Hello everyone. I became vegetarian when I moved out of my parents' home after school, and fully vegan over night seven years ago. I had been thinking about going vegan for a couple of years prior but was insecure because of myths going around, such as humans are meant to eat animal products, you will become deficient on a plant based diet, and so on. There was an online challenge called Vegan for 30 Days, which helped me kick start my decision. I told myself I could stop at any time and didn't have to stay vegan after the thirty days were up if it wasn't for me, but that was only because I was scared. I actually felt joy and relief almost immediately. It was amazing to know I was contributing significantly less to animal abuse. It wasn't really diffcult for me for some reason. I read Vegan for Life, by Virginia Messina, as a nutritional guide, but I didn't use any vegan recipes or suggestions at the time. I had already been eating vegetable based cooked meals, so it was easy to just use tofu, lentils, or chickpeas instead of feta cheese or eggs.
I find the postings about dieting, calorie counting, and excessive physical activity extremely disturbing and triggering, so I won't talk about those subjects.
There is mixed evidence on the topic of vegan and vegetarian diets and mental health and eating disorders, so any discussion has to take place without the basis of scientific evidence. It is my personal belief that a plant based diet is suitable and beneficial for anyone, including individuals with disordered eating. I don't believe being vegan and "restricting food groups" are the same thing. If you no longer see animal products as food, you are not eliminating food groups by not eating them. There are vegan substitutes for absolutely everything nowadays (unless you live in a food desert or poorer part of the world), so you can follow any eating pattern whatsoever on a vegan diet. You can eat junk food or whole foods, you can eliminate fatty or sugary foods, and you can overeat on healthy foods. In my opinion, an eating disorder does not go away on a vegan diet. It can surface at any time, just like it can on any other diet. The reason I would recommend quitting animal products completely (aside from the overwhelming moral aspect), is that they can cause inflammation in the body, and any mental imbalances that can contribute to creating or worsening an eating disorder are often also connected to inflammatory processes in the body. If you are an individual who is prone to destructive thoughts and behaviors, cutting out animal products can stabilize your mood and therefore influence your behavior. Processed foods can also be a problem, and I guess this is where it becomes difficult for people struggling with forbidden and allowed foods. I think a basis of mainly whole plant foods can lay good groundwork for improving your general condition, and in itself lead to more positive behaviors. I would also recommend reading Michael Greger's How Not to Diet (and of course, How Not to Die).
My food preferences have gradually changed over the years and continue to do so. There are foods I was served at home that I no longer eat, foods I liked in my twenties that have been replaced by others, so I have come to see this as a natural process and not as cutting certain foods out of my life. I have discovered so many new foods and dishes over the years, so I don't really miss the foods I no longer eat. I see my diet as abundant rather than restrictive. You would stop eating a certain food in a heartbeat if you found out it was contaminated or immorally sourced, or you would exclude certain foods for religious or moral reasons, like pork or horse meat, and you would not call that restrictive. I do believe it's all in your head. Not having to cook for a family has also made it easy to eat what I want, as well as an ever increasing choice of vegan options in stores and restaurants where I live. Of course, all this may be meaningless in the moment when your eating disorder rears it's ugly head and you are just helpless. But just go one step at a time, don't beat yourself up for mistakes. Take up where you left off when you can. And something about exercise: While we all know how essential physical activity is to mental and physical health, don't forget that you can be rendered inactive by an injury or illness (or pandemic lockdown) at any moment. Try not to make yourself dependent on huge amounts of exercise. As difficult as is is, I think it's most important to get healthy eating behaviors in place, so that you don't experience the unhappiness of realizing you cannot maintain your weight without burning large amounts of calories through exercise.
I hope there was something helpful in here. I'm sure the experience is very different for each person and recommendations can end up being meaningless. But quitting animal products has only benefited me. Going vegan doesn't solve all your problems, especially not your eating disorder, but it can help lay a foundation for better mental and physical health, and consequently for better eating behaviors.
