Vegetarians, help!?

Question

I've been a vegetarian for almost three weeks now, I know it's not long but, I'm proud of myself and plan on being this way for the rest of my life.

What I need help with is...

there's a woman I work with that is really rude about the whole thing. She always asks if I'm so worried about living things, then why do you eat plants, because they're also life forms. And I honestly don't know what to say to her. I don't want to be mean and tell her to **** off (even though I'd like to) I still have to work with her. If you're a vegetarian and have been through this, please tell me how to go about it. Or if you're not and think you know what I should say, I'll take it.

Thanks in advance. =]

Answer 1

I'm going to basically tell you to ignore a lot of advice you see here. If you tell her to go look at anti-meat-industry websites, or start explaining all of the ethical reasons for your vegetarianism, you're going to sound preachy. She's going to think you're judging her and/or condemning her for her decision to eat meat. That is certainly NOT going to help her back off. She probably is feeling defensive and trying to justify her own choices regarding meat.

I would simply tell her, "I don't comment on your dietary decisions, please don't comment on mine." Or you could say, "Please don't question my reasons for not eating meat. It's a personal decision and one I made for myself. I don't question your choice to eat meat, nor do I expect you to explain yourself. I'd appreciate it if you would do the same."

Of course, if you have been telling her that it's wrong to kill things for food, or offhandedly mentioning some of the nastier aspects of the meat industry while she's eating her lunch, you owe her an apology and you both need to make an effort to be more sensitive about the other's choices. (I doubt you did this intentionally, but sometimes even just answering someone's questions about being a vegetarian can come across as being preachy. I don't know why they ask, but there you go.)

Failing that, just don't eat lunch around her. Good luck and congratulations on making it through your first three weeks!

Answer 2

just ignore her and eat what you like, what does she care about what you eat ?just tell her to mind her own business. :)

Answer 3

I was in a similar situation with one of my friends. Once I shared my idea of being a vegetarian with her, she couldn't stand it. Everyday she would tell me random facts that made vegetarianism sound like a bad idea. She said that vegetarians actually hurt the enviorment because we eat all the plants and it lowers to oxygen level. I told her that she was being very rude and to do a little research before she throws her facts at me.

Try and tell this women that yes, plants are life forms, but you dont kill them and make them suffer just so you can have a meal when there are other choices. Plants are supposed to grow ( for ex. ) fruits and have them harvested. You don't shoot a watermelon plant to get a watermelon.....

and to do a little research and get proof before she throws her insults at you.

Answer 4

You could scare the living c**p out of her and talk about the horrors of the meat packing industry and slaughterhouses and mad cow and salmonella and all of that nastiness.

You could also explain the difference between a living animal or being and a living plant.

Or if she persists with it you could threaten her with a harassment suit.

Congrats on going veg.

Answer 5

Tell her to go to www.meat.org.  Then tell her that plants don't have central nervous systems and are not animals.

Answer 6

well, what made you make that decision to go vegetarian?

my pat answer (and the truth) is that medically it makes more sense.  (there are so many problems caused by white flour, dairy, and meat  AND side note SUGAR!)  

not to mention some of the ethical issues involved with animals...

by being a vegetarian you are doing the best you can for your body.  keep learning and trying new things...

good luck!

Answer 7

Ask her if she's ever noticed any HUGE differences between animals and plants. Just let her know that those differences are obvious to sane people and it's quite clear that animals can suffer and plants cannot.

Vegetarians abstain from eating animals, not "living things".

Answer 8

Congratulations!  You don't need to justify yourself to her.  If she has a problem with it, it's her problem.  You can just say that you don't care to eat animal muscles or whatever you like, but you probably aren't going to convert her.  Just eat what you like and be comfortable with that.  She'll get over it.

Answer 9

ignore the ignorant -they are like mosquitos.

Answer 10

Congrats on going vegetarian.   You've already gotten the oh-so-old "what about the plants" question.  Her animal-based diet kills far more plants than yours because those animals she's eating have to eat plants, too.  And it takes 5 to 15 pounds of plant matter to produce a pound of animal flesh.  Or you could bring in a simple biology book and tell her she clearly needs it as she doesn't know the difference between plants and animals.

And when you bring in lunch to work, make sure you bring in the tastiest looking stuff.  And enjoy it!

Answer 11

Tell her to mind her own business. Why should she care about what you eat? But if you must, let her know that plants don't have nervous systems or brains. Why worry about killing a lifeform that can't feel or think?

Answer 12

Heyyy!

I've also been vegetarian for about 3-4 weeks too! I'm loving it so much! I'm eating so much more healthier than I was before.

I did have someone say to me, "Whats the point of being a vegetarian?! Does that mean you hate every animal? You eat dairy foods, and they're all produced from animals," blah blah blah.

And I get said, "Well, My diet is completely up to me, It has nothing at all to do with you. Now, please leave it at that."

And she looked dumb-stuck and just stared after me as I walked off.

She's been nice to me ever sinse and doesnt mention anything about me being vegetarian.

:)

P.S!!  Did you know, being vegetarian reduces Cancer by  50%!!

Nikki.

x*x

Answer 13

Tell her to respect your beliefs and you will respect hers. Do this in front of others. If she keeps picking at you tell her you will  bring a harassment in the work place complaint against her.

Answer 14

I would just ignore her. She'll probably give up, eventually. It's been my experience that it's usually the case.

Answer 15

There will always be people who have rude comments you can give them healthful info on where there meat really comes from and the gruesome practice it take from "farm" (or should I say slaughter house) to plate or quote some scripture lol...............proverb12:15 i think even says we aren't to eat living things so its basically a sin people were never meant to eat meat that's why it rots and doesn't digest .............let her know all that and don't let anyone make you feel bad cause you know your doing the right thing

Answer 16

Tell her plants aren't torchered in slaughter houses & don't scream as their being murdered. You should just dare her to watch a video about what animals go through. Doubt she'd give you a hard time about it after that.

You could also mention that unlike other foods that take just a few hrs to digest, meat requires a lot more digestive enzymes to break it down. The undigested meat remaining in the intestines for almost a week. During this time the meat rots & become petrified & leads to toxic buildup which can lead to heart disease, infertility, colon cancer, IBS, diabetes, kidney stones, alzheimers, impotence, & well as other things over time.

John Hopkins just release a new letter reporting that by refraining from or eating less meat it frees more enzymes to attack the protein walls of cancer cells & allows the body's killer cells to destroy the cancer cells. It also reported that every person has cancer cells in the body. The cancer cells do not show up in the standard tests until they have multiplied to a few billion. So when doctors tell cancer patients that there are no more cancer cells in their bodies after treatment, it just means the tests are unable to detect the cancer cells because they have not reached the detectable size. The more meat you eat the more fighting cells your taking away from your body to keep the # of cancer cells at bay.

By staying away from meat you're keeping yourself healthy &  away from a lot of conditions that others have a high risk of developing. You're also saving a lot of lives since each meat eater consumes thousands of animals in their life. That's a lot of lives to save :)

Answer 17

Congrats on going veg!

If someone asks you about plants, politely explain that plants are life forms, but they're different from animals because they're not able to feel pain and suffer. They don't have brains, nervous systems, pain receptors, or anything else that would suggest the ability to feel pain. Explain that animals are conscious beings capable of feeling happiness, joy, sorrow, and a desire to live. Then ask the person if he/she truly sees no difference between mowing the lawn and skinning a cat who's fully conscious. That should help :)

I also like this response:

http://ar.vegnews.org/what_if_plants_fee...