Dear ex vegans, this is annoying

Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional or psychologist. These videos were created purely to share advice from my own experience as a survivor and eating disorder recovery coach and to encourage eating disorder sufferers to discuss their struggle openly.

[chloely_]

this is on point. for many years I watched people like freelee while I was struggling with an ED, and it made it so much worse. Not saying it's these youtubers fault that I got sick, but people having access to a camera and a platform definitely impact others, specially those who are already sick.

[xosecox]

I’m a vegan and I completely agree with you! They can’t say it’s about “their personal journey” and take no accountability when the majority of them have based their YouTube channels off of “how to be healthy” videos and “what I eat in a day” videos. A lot of them also had their own ebooks (Bonny did) that told people how to eat. Raw Alignment also made videos telling people not to take antibiotics for UTIs. Rawvana made a million videos about “health” and gave people diet plans and challenges. They should be apologizing. No one should tell a general audience how to eat or exercise. Everyone has different needs. Generic diet plans are so irresponsible and all of these ex-vegans (and even current vegans) did this. Bonny and Rawvana are the ones who inspired me to eat only fruit and make myself extremely sick.

[blushface]

I really wish people would start calling themselves a "plant-based" eater, instead of claiming to be part of veganism.
clearly not vegan.

[marad]

These influencers truly do veganism a disservice. Veganism is a moral philosophy, not a glamorous way to restrict oneself into weight-loss 😔😔

[AmethystAllure]

Thank you for this video, I was so nervous it was going to be an attack on vegans 🙈 completely agree, they should take down their old videos if the information they're sharing is potentially harmful. Unfortunately, these restrictive eating habits portray veganism in such a negative light. There is definitely a pattern with these people's diets and what looks like orthorexic behaviours (although I'm not qualified to say for certain). Thanks again for talking about the subject in an informed, articulate way (as always) xx

[lilyperreau]

Let's get one thing straight, being vegan is not about how you feed your body. Yes, you absolutely need a balanced diet (like you do with any diet) but the focus of a vegan diet is not contributing to animal exploitation. They didn't have a balanced diet, and they weren't eating enough nutrients therefore didn't have a good result.

[punkybrewstar]

So- it isn't that they stopped being vegan. It is how they behaved when they were. It is that they had a channel promoting a disordered way of eating(fruitarian, obsessive), it is that they often sold (books, courses, retreats), this disorder to others (dispite having no qualifications), and lastly, it is that they were so militant when they were vegan, despite not actually doing anything for animals. I suppose, it is because I would be accused of not being vegan and I was ranted at, because I was annoyed by the promotion of this unbalanced, unhealthy, disordered way of eating, under the guise of veganism. Most of them have those videos still up, with advertisements, still earning money. I do want people to be vegan, but more so, I want people to be more considered about using animal products. If every family in NZ and Australia, ate two less meat meals a week, that difference would be huge. Militant vegans promoting eating disorders are literally doing far more harm than good in my mind. It puts "normal" people off of even considering small changes, by belittling all efforts and pushing puritanism, on an unsustainable diet. Veganism isn't a diet. Caring about the planet and animals is a whole lifestyle. However, nobody is perfect, and ultimately every single thing people do differently, makes a huge difference.
I also have an education. It was/is expensive. Professionals, such as Registered Dieticians, work hard to specialize in nutrition. It is so frustrating that people will try to take diet advice from seemingly anywhere, apart from the actual experts in that field. Go see a professional people.
Sorry- rant over 😞

[stephanie]

I'm still vegan, but I found freelee and veganism during the early stages of my eating disorder and she made it so much worse. I'm not the only one that's experienced this, I just wish she would take some accountability for how she's damaged so many young impressionable girls and put toxic thoughts in their minds. She still has such a presence online, but I think people are forgetting that she's the same person who said that it's normal to lose your period because they're toxins leaving your body 😒

[georgiaelle]

Just to add, 3 of those mentioned (Rebecca, Alyse and Yovanna), were encouraged to leave veganism because of the men in their lives. I include this because it says a lot about their internal drivers and self esteem. I'd also like to add that the 'carnivore' community attack ex carnivores with the same thrill and veracity that vegans attack ex vegans. It's not a vegan issue, it's a people issue.

[jessicastunden]

I am so tired of people blindly following uneducated, dishonest, money-hungry, and clearly disordered YouTubers. If these ‘influencers’ feel so strongly about their ‘epiphany’ then they need to privatise any videos with misinformation.

[lunali]

thank you for this!! all these youtubers and ppl on social media should be aware of the effects they have on viewers. when i was in my ED mindset those videos about nutrition were my source of information and also legitimization to restrict

[elisheva]

Thank you I've been really wanting someone to call this out more clearly. It infuriates me that Raw Alignment Alyse is still making money off videos of a diet she claimed made her Asexual, deficient and sick. (Her words not mine) And still has never taken responsibility for her influence, when she literally has a crazy expensive mentorship program. Veganism was a tool my ED used to sneak back in, the community on gernal was super bad for me in recovery.

[valeriadigaetano]

Hi Mia, i really enjoyed the video and the point you’re making. I find something similar occurred with Blogilates. From advocating for body positive, with a past of ED and an audience who followed her for these reasons as well, she embarked in a weight loss journey documenting online every day her weight, workout and calories and then saying “this is just MY journey, I did not like MY body” (although i’ve been advocating for body positive untill yesterday).

[kittyoppliger]

It's not VEGANISM that made them sick... it is the low fat part! Veganism IS healthy, you just need to be smart about it, like ANY eating pattern!!!

[renash]

Completely agree. We need more accountability from these irresponsible influencers. They all love being called an influencer when it comes to business, but when they have to own up to their mistakes, they claim "it's just my journey, you all didn't have to follow it!"

[tessah]

Thank you for adding to this topic. I have been vegan for 11 years and have, what I would consider normal health variations during periods of unhealthy eating. However, my overall health is perfectly fine and I have this checked regularly by my doctor. The rise of the ex-vegan is alarming to me. These people creating content that they aren't sure of is wildly misleading and a big problem for new vegans taking their advice - inevitably leading to more ex-vegans...
You did lose me at, "they literally eat each other alive". I can safely say, as a member of said vegan community, I have never eaten anyone alive (or dead for that matter) ;) x

[deniseauneelvestad]

I love how smart and reflected you are. You talk about things people need to hear, but often don't think about.

[SB-dkty]

This is a very interesting video which highlighted something I had never considered! I wonder if these ex vegans have even thought about taking down videos etc. Perhaps even putting a disclaimer in the title of these videos to highlight that this isn't the diet they follow anymore because of health complications would suffice if taking down the videos seems too extreme.

[hopetherespudding]

Some youtuber ex vegan even still have their cookbooks for sale. It makes me so nervous to think of someone getting advice from someone who was being dishonest with their health.

[HOHGuncle]

I remember when vegan lass came out and stopped being vegan. I wonder how she’s doing because she fell off the face of YouTube. I used veganism and vegetarianism to feed into my eating disorder to be honesta few years ago