Introductions

[mattm]

Hi guys again, thought I would kick off things with my background to raw for those who don't know me. I'm 20yrs old, live in England and have just completed my first year of study at university on campus. I made the transition to raw after suffering from a number of ailments in my very early teens and taking an interest in the power food can have on the body. My tranition was a gradual one with first going vegetarian, then vegan, then a percentage raw vegan and finally 100% raw. During this change in lifestyle and the improvements I saw in myself, I developed an intense passion for the subject and read extensively on the subject of nutrition. I've discovered proper nutrition can almost work miralces and I really do see this lifestyle as a gift. Lately (since December) I've been consuming only green smoothies and my health has reached even greater heights...I've attained a vibrance, energy and just general love for life I never thought possible and have written extensively on the subject in past posts where I've given others support (e.g. http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showthrea...ghlight=mattm). I have a strong philosophy of LISTENING TO YOUR BODY AND DOING WHAT WORKS FOR YOU which I feel is a piece of advice overlooked even on the healthiest of diets sometimes and a few words of inspiration and thoughts of mine on this subject can be found at the following link http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showthrea...=consideration.

All the best and welcome again.

[trinity082482]

Hello there and good morning I'm a morning person too

[magglepie]

Well, 'm technically not a teenager, but I am young! Can I speak here?

[dreamrawalwz]

Well, 'm technically not a teenager, but I am young! Can I speak here?

Sure ya can! Mattm isn't a teenager anymore and neither am I. Any young adult or teen is welcome.

I guess I'll do an official introduction in this thread. I just turned 20 and I'll be a junior in college in the fall. I'm actually transferring to a college (i was attending a community college). Such a life change.

Anyway, I don't remember how I found out about raw, but I do know it was when I was searching about food allergies and intolerances. I have many intolerances so that kind of makes raw difficult, but still very possible. I've been off and on with raw for the past 4 years. Each "on" has been getting longer and the sessions "off" my food choices have been getting even better. Most of my ailments were due to food intolerances so once I cleared those up I've felt much better.

I'm finally in tune with my body's needs. It's not full time, but I'm working on it haha. I'm recovering from eating disorders and raw has actually helped tremendously, even though I still struggle. Again, it's a process. Um, my depression has gotten much better with raw too. I have more energy. Right now I'm trying to focus on more greens. I want to consistantly start green smoothies and or juices. I think for me, that's the next step to optimal health and well being.

[rande]

i'm rande, i'm 21 and will be a sophomore in college this next year. found out about eating raw probably 3 years ago now when i read "eating for beauty" by david wolfe. tried to go all raw so many times and nothing ever worked til i realized it was ok to have a gentle transition into this way of eating, and its made all the difference in the world! i've been a hundred percent raw for months at a time and am mostly/all raw at any given time now. love greens and green juices mostly! thats what makes me feel the best!
my family is all very supportive, my mom and one brother eat mostly raw. last semester my roommates were really into it too and we would sit down to a raw dinner together several times a week! it was awesome. i've really only encoutered people who are open minded about the whole thing, which has been wonderful! i'm excited to meet young people here too who are living this lifestyle full time! :)

[Pipen17]

Hey guys. My name is Pam and I'm 16. I'm fairly new to the raw thing (I will have been doing it with my mom for 10 weeks on Sunday.) So far I have lost 35 pounds...
IN THE BEGINNING: When i was 5 my dad came home from work (at poultry plant) completely digusted. So he announced he was going vegetarian. Then my oldest brother joined him. My mom then changed, my next oldest brother, then myself.
When i was ten my mom had been doing some reading on milk and stuff and decided we should go vegan. We did at home (only had soymilk around, no eggs, nothing) but when we weren't home and were offered something we knew had milk or something we'd eat it anyway. (my mom stayed strictly vegan though)
So 10 weeks ago my mom was reading about angela stokes and asked me if i'd go raw with her. I looked at the before and after pictures of her and right then and there we became 100% raw.

I've been over weight for as long as i can remember but i'm really working on it and have benn seeing weights i hadn't seen in years!
I'm not doing raw just beacuse of weight though... it just seems like the right thing you know? An instinct... One that tells me that in the long run i'm taking steps in being my own hero.

[wanderinglady]

Hi Everyone. Well I just introduced myself the other day in the other forum, but I'll go ahead and do it here.

I'm 19 and I'm going to be starting college this fall (hopefully). I took two years off after I graduated highschool and I ended going to Liberia, West Africa for two weeks in March of 2006 and this in November I went to Sweden for 3 months on a mission internship (followed by a brief stay in Paris). Now though I'm exchanging my passport for a notebook and we'll see how that goes. I intend to be a world traveler though so I'm by no means finished :).

I first heard of raw when I attended a mother/daughter conference when I was 15. One of the speakers is 100% raw and she talked a lot about it. My mom ended buying her book. We tried it for a while, but no one else in family was interested so we ended up falling away. I never really wanted to quit though and I try off and on, but I eventually fall away (mostly from lack of support I think). After finding this forum I decided to try the 30 day challenge and just really try. I do really want this and I want to start now when I'm young and I don't have any major illnesses to deal with.

Can't wait to hear about everyone else!

[LoveLife]

Hey everyone!...I just turned 24 last wk. ..feels like I should still be 19 ...some of my background..

I initially found Raw almost 2 yrs ago...I tried it at first (tho it was not Raw Vegan..it included raw meat)..I just became confused and it was too expensive..so I then decided after further nutritional reading to become vegitarian...then I became Vegan last Dec...and now I'm trying for Raw ...I have a better understanding of it now...so I think that will help...I've never had any medical problems..my only issues are with weight and a serious sugar addiction ...but I really want to be as healthy as I can so that when I'm older I (hopefully) won't have any serious medical conditions...

I became interested with nutrition and health at around 19...I plan on becoming a personal trainer in the near future...I have always been interested in psychology..went to college for a short time for that...and I believe that food and health are very much intertwined with psychology (how we think of ourselves)...when I was a kid I never liked taking medicine...I often wouldn't take any even if my mom had taken me to the doctor and gotten some (unless she made me;) )...I've always liked drinking water..and fruits and veggies...so I think Raw just seems very natural to me...I hate feeling like I'm being controled by anything or anyone (which is why I've never taken any drugs..cept drinking)...so I honestly can't wait until I don't feel controled by pop and sweets...

I got out of a VERY bad relationship last Sept...and from that I had gained a good 20-25 lbs...and lost a ton of self-esteem...so right now I'm just trying to heal myself in every way..mentally, emotionally, and physically...and I believe that Raw will help me in many of these areas...

I love to see so many of us teens and twenties on here ..this was a great idea Mattm ..and thanx for all of your smoothie help..I have started doing smoothies for a meal or two a day..and tomorrow I'm gonna try for just smoothies

And good luck..and positive energy and thoughts to all of u teens who are trying to go Raw..I wish I had found it when I was a teen..and I'm sure it can be hard if your parents aren't supportive..but good luck and RAWk on

[mattm]

Hey LoveLife, great to see you on this very special forum of ours...so happy your enjoying the smoothies...you're making excellent progress from the sounds of it and as always, any questions you have, please ask. This food is so healing, the transformations it achieves are truely remarkable and success stories I continually see described on this forum are testamant to that fact...just look at Britaniefaith's pictures (wow) or, as for green smoothie inspiration:), Bampot's success http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showthread.php?t=28245...so inspiring and there are endless more examples on this forum.

All the best.

[rawsurfer]

helloooo...
well this is cool we have our own forum now! umm, well my name is taylor, i am 18 years old, just graduated high school, and i live in sunny florida.

i have been raw for about 4 months now, and it really feels like i have been doing it for a lot longer. it is really easy for me now that i see real, incredible results. i was never overweight, but i always had to watch what i ate (even though i ate a ton) a little bit here and there... and i was definitely in the bondage of food. i consider myself pretty talented with the preparing of foods, and my mom is basically a gourmet chef, so i have loved food and eaten loads my whole life. i used to eat a meal and just be waiting to be hungry so that i could eat again. ha. i guess i have never really met a well prepared food that i didnt like.

... which is maybe why raw is so easy for me, as everything i eat is pretty yummy. i read alissa's book one night, and the next day i started and never looked back. everything really resonated with me, and i knew that this is the only truly healthy way to live. one thing that was so amazing to me was the whole sunburn issue, which appealed to me so much as i surf year round and my nose would have inevitably fallen off had i not switched to raw.

the first month or 2 (and a litle still) were kinda hard cuz i would smell meat and cheese and everythign in between, and would salivate. i read out of alissa's book daily for support. i had quit drinking, smoking, and drugs new years day so i had some experience with radical lifestyle changes, and understood that my mind will try to trick me, and that i can beat it if i immersed myself in my new lifestyle, so thats what i did. i read a lot, and i carried a piece of paper with all the reasons i was going raw for those weak moments when my forgettor setting turned on.

now it is super mellow, and i dont really eat too much. i get up usulaly at like 5 or 6, and drink water for a couple hours, and then breaek my fast with a good solid juice of carrots, beet, and assorted greens and other veggies... a couple hours later its a mellon or some other watery fruit. after that a possible salad or green smoothie, followed by more fruit, and then bedtime, sometimes accompaned by some emotional munch session that i cant seem to get rid of (althogu it is getting better).

i excersice daily, and feel great. raw food brought me so much life, and i went from being a somewhat of an atheist to a full on spiritual junkie. i meditate daily and love every moment. i wish everyone could have raw food in their life. and its so nice to have all this support. great to meet all of you, and im sorry for boring you with this extra long post. peace:)

[RawChicky]

Hi everybody

I just turned 18 and am going to a community college next year. I went 100% raw last summer but my parents didn't support me and forced me to get a blood test. We took the results to an alternative nutitionist doctor who told me I was practically dieing, a lot of my organs were failing, though I felt great and rock climbed for hours a day. He also tried to sell me all his supplements. We bought inot it for a while and they forced me off raw and to eat dairy, so I did for a little bit and I felt like shit. Then I stopped eating dairy and instead turned to turkey as my only animal product and then stopped turkey and had eggs as my only animal product, all through this the doctor thought I was being difficult and that I should eat how he said to which included "balanced meals" all containing animal products. He said butter is a girl's best friend!!! Anyway, he kept trying to force us to buy his supplememnts and my mom got sick of paying and me complaining so we finnally left that doc. and I became slowly vegan again. Now I'm back to raw and have been for 3 1/2 months. I like it a lot better, I never have cooked cravings.

I've gained about 8 pounds on raw but I was only 90 pounds before (5'3) now I'm almost 100. I also haven't been rock climbing this WHOLE time because I'm recovering from an overuse tendon injury in my wrist. It's been tough because climbing is my life, but I'll get back to it very soon, I can tell.

Anyway, enough about me! Good to meet all you guys

:)

[eatyourbroccoli]

sup guys

im 20 and i just took a year off college because i was sick. im going back to community college to do what will now be my sophomore year this fall..and then transferring to a university next year. im from chicago, but living in toronto, and moving out to boulder this august.

ive been high raw since august 2005 with stints of 100% occurring more and more frequently as time goes on

my health story is long and boring..some people whove been around know a bit about it..but if you dont youre probably better off

i wanna be myspace buds with any of u who have myspace! if u message me ill add ya since u need my last name otherwise

so cool that younger people are gettin into raw. now i just need some of u to move out to colorado

[dreamrawalwz]

Hi everybody

I just turned 18 and am going to a community college next year. I went 100% raw last summer but my parents didn't support me and forced me to get a blood test. We took the results to an alternative nutitionist doctor who told me I was practically dieing, a lot of my organs were failing, though I felt great and rock climbed for hours a day. He also tried to sell me all his supplements. We bought inot it for a while and they forced me off raw and to eat dairy, so I did for a little bit and I felt like shit. Then I stopped eating dairy and instead turned to turkey as my only animal product and then stopped turkey and had eggs as my only animal product, all through this the doctor thought I was being difficult and that I should eat how he said to which included "balanced meals" all containing animal products. He said butter is a girl's best friend!!! Anyway, he kept trying to force us to buy his supplememnts and my mom got sick of paying and me complaining so we finnally left that doc. and I became slowly vegan again. Now I'm back to raw and have been for 3 1/2 months. I like it a lot better, I never have cooked cravings.

I've gained about 8 pounds on raw but I was only 90 pounds before (5'3) now I'm almost 100. I also haven't been rock climbing this WHOLE time because I'm recovering from an overuse tendon injury in my wrist. It's been tough because climbing is my life, but I'll get back to it very soon, I can tell.

Anyway, enough about me! Good to meet all you guys

:)

I'm just wondering if your parents support you this time around? Now that you're 18 they can't force you off raw ;) I bet if they see such positive changes in you they'll support it more.

[magglepie]

Sure ya can! Mattm isn't a teenager anymore and neither am I. Any young adult or teen is welcome.

Yeah! In that case, I better introduce myself now that I have some time. I tried going raw a back in like September. I didn't make it AT ALL. Then in March I started reading more and more about it, learning more about it from a friend who is raw, etc. Then I found this site and started learning more here and decided I had to try it. And although I have yet to go for several weeks at a time all raw, I am at least high raw and I am loving it! I am trying to make it through June 100%. Although I must be honest by saying that last night I ate a sandwich and I had a bag of chips at the pool the other day.

I am pretty active (I work with kids) so I eat pretty much all the time. Except on weekends. The kids I work with are soooo fun. I graduted from college 2 years ago with and English/writing major and a theatre minor. In addition to the work with kids I also work on poems, stories, etc and knit scarves, hats and blankets for some extra money!

[magglepie]

Hey guys. My name is Pam and I'm 16. I'm fairly new to the raw thing (I will have been doing it with my mom for 10 weeks on Sunday.) So far I have lost 35 pounds...
IN THE BEGINNING: When i was 5 my dad came home from work (at poultry plant) completely digusted. So he announced he was going vegetarian. Then my oldest brother joined him. My mom then changed, my next oldest brother, then myself.
When i was ten my mom had been doing some reading on milk and stuff and decided we should go vegan. We did at home (only had soymilk around, no eggs, nothing) but when we weren't home and were offered something we knew had milk or something we'd eat it anyway. (my mom stayed strictly vegan though)
So 10 weeks ago my mom was reading about angela stokes and asked me if i'd go raw with her. I looked at the before and after pictures of her and right then and there we became 100% raw.

I've been over weight for as long as i can remember but i'm really working on it and have benn seeing weights i hadn't seen in years!
I'm not doing raw just beacuse of weight though... it just seems like the right thing you know? An instinct... One that tells me that in the long run i'm taking steps in being my own hero.

Wow. Good for you and your family! I think it is so awesome when families can enter into these kinds of things together.