u/skylarlan

It’s hard for me to remember why I wasn’t vegan now that my eyes have been opened, but I do remember a couple of attempts from people trying to tell me about the animal industry and I simply couldn’t hear what they were saying.

For example, I remember when I was 15 years old and my mum sent me to the grocery store to get some eggs. I was standing in the aisle comparing the eggs to see which ones to get, and out of nowhere, a total stranger (an older woman) comes up to me and says directly to me, “you know, they throw all the chicks alive into a giant meat grinder.” I was so stunned by her comment I just stared at her. I didn’t absorb her information that day but I wish I had.

Does anyone else remember experiencing others trying to reach you? What was your reaction? Is there a word for this zombie-like sleep state all the non-vegans are in?

I feel a big calling to fight for the animals since going vegan and at first I joined groups like AV. I found having footage in front of people’s faces was the easiest way to convert them. But I ended up seeing so much horror footage that I had nightmares (night terrors) for years and it only just stopped now, seven years later. I ran from activism because I couldn’t cope anymore. I still feel a big calling to help save the animals but I’m scared to go back to seeing that reality every day. I have tried explaining what happens to the animals without the footage and it goes nowhere. And now, the most frustrating comment I have come across lately is “how do you know it’s not AI?”
Any suggestions on what I can do to help? I’m desperate to be an activist but I want to protect myself too.