une alimentation vivante (Healthy with a living diet), my favorite of all the groups I'm part of, which I am now coadministrator with Frédéric! Yeah!

Thanks to all these resources, I realized that the living food was (and is) FAR from what I was thinking: complicated and expensive! It did not have to be just about nuts and seeds, but could easily be based on mostly fresh fruits and lots of vegetables. JOY IN MY HEART! I first started by replacing the breakfast with a smoothie or just  fresh fruits. As I found it very easy, I also replaced the lunch with a raw meal; mostly composed of fruits or fruit and veggie smoothies. Then, gradually replace the evening meal too. This last part was the most difficult, but the more I discovered new raw savoury and salty recipes, the less I wanted harmful and processed food. The more I ate, the more I wanted and the more my body was begging for more. The raw food has allowed me to have even more fun cooking, eating, enjoying and even DEEPLY LOVING FRUIT!

To know more about raw food lifestyle there's the Q&As.

And you, what are your beginnings towards consciousness and health? What is your story?