What’s a vegan mother to do? by Rene’ Steelman, VLCE

The major benefit of trying new things and exploring other “worlds”is meeting people and expanding your circle of friends. I sat down with one of these new friends to discuss our upcoming presentation. She went over what she was going to say, I went over what I was going to say and BAMMM…with in just a few minutes, before my smoothie even arrived, she was disagreeing with my view of how to eat a plant-based diet. This has happened to me twice now in just the last three weeks! To quote Mr. Rodney King, who was horrendously beaten in front of our eyes, “People, I just want to say, you know, can we all get along? Can we get along? Can we stop making it, making it horrible for the older people and the kids? . . . “(quote from The Quote Verifier). STOP BEATING ME UP, FELLOW VEGANS!!!!!

My quest to gain health has been a journey beginning about thirty years ago. I have been blessed by becoming an adult in the late sixties where eating clean and wholesome was beginning to be a trend. I had my fifth child in the mid-eighties and was hypnotically encouraged to follow “Sandy,” otherwise known as Olivia Newton John, right into a sweat band, shiny leotards and aerobics. I started running and unknowingly became a vegetarian. My quest to feed my flock and a very picky husband was daunting! “Where’s the ketchup?”my hot-dog-eating husband would ask. “ I threw it all away!”I would answer with pride and an upturned chin. “Why?”he would forlornly inquire, “Because, would you believe, it contains SUGAR!”Needless to say, I was replacing that bottle of sugar in just a few days. I was feeding five children and one big one, remember. The man loves hot dogs!

Fortunately, I don’t give up easily and I have raised healthy and happy children who try to eat well and are now feeding their children hummus for a snack. I can honestly say, as a young mom, I ground my own wheat and made them whole-wheat pancakes for breakfast. Sometimes I put ice cream on their oatmeal because I read that that would combine the sugar and the milk, enticing children to eat their porridge! I didn’t know then what I know now. It’s a journey.

My need to be healthy became even more desperate when my sixth child was born with complications. I innocently asked the young whippersnapper doctors at OHSU if there was a possibility that my baby lying in an incubator, attached to tubing coming out of his chest, would possibly have a “slight”learning disability. I am an optimist; they just gave me a blank stare. He has severe cerebral palsy and can’t communicate. He relies on twenty-four/seven care. He does nothing for himself and is wheelchair-bound. No one needs a healthy mom more than this child. He is the baby of the family so he was hauled to football games, cheerleading competitions, track meets, and birthday parties. Ninety-nine percent of the time it was I doing the hauling. He was thirteen before we were able to purchase a wheelchair- accessible van. No whining allowed, and my high cholesterol cannot be a factor in caring for my family.

I was tired of fighting doctors on my blood profile numbers and in January of this year I totally jumped in and joined the vegan world. I have been enlightened and continue to read and learn about eating plant-based. I’m trying not to become overwhelmed with the barrage of information that we have access to. Eat healthy fats, don’t eat fat, eat six small meals a day, eat only three meals a day, eat nuts, and don’t eat nuts…try to avoid going NUTS! I’m going to eat plant-based, eat as clean as possible on a good day, watch my LDL go down, and try to move daily. “Build me up, buttercup; don’t let me down!” It’s a sixties reference. Look it up. And please: don’t chide me about the butter reference.

Rene’ Steelman is a certified vegan lifestyle coach and educator. She is the area director for GET WAISTED NORTHWEST, a program to help people transition to eating a plant-based diet. She is a wife, mother, and grandmother. She enjoys a great movie, an even better book, and an even better TV series. When not enticed by a screen, she enjoys a walk, a hike, or even a fun run! She has ran two marathons, several half-marathons, and Hood-to-Coast relay many times, taking in the beautiful Northwest as much as she can. You can find Rene’ at nwgetwaisted.com and on Facebook and Twitter.