Ok so following on from my post the other day about the role of YOU when it comes to succeeding on your raw food lifestyle but taking in to consideration the fact that yes, other people can help support you on your path, it’s time for…(cue fanfare – don’t you wish you had an actual fanfare on standby sometimes that you could bring in at opportune moments? no? just me? ok)
the RAW FOOD VERSUS series!
We’re going to start with raw food versus YOUR PARENTS! Dnn dnn dnnnnnn!
Why?
Two reasons. Firstly, that’s the blog post that started writing itself in my head as I dozed at 6am this morning…yes, that’s how my blog posts are written, something writes them in my head. You didn’t think it was me did you? Am I freaking you out? I’m starting to freak myself out with where that’s going so I’ll move on swiftly to the second reason which is that out of everyone I think your parents are probably the easiest to deal with.
From my own experience with my parents and the whole ‘going raw’ thing, two major things happened. First of all they had to get their heads around what I was doing and why and secondly they had to deal with the changes in their daughter that came about AFTER I went raw. We’re going to concentrate on the first part of this equation for now and leave the second part for a larger blog post for the end of this series.
Coming Out as a raw foodie – lessons I learned with my parents
“I’m never going to eat cooked food again” – hahaha, that seems so funny now. I was so high up on my soap box I could’ve done with a helicopter to get back down. The truth is that when you set out on this path you don’t know what will happen so be realistic at the outset and tell them the truth, you are experimenting with a raw, wholefood diet for a period of time to see how things go. This is a more balanced approach and your parents probably had enough drama from you when you were a teenager…
Understand why you are doing this – if you want them to accept this decision you need to be clear on why you’re doing this for yourself. Why are you doing this? Have you researched the benefits? Do you understand the nutrition? You need to be prepared for the questions you will receive, if you don’t have a clue your parents are less likely to buy in to this weird new diet! You need to be able to counter any arguments against you doing this and that means learning your stuff!
Get off the soapbox (see above). I care about my parents deeply and thought that they needed to know all the wise and wonderful things I had learned about the dangers of cooked food. I cringe when I think back to when I sent my mum an email on the dangers of Acrylamide. The shame. The shame! If they are interested they will ask you about it. Inform them what you have learned and leave emotion out of it. Their life = their dietary choice. Your life = your dietary choice. See the difference there? Huh? Huh?
Give respect. I’m lucky enough to have eaten quite a good diet growing up. I mean, home-cooked for the most part and my parents gave me the best food they knew how to give. I think you need to be careful and respectful when it comes to discussing your new dietary regime with your parents not to give the impression that they somehow fed you ‘bad’ when you were growing up. It might not be a big issue but just be careful not to judge that their best efforts at feeding you were somehow deliberately unhealthy. We know a lot more about food now than we ever have. Be thankful you had bloody food! Keep in mind that your parents might feel judged or hurt by your decision and see it as a reflection on them.
Understand your parents were born to worry about YOU – they will want to know you aren’t going to die from doing this. They might truly believe you will. That’s why it’s so important to know your stuff and pay attention to your health. If you jump straight in to raw you might lose a lot of weight quickly and this will scare the shit out your parents! Be mindful of this. Take it slow. Talk to them about it. Accept they will worry no matter what! Once they see that you know what you are doing and that you aren’t deprived of nutrients, they will be much less worried…maybe!
To summarise…
Stay calm.
Avoid emotional arguments.
Be informed.
Treat your parents with the respect they deserve.
If they want more information, lend them a book or point them in the direction of a website they can check out.
Offer to make them a raw food meal to try out!
Have you got a story to share about going raw and the response you got from your parents? I’d love to hear about it. Drop me a comment below.
The next part in our Raw Food Versus series will be….your work colleagues!
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