| I'm a meat lover who decided to try vegetarian | | | | vegetarian. |
| eating awhile ago. I stumbled across some | | | | The restaurant was not too difficult to maneuver as |
| information that talked about how the bowel | | | | the menu had the dishes listed on them and since I |
| becomes distended. According to this information, the | | | | cook I basically knew what went into making most |
| main reason for this distention of the bowel was the | | | | of them. Restaurant speak, the listing of what the |
| amount of meat we eat that hasn't digested | | | | dishes were, outlined the contents enough for the |
| properly. This was terrible news as I loved my meat | | | | menu items I wasn't sure about. I walked out at the |
| - all meat. So I chose a vegetarian lifestyle change to | | | | end of the night both satisfied and unscathed - still |
| see if it would make a difference to my digestive | | | | intact vegetarian. |
| symptoms. | | | | The friends invitation, however, was a little more |
| I'd always been conscious of the nutritional | | | | interesting. It was a BBQ, which meant that the smell |
| component of what I cooked and had insisted on | | | | of BBQing meat was the first thing I encountered as |
| eating fresh - ready-made anything was hard to find | | | | I arrived. That waft in the air and the sizzling sounds |
| in my cupboards or my freezer. Balancing a meal | | | | of meat on a grill. My mouth was watering. Once I |
| wasn't difficult, but, how to make a meal without | | | | resumed control of my senses and we started along |
| meat. That meant no pizza to me - oh, dear. My | | | | the buffet-style table, I was confronted with more |
| lasagne, which had taken me years to refine into | | | | difficulty. The potato salad contained bacon and the |
| "yummo" was out too. So I set about learning what I | | | | salad nicoise had hard-boiled eggs in it. Luckily the rice |
| could eat and how to turn it into palatable forms of | | | | salad was okay and there was a tossed salad and |
| consumption. | | | | bean salad that was fine also, bread rolls too. The |
| These days I have quite a store of meals that meet | | | | good part about the BBQ was the nibbles. People |
| the criteria and are classified as vegetarian, and the | | | | love to make homemade nibbles for BBQ's. This |
| best part is no-one would even think twice about not | | | | meant that I had an excellent variety of foods on |
| eating them. A vegetarian version of lasagna based | | | | offer, which everyone was eating and not even |
| on sweet potato, pastry parcels filled with spices, | | | | recognising them as vegetarian. A vegetable platter, |
| vegetable and lentils, rissoles/meatloaf made from | | | | with aloi that I found out was made eggless, |
| brown rice and red kidney beans. I have everyday | | | | crackers that I dipped into homemade salsa and corn |
| things like pancakes and fruit, toast and avocado or | | | | relish dips. This time it took a little more maneuvering |
| tomato or bananas, or cereal for breakfast, and salad | | | | but I managed to stick to my 'vegetarian standards' |
| mixes for lunch. The soy milk took some adjusting to | | | | and left unscathed again. |
| and I prefer my coffee black now. And my ready | | | | As an update to my digestive symptoms, yes it |
| supply of what my friends call 'birdseed' - various | | | | made a difference. So, if you are considering |
| nuts including macadamia, cashew, pine, pistachio and | | | | becoming vegetarian for whatever reason you may |
| things like pumpkin seeds and sesame seeds for | | | | have, it is not impossible. Once you have the basic |
| nibbling on, are just some examples. | | | | information you can incorporate it into a normal |
| I remember my invitation to a friends place for dinner | | | | everyday lifestyle and enjoy the benefits. |
| and my first restaurant outing as a confirmed | | | | |