Is it just me, or is the sight & smell of SAD nauseating after eating (mostly) raw for a while?

I've been vegetarian for 20 years, and I maintained a certain amount of tolerance for SAD (it was emotionally unpleasant to experience the sight of meat, but I held the person in my heart and learned to release judgment), but lately, after increasing the raw in my diet (approx 80% overall), I find myself feeling physically sickened by other people's food.

I'm not sure what (if anything) to do about this. It's unpleasant, and if it doesn't get any worse I think I can handle it. But if I don't somehow adjust or things do feel worse, I'm not sure what I'll do.

Some days, I just wanna yak when I go into the communal work kitchen to make myself a salad, and there are all the signs of my coworkers' lunches - spaghetti with meatballs, quesadillas, whatever, just ICK. Melted cheese (gag) suddenly nauseates me (and what a fan I used to be of melted cheese), and even the vegetable dishes are beyond me (microwaveable meals, no nutrients left, oversalted, overcooked). And then there are all the weird condiments and oooolllddd food in the fridge. Most days, I drive home for lunch - I'd rather burn the gas than face it all. And that's ecologically irresponsible. And then the burnt TIME is at issue - I'm using half my lunch hour on the drive.

How do others handle this? What's your experience? Surely, I'm not the only one.

I find I have days like this, too, depending on whether my energies are more inward or outward--I work at a SAD restaurant, and I've had a few days where I went home and just wanted to cry.

Can you find somewhere nice outside to sit? Maybe a cafe with outdoor tables (buy a bottle of water and eat your fruit)? Maybe a bench somewhere? There should be somewhere you could walk to--even if you spend the same amount of time walking to Escape Spot X, it beats driving!

You could also always go eat in your car if you're REALLY grossed out. When my apartment was being renovated and they were drilling RIGHT OUTSIDE MY WINDOW, I went to get a lunch to eat on the lakefront. Then, I got attacked by gnats, seagulls, and finally old women, so I had a quiet meal in my car parked near the lake. Not gourmet dining, but it saved my sanity. =)

I find the smell of certain things revolting, like ketchup. It's very difficult for me to be around. I also have a tough time certain days watching my boyfriend eat, chocolate milk, white bread, sugar, salt, donuts, cheese, the worst of the worst Chinese takeout... Rather than focusing on other people, just try to focus on yourself and what you need. Be happy with yourself for taking care of yourself. It's all you can really do. Sometimes it's rough being stuck in a certain environment. I always come prepared to work with fruit.

I would get sick watching coworkers eat food from the vending machines. Our lunch room at work, literally had 10 vending machines. There were different vending machines for candy, microwaveable foods, coffee/lattes, soft drinks, disgusting looking sandwiches, ice cream, etc. etc. etc.


So, yeah, it was pretty nauseating to watch that.

I'm fine with it. If I can handle an episode of CSI, I can definitely handle cooked food! Although I DID have a a fried food platter shoved under my face while out with the family. That was a bit much....but hey......it caught me by surprise.

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

I find that the best way to live in a SAD world is just to put my blinders on. When I see other peoples food choices I try not to think about it and just focus on what I am doing. I focus on my breathing for a moment and go blank mentally.

I think you'd be better off worrying about yourself rather than being so sanctimonious.

I handle it by giving a one-sentence testimony, i.e. "Since eating this way my IQ shot up 10 points!" "Since I changed my eating habits, my memory has improved." "After putting aside certain foods, I sleep better and have more energy."

Hope this helps.

I don't think the person was trying to be sanctimonious, they *were* worrying about themselves. I can love someone and respect them and think their burger and fries smell like vomit! But yes, I think it's best to just deal with it. Otherwise we would be limiting ourselves too much.

I don't think anything in there was 'sanctimonious', peter b. If it was, I'll gladly look at it, but since you don't know the slightest thing about me, it's probably safer to assume you're just looking to get attention by insulting a stranger on a message board.

OK - everyone look at peter now.

OK, I'm done looking at peter. Back to my original point.

I was just wondering if this was an unusual reaction to the change in my diet. I was trying to make it clear that I wasn't making myself 'sick' out of judgment of other people, but was curious if this was a common experience to have, physically, out of the blue. I'm not 100% raw or even trying to be, but I've noticed something unusual since increasing the raw & live food in my diet. Isn't this the place we talk about this kind of thing? I apologize if I was unclear about what I was asking the others here.

I just drive home and make myself a big salad, I don't sit around talking about how much smarter I am than everyone else (I'm not). I walk into a communal kitchen and am surprised that the smell of spaghetti or cheddar cheese makes me sick. It never used to. Is this odd? Or have others had this happen, and then they adjusted?

One day at work I was removing my salad from the community refrigerator and I saw this huge steak on a plate over it.

Barf!

Yes, that really made me sick.

But most days I just block it out. If I should express my revulsion, either verbally or nonverbally, I will make enemies, which I would rather not do.

Recently a co-worker came in with lunch and I KNOW it had bacon on it. The smell is unmistakable. It was the first and only thing so far that has made me nauseous. I actually shuddered and I think the hair stood up on my body for a second (maybe not, but it felt like it). I used to love the smell of bacon. Not anymore.

Sometimes when driving pass establishments such as bar-b-q's, and the wind is blowing in my direction, the odor alonf with the synthetic flavors that are used does bother me. It seems as if I'm much more sensitive to them even without trying to be.

Wishing you vibrant health

I feel like a cousin of drug-sniffing dogs. If something even starts to crisp or burn in the oven--I can be rooms away from the kitchen--I am the first to know. "GUYS, WHAT'S BURNING NOW?!"

It was useful the other day when my roommate left the stove on...

My smell is clear, but I wish I could break the link of desire associated with smell. Some things that I wouldn't dare put in my body still smell wonderful (sigh). My tastes are realigned, and while my smell has heightened, it hasn't unconfused itself yet.

i have a VERY good sense of smell ( sometimes to my detriment)

so yes... i can relate.. and things get compounded...

sometimes i have to hold my breathe in certain stores where the meat section is just OVERPOWERING... and its a good thing that i am a VERY quick shopper: pretty much i go to the produce section... get my stuff and get the heck out in seconds
( well, if it weren't for waiting in line.. it would be seconds.. i can literally walk into a store and get all my grocery and get to line within 2 minutes or less)



and yeah... i'm a sanctimonious person

my life has sanctity

my food has sanctity

the desire to have a healthy life has sanctity

the actions i take to have emotional well being has sanctity

the things i do or perceive to improve my welfare has sanctity



our wellness is something that deserves to be nourished, flourished, thought out etc.

great posts everyone

i appreciate them

leading a sanctimonious life in which we hold a high regard for our well being and do what it takes to respect ourselves... translates into respecting others...

this does not mean arrogance

it is arrogant to disregard our own lives... and think that we are "above"
feeling bothered or irritated about this and that

being honest and finding ways to overcome our obstacles is the opposite of arrogance

it is a way to treasure what is sacred

and if that is being sanctimonious

well.. heck

count me in



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/01/2008 10:56AM by la_veronique.

Hey bellefleur, we have similar histories with our diets and I can relate. 20 years as a vegan and vegetarian, I really had no issue with SAD eaters even when they ate meat. Things have changed and I find myself fleeing the kitchen when certain foods are being prepared. My housemate has a potluck 1 or 2 times a week ripe with every kind of microwaved, fried, baked food you can imagine. And then the food sits in the fridge for a week or two before it's microwaved once again...smile. We were aware of our different diets when we elected to live together, but it has become increasingly more diffcult to be around fried bacon and eggs and other foods.

I don't even really see it as food anymore and this is just the truth. What makes me more nauseous than anything else is not the unraw food, but visualizing what's happening in the digestive system of the person consuming it. And add to this that I used to eat some of it myself! Like cheese, soy cheese and microwaved vegan dishes. Oh! Now this can really make me feel ill. lol.

I don't know if there's one simple answer to moving past this. Differs for everyone, but had to write to share that I understand and I'm working through it myself right now. I may have to move residences soon because of the food issue...I dream of having my own raw kitchen. What I can share from my personal experience is I am so grateful and appreciative of how far I've come and I try not to focus too much on what others are doing unless they get in my face with their ignorant comments regarding my raw lifestyle. I am morphing through the being grossed out sad food stage and entering compassion. I really feel for people who eat this way. For the most part they're mindlessly going along with the program of eating processed non foods and/or are apathetic when it comes to their health.

I have been a vegetarian forever and a raw vegan for one year now. I was walking in the airport that day and we crossed a pizza place and I didn't even notice that. I smelled soemthing bad and I told my husband and kids "hey you all notice something stinky here" and my husband said yes, thats cheese and meat and lots of it:-);" I couldn't believe that I found that smell to be un pleasant. I used to love pizza, but now the smell of melting cheese was yucky to me.

Take care
A Iyer

I haven't found cooked food to smell bad to me yet, but I am around it a lot since my family is cooked. (Right now, I just pulled a batch of chocolate chip banana muffins out of the oven, and my house smells really good - but that's ok, because I'm about to fix myself a banana cacao smoothie, so we will all be quite happy.)

But, since I have been raw, my meals for the whole family seems to be leaning towards more and more raw food (it's just so much work to do both sometimes), and I find it interesting that my teenagers seem to be finding the frozen and prepared foods less and less appealing. (I know, it's not really a big staple around here, but they are all allergic to having to spend even a few seconds actually preparing their food in any way, so I do keep a few instant prepared foods handy in the freezer or in the cupboard. It's a sanity thing.)

I wonder if I will ever stop liking the smell of fresh baked cookies or bread.

On the other hand, because I do most of the food prep around here, I am probably just not doing anything that might otherwise gross me out. Nice to be in control, LOL.

Sapphire

Hey there Bellefleur. Sapphire being okay with her family's cooked food reminds me of something: Sometimes I cook for people I love and nothing about it bothers me. I even enjoy it. Other times I'm around the cooked food of people who I don't know or I come across it in situations that I don't really like (think shopping malls) and it does set off some alarms that scream "get outta here." Not so much now, but in the past it was definitely worse. In other words, maybe your reaction to the food at work is more a reflection of the way you feel about your current employment situation. After all, you are 20% cooked, right? I'm assuming that you cook that food in a comfortable place like home and that it doesn't make you want to hurl. So, is it the food of your co-workers that's bothering you, or is their food a way to justify getting away from that scene every day? Sometimes our minds will divert our attention from what's really bothering us, or at least mine will, but I'm kinda nuts so...haha. I say take a serious look at how you feel about your job and your co-workers beyond their food. Maybe it's time to start plotting a career and/or job change. Just my two bits. All the best. Derek.

I am currently raw till dinner. So cooked food doesn't repulse me. However, meat does. When I have to go out with colleagues for lunch (they are all SAD eaters), most of them order steaks, some of them rare. The smell of blood on that steak just grosses me out. I look for excuses not to join them.

I cannot believe people can eat a whole steak for lunch (after eating bacon and eggs for breakfast).

People disgust me.

Hey, all. Thanks for the comments. Good to know I'm not a complete freak.

I don't find all cooked food nauseating (in response to one of the replies), but it's just so strange to have my sense of things change so suddenly. Things that I liked the smell of not so long ago are just 'ick' now. Glad I'm not alone.

Yes, I still am 'cooked'. No, the smell of cookies doesn't bother me (love it). The melted cheese thing, though. Oy.

We had a pizza party at work. We ordered several pizzas -- cheese lovers, meat lovers, vegetarian, and the fried cheese sticks with accompanying little pots of melted butter. Now, I used to LOVE pizza, and so it was disappointing to see everyone else eating it together. Everyone kept offering me a piece. Aren't you going to have a slice, Shane? It's just bread and cheese... Oh, you don't eat cheese, we forgot. Then they drank out of big plastic bottles of pop -- Pepsi, Orange Fanta, Mountain Dew. What? You don't drink, either, Shane? Oh, just water and tea, we forgot.

There's a lot of pressure at these types of events, and it makes me feel isolated and unsocial and as if I'm trying to be superior. But there was no way I was going to eat something that smelled like vomit. And the thing is, everyone was so excited when the pizza arrived in the greasy boxes. They gathered, got a little pushy to get their several slices, then took their loaded paper plates and sat around and ate the stuff. But it didn't seem like anyone really enjoyed the pizza, and afterwards, people complained that they'd eaten too much...

And the thing is that I'm super-thin. And I'm a grown man. It's easier to get away with being very thin if you're a woman. If you're a guy, you're supposed to be buff and muscular and to fit this Western idea of body masculinity. So people are telling me I need to eat more, that I don't eat enough, that I need more protein. Food has become an awkward subject for me around other people, and I'm not sure it's healthy. I mean, the food I eat is presumably healthy. But not the social stigmatization. I find that since going raw vegan I eat alone most of the time. And this can't be healthy. Food is supposed to be a bonding time, a time of building connections with others. But I've snipped that connection by eating this diet that others consider strange. Even though the diet is healthy, the surrounding food culture is unhealthy. So I've found myself in a paradox.

Lately over concern about food of ANY type has made me nauseated. My stomach is very touchy these days. I must admit that it was from indulgence in food I know for sure is very bad, like maple bars, doughnuts, cake with a thick hydrogenated icying. I just thought it wouldn't be so bad, but it is. I work with peope who think nothing of it AT ALL. I wanted to fit in.

Well...I have learned that everyone there has diabetes, cancer, or other MAJOR health problems. They think I am a 'freak' for eating 'healthy'. (meaning eating that crap only on dounght days) Yes, the company buys doughnuts 2 times a week, and brings in a monthly cake for birthdays, plus any retirement. So I have only worked there about 3 weeks and it seems like hardly a day has gone by without some kind of junk. Oh, yeah I forget that it also supplies licorice, hard candy, and cheap chocolate.

Well...my stomach is VERY sensitive. So far this week I haven't even any of that crap. But not because its bad for me, its NOT APPEALING. And it makes me feel like crap. How do those people do it?

I am not raw anymore. But it is a significant challenge enough for me to eat a healthier and appealing version of ANY type of food. Oddly enough even some food terms relating to dietary trends has lent itself to producing a feeling of nausea. Trying not to make a judgement, because some of these terms are 'good' but I get a feeling of nausea because of the emotional baggage associated with judgement about food choices, as far as it can overide taste, and listening to what your body wants.

I am also noticing changes and it's only been a week. For instance; today I made my 4 year old a vegan boca burger for his lunch. It was smelling so yummy that I went ahead and took a bite. It ended up not being as yummy as it smelled and I spat it out. Apparently my taste buds and smell buds aren't alligned properly yet.

I find myself being judgmental when I don't want to. After all this information about raw vs SAD, and learning all the things about what cooked will do to your body and mind, I find myself wanting to grab people's lunch bags, throw them away while yelling at them "OH MY GOD! WHAT ARE YOU DOING? DON'T YOU KNOW THAT WILL KILL YOU????" Of course I will never do that but I want to. I can't stand the look of some of the food people eat around me. I never realized just how obsessed americans are about food until now. Every day I go to work and people are ordering pizza or having office parties that consist of tons of food. It's disgusting, really.

Oh wait... here's my favorite comment I have gotten so far. Maybe some of you can relate. Your sitting there eating an apple or a salad and everyone asks "well gosh are you on a diet?" They are not kidding either. Because apparently if you are eating something that came from the earth instead of a factory then obviously your on a diet!!!!

Quote

Posted by: Mislu (IP Logged)
Date: April 09, 2008 10:25PM

it seems like hardly a day has gone by without some kind of junk. Oh, yeah I forget that it also supplies licorice, hard candy, and cheap chocolate.

Try to use each temptation as a stepping stone to move up and over the challenge and you will get stronger with each victory. I remember a crew meeting one time where I knew there was going to be junk food and I took a banana and ate it while everyone else was eating junk. The reaction was interesting and showed me a lot about each person. Some people were open minded and accepted my choice and a few even congratulated me for making a healthy choice but others shook their heads and after that I was a "health nut" to them. Most of the time there was no food at the crew meetings with a few exception that I didn't know about beforehand and I just didn't eat anything at those times. That was more easily accepted by the junk food eaters then my bringing a banana. After that I didn't bring anything to eat and I just didn't eat anything. It sounds like your challenges are much more frequent then mine. Good luck.

Wow,
I am very new at raw,but I hope it never comes to the point of this.
Being grossed out just being around cooked food.
My feelings on it ar that some people are "called" to care about what food they put in their body,and others couldnt care less.All they care about is taste.
It is a spiritual thing to me.
So lets rejoice all of us on this board,that we know deep down how to eat,and that we were called.
Brian



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/10/2008 10:46PM by Raw1228.

The taste of raw food when I am slightly hungry after exercising is so great I don't understand why anyone would prefer to eat junk food. I just ate a rawlicious Avocado. Yummy.

I'm lucky. Today at work, one of the most straight, Republican, closed-minded guys came up to me smiling and proudly showed me his lunch. As if I were the food police!

He said, "LOOK! SALAD!"

This is a guy who used to run out to McD's or eat a frozen TV dinner type thing every day.

This is the first time I have seen him eating something that was completely unprocessed. I've never even seen him eat something that was half unprocessed.

Might be the stroke he had recently. But he seems grateful to have had my being an example that you can eat healthy food and be happy.

The other people I work with are genuinely happy for me that I like my food.

>He said, "LOOK! SALAD!"

Secretly, I suspect that they all feel guilty. I have heard that, "LOOK, SALAD!" comment myself many times. People feel they always have to announce to me when they have salad, for some reason.

>Might be the stroke he had recently

Could be.

My boss is in terrible shape. In truth, she can hardly walk. She is not that overweight but very unhealthy, migranes, never exercises, always complaining and feeling miserable. She is only one year older than me. McDonald's is her fodder. I sometimes wonder how long she will last and can see her in one of those motorized carts soon. The contrast between us is proof in technicolor, larger than life, of the power of diet.

Right on, arugula!

The other day I was about to beat myself up for eating too much dried fruit. Sometimes I lose perspective. My office mate still eats little orange Styrofoam type things that look like radioactive packing peanuts and she still drinks lots of Diet Coke.

I'm the only one in my department who didn't have a full on cold or flu this winter. I felt like I was on the verge a couple of times but a couple of days of mono fruit took care of that.

I just feel really grateful that I figured out that I should eat this way.

BTW... the guy who had a stroke is only 30 years old. Minor stroke, but still... scary. He's one of those really skinny guys who eats lots of SAD junk.