Hey there everyone! I'm Marah, I'm sixteen, and currently transitioning back to raw vegan:) I like to talk to people with similar interests, and felt like it'd be a great way to get to know others by starting a survey/questionnaire type thing, much like those on MySpace/Facebook, only this one all about raw veganism, so here is the product of my boredom

Who are you? (name, age, anything else you'd like to include): Marah, 16, eco friendly, tree hugging, spirituality embracing girl.
When you went raw: two years ago for the first time for about 6 months, now back to it:)

How you found raw: I'd been vegetarian for a few years before then and wanted to go vegan. Was googling all about it when I found a blog about a man who went vegetarian, vegan, and then raw for a while. Thought it was crazy but I kept thinking about it for months before finally taking the plunge.

Why you went raw: Struggled with depression for years. When my eating disorder became out of control I decided on my 14th birthday I would either restrict even lower, or go raw. I chose raw.

How you went raw: First time around I did so by basically cutting out everything and living on thawed veggies, bananas, and raw onion bread (ate like a tray a day of the stuff!) This time around I'm slowly transitioning.

Did you detox?: First time around oh my gosh yes! Felt like I had a cold and got a bit upset because I thought wait, aren't I supposed to be totally perfectly healthy? Pushed through though and then didn't get sick at all while raw:)

What do the people in your life (family, friends, etc.) think?: Parents think it's weird and wouldn't do it, but don't force feed me cooked/non vegan food. Friends don't get it, but are happy as long as I am. Boyfriend, not sure if he could do it personally but is very supportive.

Your favorite raw recipe(s): My signature salad! Mixed salad greens, one forth to half of a cubed avocado, dulse flakes, nutritional yeast, a little bit of sea salt, pepper, and cayenne. Sometimes I’d drizzle with flax oil to get some omega 3s.

Your personal benefits of going raw: I was able to become comfortable eating because I knew it was clean and good for me. That and my weight stabilized.

Tips for those going raw: Give yourself at least thirty days to see the benefits. Don’t get upset if you’re not feeling amazing, detox sucks but once you push through it’s awesome. Also, find what works for YOU. If one source says low fat and one source says high fat, try them both and see how you feel. When you become cleaner your body tells you what it needs. Example: While recovering from my ED, I constantly craved high fat high calorie options because my body needed it after being deprived so that it could recover. After a few months of that, my caloric need decreased and I found balance and was quite satisfied.