How do I stay a vegetarian?

Sounds like you need more of something. I was concerned about your posting because once you stop inviting meat into your diet, your body goes through a chemical change. You no longer should crave it and once you do reintroduce it, it should be harder for you at first - to stomach, to digest, all of it. If you are finding that you're trying to "sneak meat", then your body is certainly trying to get nutrients that it isn't receiving. You might want to see a nutritionist or a doctor and check your iron levels or take a look at whether or not you're getting enough protein. Don't beat yourself up about it. You're trying to survive - that's a natural response, I think, don't you?

craving=need. A craving is your body's way of telling you you need it. My guess is that you are either iron or protein deficient. Try boosting your soy intake and see if that helps.

Why are You a Vegetarian?. I am not a vegetarian so take the following with a grain of salt. I am wondering why you became a vegetarian? Was it because you just wanted to eat healthier? Or was it because you had a deep and passionate concern over animal welfare? Or was it more an environmental reason? The reason I ask is that if it was just for health then you should allow yourself to eat meat once in a while if you crave it. I tend towards anemia and low blood pressure. When I work out a lot, I need red meat. If I don't eat some, I'll feel tired and sick. My acupuncturist actually told me I needed to eat more red meat. I suppose if I really went out of my way to try different diets then maybe I could find another way to give me what red meat gives me, but I have to be realistic with myself. Vegetarianism is often such an "either/or" proposition, when it seems to me that there should be room for allowances. You in and of yourself will not stop the world from eating meat. You can reduce your consumption, but I would not beat yourself up over it if you truly crave meat once in a while. Many animals in the wild are naturally carnivorous, it's just part of the way the world was set up. If you are concerned about animal welfare and the environment, then try to buy meat that comes from more humane farms...and encourage your mother to do the same when you visit her.

I'm actually with Stephanie on this one. I was raised vegetarian and pretty much stuck to an all-veggie diet until I was about 20 or so. I'm glad I finally made the change. As a child, I tended to be weak, underweight, and had a lot less energy than other kids. I'm not saying that vegetarianism can't work for you and that it isn't a feasible goal, but I'm also prone to agree that as humans, we simply NEED the nutrients that we can find in meat. I also agree that if you are concerned with the ethics, you may want to research where your food comes from and in what conditions the animals are raised. Just because you eat meat, doesn't mean you can't be ethical in how you do it.

I wouldn't beat yourself up over it. Do what you can, and eventually you will probably wean yourself off of meat if you want to. There are a lot of great meat-substitues out there in supermarkets - some that make me go check the package & make sure its not really meat! Houstons restaurants have an amazing veggie burger that tastes a lot like meat. Quorn products are pretty good. I went veggie for animal welfare reasons & for the environment, and found it to hard to only eat meat that was from humane farms (hard at restaurants to really know if it is or not - hard at dinner parties to say you'll only eat humane meat, saying you are a vegetarian is so much easier). Now its been 10 years and I don't miss it at all or crave it one bit - I think for some people it just takes time. Maybe see a nutritionist if you feel like your body is missing something, they could help you find a substitute.