i was vegan for the first 3 days, subsisting off of refried beans, watermelon, and pineapple. i began to feel guilty because i couldn't go out to dinner with my parents since everything in a mexican restaurant involves cheese. monday night i began to feel really sad for no reason- i was in mexico after all. i then began reflecting on my sleeping patterns, which involved going to sleep before 10 and waking up 10 hours later.
deciding that this was not pms or a sudden burst of clinical depression, i found myself remembering a similar situation in zambia. living a vegetarian lifestyle in zambia is not uncommon because meat is so expensive and mangos grow everywhere. that said, malnutrition is rampant so much so that the UN recommends cooking oil with food as a source of protein (i believe that's about 2 grams per serving, which shows how dire the situation is). i gained a new understanding of malnutrition and the early to bed culture of zambia after only a few days as i began to go to sleep earlier than everyone else and felt sad all the time. i didn't recognize it for what it was until someone pointed out my sleeping habits to me, and we then realized that i needed more protein. powdered milk, beans, and cans of tuna ensued.
recognizing the same symptoms in mexico, i decided i wasn't going to ruin my mood or my parents meals with a vegan lifestyle. while im sure it is possible to be a healthy vegan in a developing country or on a budget, i have not mastered how to get the proper amount of nutrients somewhere other than seattle or dc, both of which are full of a fair amount of foodies and quite a few whole foods (or whole paychecks as my mother calls it). thus, i resorted to eating vegan for breakfast and lunch and eating locally caught fish for dinner. this allowed me to get protein without causing a huge carbon footprint (at leas that i'm aware of) and contribute to local economy.
yesterday, sunday, was my first day back in the garden of vegan- i feel healthier already!
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