I don't care if people think I'm weird

[life-in-me]

Hey all! I'm so happy that I found this forum to connect with people who have the same goals and concerns that I do! I have not gone raw yet... I'm waiting for Alissa's book to arrive at my door... but I could not wait to start getting motivated to make this change. I live in Northeastern Pennsylvania which is not populated with many health conscious people. I've tried to make the change to vegan in the past but succumbed to the outside pressure from my husband, family and friends to eat "normally." Everyone thinks you're weird and not getting enough nutrients. I tried to explain to them why meat and dairy is not good for you (or Earth) and they look at me like I'm from another planet! It's so hard because eating is such a social thing and if you don't want to eat what everyone else is eating or go to certain restaurants or hang out in smoky bars you come across as being antisocial. I just don't understand myself because I felt soooo good when I was eating healthy and I was sure I was going to continue forever. I was also exercising daily. That all stopped when the holidays came and now I'm a wreck!! I'm getting to the point though where I just don't care what other people think. I have to do what's best for my health and my well being! I also have to keep repeating to myself that I can do all things through Christ! But anyway... I would love to hear from people in Northeast PA and share ideas and recommendations on where to shop for organic fruits and veggies and other health food. Oh... and if anyone can recommend a good natural deodorant that would be awesome.

[karenisraw]

life-in-me,

Luckily, I do not have much resistance to my newfound raw lifestyle. I do know of others that have though, so you are not alone. This is a great place for you to get to know other people and meet new friends. After a while, your family and friends will get used to the idea and there are plenty of articles on this board so that you can print out evidence of the bad things about SAD and the good things about RAW. I personally get poeple who are interested in hearing about it and they are full of questions, but I have yet to have one person want to go raw too. There have been many people who are becoming more aware of what they eat though and try to eat better with more fruits and vegetables.

Do what is good for you, and just explain that it is for your health and you want to be careful with what you put in your body.

As far as the deoderant, I use either Premier Research Labs deodorant spray that contains, purified water, rice, barley and wheat extracts, apricot kernal oil, jasmine flower oil, rosemary leaf oil, and lemon grass oil. It is VERY expensive and only lasts about 3 weeks. It is $9.50 for 2 oz. It works VERY well.

I also use Desert Essence Aluminum Free Tea Trea Oil with Lavender Deoderant. It works just as well and smells good. It has Purified Water, Propylene Glycol, Sodium Stearate, Tea Tree Oil, Cocomide DEA, Aloe Vera Gel, Lavender Oil, Famesol, Chamomile, Calendula Extracts, and Sodium Borate.

Good Luck, and don't worry about people, you will always have us. Most likely, they will probably admire and respect you for you will power although you really don't need much will power because this is so much fun and tastes great!,

k
:)

[misslinda]

Welcome Life,

wow, you're ahead---already ordered the book and more power to you! :)

[PATH301]

hello life-in-me,
I order alissa's book but while I was waitng for it to come I just decided to do a test on myself. I did a grape juice fast for 5 days - I lost 5 pounds :D
I also like you began to browse the threads and learn a bunch of easy meals - Rawtruth gave me a great Idea about making 3 x 5 cards with easy meals on them.
about your d.o. question - I've been using a crystal rock for the last 3 years with great success. Some people here use honey, other s use baking soda. try going to the top of this page to where it says search and type in deorderant, and then read some of the past posts about it.
Good luck :D

[Free Energy]

Hello Life-In-Me,

You have all the support you need right here. Enjoy the journey and the friends you make along the way!

To live your life the way you choose, you have to be a bit rebellious. You have to be willing to stand up for yourself. No one can get behind your eyeballs and experience life the way you do. ~W.D.

[RowanC]

Life, it really can be hard when the people around you who really do love you just don't support you. But the thing is, they're blind.

Now, you state you are a Christian, and I'm not, but I do know a bit about the writings and I'm sure that somewhere in the Bible it talks about the wisdom of men being foolishness to God or vice versa. In other words, society has ALWAYS looked at those who try to live closer to God and to the earth as being "foolish" when in FACT it is THEY who are the foolish ones.

But you can't change other people. You can try, but you won't do it. We can only change ourselves. And we CAN change the way we respond to people who don't agree with us. We can choose even NOT to respond if we want to. This is a hard one for me, a Leo... cuz I love a good argument... but sometimes, I'm learning, it's best to just zip my lip and sit on my hands and watch to see what happens. Dang, it makes my hands and lips sore, though ::::laughing::::

My advice to you would be to get straight with yourself. To know in your heart of hearts that what you are doing for YOUR OWN SELF is the RIGHT thing; that you are not trying to force anyone else to live your way. I would tell people who are concerned, "Gee, I'm thankful that you are concerned and if I need any advice, I'll be sure to ask!" And then I'd do what feels right to me.

What will change their minds is when they see how healthy and happy you become. When your skin clears, and your weight adjusts, and you have energy and pink cheeks, they're all gonna be ASKING what's your secret.

Best of luck and strength to you! You've come to the right place. There is a LOT of support here!

[rawfigure]

it is important to car about other people but when it comes to Health issues and doing what is best for yourself well then you are on the right track...take care of your needs and all the rest will fall into place.

My dh has his children over today and made homeade pasta in my Omega 8005, for a Cooked Meal ....tisk tisk.....and I had a huge bowl of raw veggies. I eat what I want.... they eat what they want. They have learned NOT to say anything about my diet as then I will say something about theirs, always nicely of course. I am no push over when it comes to being tempted by cooked food, I am not.

Then my dh got some of my Raw Ice Cream from the Freezer and proudly had his daughter try it. My dh just loves it...and she said feel free to make her a Quart to take home. So, over time they will find things they like about the Raw Diet with out you even having to push them. I get annoyed when my dh eats my raw food I prepared ahead for the day..so now I make double cuz I know he will eventually eat it !

[RowanC]

Isn't that funny. They say they don't like it but then you have to make double. Same thing happens in my house!

I love your quote, by the way...