General Mood while on RAF / non-raw family

[LvB]

When I was on both the SAD diet and a vegan diet I had a really unpredictable mood, I would get easily upset, depressed, anxious. I'm noticing after almost a month now eating raw meat, raw eggs, raw fat, I'm generally happier. It feels like I'm just enjoying myself more all the time. I used to have really bad anxiety, and I feel calmer now. It's really nice.

Though, I do still get frustrated when family members and people who care listen to their socially influenced fears instead of the information I have based eating this way, even though I had known about paleo and raw paleo for a long time before doing it. I know that they care, and that they don't understand it much, but it's still stressful. I don't mean to just complain about this, I just wonder if anyone else has family members or loved ones who oppose your diet or are uneasy about it. How do you deal with it, and did they eventually come around and accept it?

[goodsamaritan]

I was never vulnerable to peer pressure to begin with.
But I do take into account concerned observations by loved ones.
They were very concerned when I was on raw vegan and raw fruitarian I was getting too thin.
They were right.

With raw paleo I'm getting great results.  It's only been 15 months so there should be more to look forward to. They get used to it eventually. Especially when they see you getting great results.

The only cultural apprehension with my relatives is raw land animals.  So as not to antagonize them, I eat my raw fish, raw oysters during weekends when I'm with my in laws.  My raw land animals I eat the rest of the week.

[LvB]

I also used to be really shy, now I feel more sociable, despite the fact that raw paleo isn't socially acceptable for most people.

My boyfriend has been pretty nice about it, one time he came over and brought me a bunch of sashimi and some tuna sashimi which he mixed with avocadoes, cucumbers, and a chili sauce that was tasty. Sometimes it's hard to tell how he feels about it though. He says he likes me no matter what I eat, even if it's weird, the only thing that bothers him is that I smell fishy or meaty. Guess I just gotta brush my teeth a lot more now lol. Of course now he wishes we could eat the same stuff together, and says that my diet worries him  . In the back of my mind I start thinking that he should try cooked paleo, he'd be much healthier that way than how he eats now, he loves bread and grains, he eats cereal and pizza most of the time, and loves pretzels. Maybe I'll just have to fix cooked-paleo meals for him and see how he likes them.

[primaD]

I was never vulnerable to peer pressure to begin with.

Same here.  Naturally I'm an introvert so I pretty much keep to myself most of the time.  I tend to gravitate towards people who have the same views about life/interests as I do.  My gf is from the country and she grew up in the country so she's used to being around people who eat raw meat, milk, eggs, etc.  (she doesn't eat raw foods though only cooked)  My family doesn't really care what I eat as long as I'm not sick.

I feel better when I'm doing 100% paleo.  I can't speak about long term because so far I haven't been able to do 100% RAF for an extended period yet.  I keep going back for one reason or another.  (Today is my latest attempt to stay 100% paleo)  I know I'll get it too because I went through this exact same process before I became a vegan.  It took me almost 2 months of start, stop, start, stop and then I finally got it.  I was a vegan for about 16 months before I found out about RAF lifestyle.

[Guittarman03]

My experience has not been so much with family/friends as with work, peers/superiors.  I've noticed there's a few diff. types of people (wrt raw paleo).  Some are totally grossed out and don't want to talk about it at all; they are usually pretty close minded.  Some will talk with you, but only so they can tell you that you're an idiot; they are just waiting for you to get sick to say "see I told you so."  The rest fall between concerned caution, and open minded interest with varying degrees of apprehension.  I've noticed it can actually get people pretty upset - in the sort of way that a round world does not fit into their square hole.  I hate close minded and unimaginative people.

But it's all gravy b/c I eat 1 pound of straight raw beef for lunch every day right and make no hiding of it.  They watch me day in and day out eat this way and not get sick, for over a year now.  So it forces them to re-evaluate their pre-conceived notions... but it takes time.  For the mainstream lemmings, raw paleo is pretty out there.  Most of them have come around to at least acceptance.  There's still a few that act somewhat condescending about the whole thing. 

Just gotta stick to your guns, learn as much as you can, and be willing and able to converse about it in an intelligent manner.  Have good answers for the common questions you will get asked.  Do your homework and people will generally give you the respect that you are intelligent and making a purposeful, reseached decision.  Combine that with just stickking to RP, and time will help relax their fears, and bring them to a more genuine interest in what you're doing. 

[primaD]

I've noticed it can actually get people pretty upset - in the sort of way that a round world does not fit into their square hole.  I hate close minded and unimaginative people.

This is soooo true!  I rank discussion about food up there with the usual forbidden work topics i.g. religion, politics, race.  I find that people get so bent out of shape when food is the topic because they feel like you are insulting them/their diet by your diet instead of appreciating the unique difference(s).

[LvB]

they feel like you are insulting them/their diet by your diet instead of appreciating the unique difference(s)

This is how my boyfriend generally reacts when I start talking about it, and is how he would react if I suggested it. So I basically have to be ready to say something and have it actually sound smart if he asks anything about it. I guess if I don't feel confident talking about it on the spot, I run the risk of just sounding defensive or like I don't know what I'm talking about.

[Roselene]

    I've just been yelled at these last couple of days.  I was visiting with a caring relative who decided to invent every lie in the world; because I am eating RVAF.  I totally forgive them, but it didn't feel good hearing so much propaganda and I'm considering not visiting them again.  I need to eat the food I eat, and I don't need loved ones losing their minds over it.  The funny thing is, I could probably bet my last dollar and win, that they are considering the diet for themselves secretly, and that may be one of the reasons why they were flying at the mouth making up maggot talk and other things that do not come into my life, but me too anyway, I feel much calmer and happier since I eat in a raw paleo style.

[LvB]

    I've just been yelled at these last couple of days.  I was visiting with a caring relative who decided to invent every lie in the world; because I am eating RVAF.  I totally forgive them, but it didn't feel good hearing so much propaganda and I'm considering not visiting them again.  I need to eat the food I eat, and I don't need loved ones losing their minds over it.  The funny thing is, I could probably bet my last dollar and win, that they are considering the diet for themselves secretly, and that may be one of the reasons why they were flying at the mouth making up maggot talk and other things that do not come into my life, but me too anyway, I feel much calmer and happier since I eat in a raw paleo style.

It does make it difficult to get along with people you love and care about when they decide to be negative about it. I guess that I personally hope that if they really love you they would eventually notice that you're fine eating raw paleo (and maybe even better than before), and would respect it and not put you down for it.

It didn't feel good to be told by my mom that I was turning into a nut. For most of my situations, it's more that they have been taught to fear bacterial infections and parasites and just aren't comfortable with it. They often worry that I have parasites. For a little while I was too, but after I stopped stressing about it, I stopped losing weight, and I feel like my weight is pretty steady now. I guess I realized today that there's no point in worrying about it, because there's such a small chance. I read an article on someone's sushi blog, where a scientist who's focus was on parasites (parasitology) ate fresh never frozen raw sashimi in Japan and he never had problems. Honestly I think it's more crippling to avoid something good out of fear of something which has a small chance of occuring. My mom is one of those worriers, and it's always been frustrating to me, didn't want me to try new challenging things, she wanted me to be afraid of what bad things COULD happen (sometimes they were just rediculous), and I just don't think that anybody would do anything if we all were that way.

I think it's good that you're sticking to it if it feels right for you, that's not easy when people give you a hard time, and I think it deserves respect.

(lol I just remembered my mom telling me "you have to be selfish sometimes" referring to doing what's right for yourself in context of something else  )

[goodsamaritan]

I have placed on my business card that besides being a web developer, I am a: Manggagamot / Filipino Traditional Healer who cures what western medicine says are incurable diseases.

So that shuts people up and makes them pay attention when they learn I eat raw everything.  People in my culture have no qualms about eating raw fruit, raw veggies, raw eggs, raw fish... they only balk at raw land animals... but telling them I'm a healer makes them pay attention.

I used to be enormously fat and getting old, now I look slim and young and I've cured myself and several people of diseases so they think I may really know something.  Wait until I get the time to body build.  That should wow them.

[primaD]

I am a: Manggagamot / Filipino Traditional Healer who cures what western medicine says are incurable diseases

I've cured myself and several people of diseases so they think I may really know something.

Really!   What diseases have you cured that are generally considered uncurable in the West?  This hits home for me because I'm battling a disease (nothing major) that I'm pretty sure I'm going to be diagnosed with.  (i have received the results yet)  I am hell-bent on beating this illness the natural way by my diet alone and no medication.

[LvB]

I have placed on my business card that besides being a web developer, I am a: Manggagamot / Filipino Traditional Healer who cures what western medicine says are incurable diseases.

So that shuts people up and makes them pay attention when they learn I eat raw everything.  People in my culture have no qualms about eating raw fruit, raw veggies, raw eggs, raw fish... they only balk at raw land animals... but telling them I'm a healer makes them pay attention.

I used to be enormously fat and getting old, now I look slim and young and I've cured myself and several people of diseases so they think I may really know something.  Wait until I get the time to body build.  That should wow them.

lol yeah, I'm sure that works, because then you can prove you know what you're doing, and people start thinking maybe you're on to something.  Personally I'm still trying to figure out what's best for me, so not really experienced enough to convince people that I know what I'm doing, which is probably why they step in and say they think it's wrong. I guess I can't blame them since I've lost weight and people have commented that my face looks gaunt and my eyes look sunken (I don't think that's a good sign). I think because I'm in that learning stage I should consider it seriously when people say I look unhealthy, but if they suggest eating cake or cookies, that's where I'll stop listening, because I know starches aren't what I need to gain healthy weight. I guess the only thing that does get to me is that people blow raw meat out of proportion by saying "OMG WTF you're gonna die".