Skip the rookie mistakes and learn what seasoned vegans figured out the hard way.
Going vegan can feel like learning a new language while everyone around you speaks fluent omnivore.
After talking to dozens of long-term vegans, I kept hearing the same regrets and revelations. Here's what they wish they'd known from the start.
1. You don't need to justify yourself to everyone
New vegans often feel like they're carrying a briefcase full of documentaries and statistics, ready to defend their choices at every meal. Here's the thing: most people asking aren't actually looking for a 20-minute presentation on factory farming.
A simple "it works for me" or "I feel better this way" shuts down 90% of awkward conversations. Save your energy for people who genuinely want to understand. The rest are just making small talk while eyeing your plate.
You're not a walking billboard or a debate opponent. You're just someone eating lunch.
2. Nutritional yeast isn't a personality trait
Every new vegan discovers nutritional yeast and acts like they've found the holy grail.
Yes, it's great. Yes, it's cheesy and B12-rich. But sprinkling it on literally everything doesn't make you more vegan.
Long-term vegans cringe at how obsessed they were with specific ingredients early on. Aquafaba, jackfruit, cashew cream. These are tools, not identity markers. Use what tastes good and makes cooking easier.
The goal is eating well, not performing veganism for an invisible audience.
3. Your body needs time to adjust
Going from burgers to beans overnight can make your digestive system stage a small rebellion. Bloating, gas, and general weirdness are normal when you suddenly quadruple your fiber intake.
Veteran vegans wish they'd eased in more gradually. Your gut bacteria literally need time to adapt to processing all those plants. Give it a few weeks. Drink more water. Consider a digestive enzyme supplement temporarily.
That uncomfortable phase passes. But it freaks out a lot of new vegans who think something's wrong when really, everything's working exactly as it should.
4. Supplements aren't cheating
There's this weird pride thing where new vegans try to get everything from whole foods. Meanwhile, they're exhausted and their doctor's concerned about their B12 levels.
Take the B12. Take the vitamin D if you live somewhere cloudy. Maybe add omega-3s from algae. Omnivores supplement too, they just don't talk about it as much. Their food is often fortified anyway.
Long-term vegans treat supplements like brushing their teeth. Just part of the routine, no drama. Your body doesn't care if nutrients come from a pill or a plant.
5. Vegan junk food is still junk food
Oreos are vegan. So are Skittles and most French fries. New vegans sometimes gain weight because they think the vegan label means health food.
A diet of vegan pizza, cookies, and processed meat alternatives isn't automatically healthy just because no animals were harmed. Long-term vegans learned to treat these foods like anyone should: occasional treats, not dietary staples.
The ethical part is sorted, sure. But your body still needs actual vegetables, not just things that happen to be plant-based.
6. You'll lose some friends, and that's okay
Some friendships are built on shared activities, and if those activities revolve around food, things might get weird. People take your dietary choices surprisingly personally.
Long-term vegans stopped trying to maintain relationships that required them to constantly minimize or hide their values. The friends who matter figure it out. They learn to pick restaurants with options or cook meals everyone can enjoy.
The ones who make every gathering about your veganism? They were probably exhausting in other ways too.
7. Meal prep is your secret weapon
The vegans who struggle are usually the ones grabbing whatever's available when they're starving. The ones who thrive? They've got containers of cooked grains, chopped vegetables, and prepared proteins ready to go.
Spending two hours on Sunday saves you from a week of sad salads or expensive takeout. It's not Instagram-worthy advice, but it's the difference between sustainable and constantly stressed.
Future you will be incredibly grateful when you open the fridge and find actual food instead of random vegetables slowly dying.
8. Read ingredients, but don't become obsessive
Yes, some sugar is processed with bone char. Yes, some wines use fish bladders for filtering. You can drive yourself completely insane trying to avoid every possible animal derivative.
Long-term vegans pick their battles. They focus on the big stuff and don't spiral over trace ingredients or processing methods. Perfectionism helps nobody and makes veganism look impossibly difficult to outsiders.
Do your reasonable best. The goal is reducing harm, not achieving some impossible purity standard that doesn't actually exist.
9. Your reasons might evolve, and that's fine
Maybe you started for health reasons and later cared more about ethics. Or you began for the animals and now you're most passionate about environmental impact. Your motivation doesn't need to stay frozen in time.
Long-term vegans often have completely different reasons for staying vegan than they did for starting. They wish someone had told them that changing perspectives doesn't make you a hypocrite.
It makes you someone who keeps learning and growing. That's actually the whole point.
10. It gets so much easier
Those first few months feel like navigating a maze blindfolded. You're reading every label, explaining yourself constantly, and wondering if you'll ever just automatically know what to order.
Then one day you realize you're not thinking about it anymore. You know your go-to meals, your reliable restaurants, your quick answers to annoying questions. It becomes as natural as anything else you do daily.
Final thoughts
Every long-term vegan wishes they could tell their stressed-out beginner self: relax. You'll figure it out. And it'll be easier than you think.
The learning curve feels steep because you're doing something different from most people around you. But different doesn't mean difficult forever. Give yourself some grace, stay curious, and remember that nobody gets it perfect from day one.
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