Reflections on a semi-vegetarian Life: How Did My Habits Change Because of My Health? ❤️‍🩹

Hello deer, this is Seri 🌸

I’m a social sciences student with a love for femininity, philosophy, social sciences and all things soulful, poetic, or a little bit forgotten by the modern world.

This blog, Seri’s World, is a reflection space.

I write about what I observe, what I feel, and what I long for whether it’s Japan, femininity, anthropology, or the quiet resistance of choosing a gentler way of living.

🌿 Today, I’m writing about my semi-vegetarian journey.

It’s a path shaped by my health — especially living with Multiple Sclerosis — and by a slow awakening of my heart toward animals.

It’s not a strict rule or a perfect label. It’s just me, trying to live with more softness, more intention, and more care for my body, and for the lives around me.

PS: This is a part 1.

I’m sure I’ll continue to evolve in the weeks or months ahead and I’ll bring you along with me 🌱💫

This little journey of mine began quietly not with strict rules or labels, but with a slow shift, rooted in care. Care for my body, and care for the living beings we often overlook. I don’t claim to have all the answers, but I wanted to share what led me toward a more plant-centered life, while still occasionally eating seafood.

✨ For My Health (and especially MS)

Living with Multiple Sclerosis means learning to listen closely to my body. Many dietary approaches for MS, like the Overcoming MS (OMS) diet, recommend limiting or completely cutting out red meat and dairy. These foods can contribute to inflammation — a key factor in MS flare-ups. For me, red and processed meats often made my symptoms worse, and over time, I realized my body felt calmer without them.

Some research suggests that high meat consumption may disrupt the gut microbiome, which can negatively impact the immune system and MS progression. Although some diets allow for small amounts of poultry or eggs, others are more plant-based. I tried to find my balance starting with cutting red meat, then poultry, until only fish remained.

I still include seafood, especially fatty fish like salmon, tuna, and mackerel, which are rich in omega-3 fatty acids. These support brain and immune health and may reduce inflammation — something very important for me. They also offer vitamin D, which many with MS (including me) need more of.

In addition to MS, I also have a condition affecting my epigastric region. Foods high in fat — especially red meat — and triggers like caffeine, alcohol, and carbonated drinks often worsen my symptoms. Eating smaller meals and avoiding extreme temperatures in food helps too. Unfortunately, dairy seems to sometimes aggravate my condition as well, so I've gradually moved away from it.

🕊️ For the Animals

At first, my shift in diet was only for my health… but something changed. I started seeing the faces, the lives, behind the food. Watching those videos and reading about animal suffering gently broke something in me. Even though I understand the natural cycles of life, I began questioning : do I truly need to eat other beings for my own pleasure or convenience?

There’s something deep inside me that whispers: “I don’t want to cause harm if I can avoid it.” That voice has only grown louder.

🌀 How It Unfolded

I grew up in Shioya, a small coastal area in Kobe, where the sea was part of daily life. Naturally, seafood was often on the table : fresh, familiar, and comforting. While I did eat meat growing up, it was seafood that felt closest to home. It was part of the rhythm of living by the ocean, and part of what connected me to my roots.

This is also why, even as I began to let go of meat, I continued to eat fish for a while. There was history in it. Memory. And still today, I sometimes include seafood when my body needs the nutrients it provides but with more awareness, more reverence, and less frequency.

First, I stopped red meat. I kept eating chicken and fish, especially salmon for its omega-3 and vitamin D. Then I let go of chicken too. Now I only eat seafood occasionally, when my body needs it.

I thought about going fully vegetarian — or even vegan — but I’m cautious. Health is delicate, and I know that eliminating animal products requires care: B12, iron, vitamin D, omega-3… these nutrients need to be respected and replaced mindfully. Everyone’s body is different. What works for one may not work for another.

But I still dream of getting closer to the earth, to a life with less harm. I believe a plant-rich diet has a kind of quiet magic in it. 🌱✨

So I call myself semi-vegetarian, or maybe almost-pescatarian. I’m still on my way. It’s not perfect, but it’s honest.

If you’re on your own journey, whether it’s for your health, for the animals, for the planet, or simply because something inside you is changing, be patient with yourself. You don’t need to fit into anyone’s definition.

You’re allowed to take your time. You’re allowed to shift slowly.

Small steps are still steps forward.

Diversity in Humanity 🍵

✨ If you live with a chronic illness like MS, or other invisible conditions, caring for your body is not selfish. It’s necessary. And food can be part of that care, not as punishment or restriction, but as support and kindness.

If you’re searching, questioning, evolving, that’s not confusion. That’s growth. You don’t have to have all the answers right away.

And to those who judge or dismiss the choices of others — hear this clearly:

Not everyone lives the same life.

Not everyone eats the same way, believes the same things, loves the same people, or moves through the world the same way.

That’s not something to fear.

Humanity is not a single story. And there’s more than one way to live meaningfully, ethically, and well.

From a biological and evolutionary view, human diversity exists because it helps us adapt and survive.

Genetic variation means that no two people are exactly the same (except identical twins). Different genes give us different traits — eye color, skin tone, metabolism, immunity, etc.

As humans migrated across the world, we adapted to different climates, diets, environments, and threats. That shaped our bodies, cultures, and beliefs.

Diversity in thinking, behavior, and personality has allowed us to solve problems in different ways, collaborate, create, and build civilizations.

From a more emotional, almost spiritual perspective, maybe humans are diverse because we were never meant to live in just one way.

We are each born with different temperaments, wounds, intuitions, and gifts. Some of us are loud. Some are quiet. Some follow logic, others follow dreams. Some seek roots, some seek skies.

And maybe that’s the secret: we’re here to learn from each other, not to become the same. Like wildflowers in a field — some bloom early, some late, some tall, some hidden — but all are part of the same meadow.

🕊️ Japan’s Old Vegetarian Roots

For over a thousand years, Japan had a culture that was largely vegetarian or pescatarian, deeply influenced by Buddhism, local beliefs, and even imperial law.

From the 7th century onward, when Buddhism became more established, meat-eating was officially discouraged especially the flesh of land animals. Killing animals was considered a violation of ahimsa (non-violence), a central Buddhist principle.

By the time of the Heian period (794–1185), the imperial court and many people followed mostly plant-based diets. Meat from cows, horses, dogs, monkeys, and chickens was forbidden by law in many regions. People mostly ate grains, vegetables, tofu, seaweed, beans, and fish which was more accepted, especially in coastal areas.

For centuries, Japanese cuisine was heavily centered on rice, miso, vegetables, pickles, and seasonal wild plants (like sansai). Shojin ryori — the traditional vegetarian cuisine of Buddhist monks — is a beautiful example of that time. It’s still practiced in temples today, especially in Kyoto and Nara. It uses no meat, fish, garlic, or onion, and focuses on simplicity, respect for ingredients, and balance.

🐄 So what changed?

Things began to shift during the Meiji Restoration (late 1800s). Japan was opening to the West, and Western powers saw meat-eating as a sign of strength and modernity. The Meiji government lifted the ban on meat in 1872, even encouraging people to eat beef to "strengthen the nation." It was part of Japan’s push to modernize and become a global power.

This was a big cultural shift and even controversial at the time. Some Buddhist monks protested. But over time, meat consumption became normalized. And today, Japan is seen as a country with refined meat and fish-based dishes, even though for many centuries, it lived quite differently.

🌱 1) Vegetarian (no meat, fish; includes dairy/eggs if not vegan)

Health Benefits:

Often lower in saturated fat and cholesterol

May reduce risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, and type 2 diabetes

Rich in fiber, antioxidants, and vitamins from fruits, vegetables, and legumes

Can support weight balance and digestion

Often anti-inflammatory especially helpful for conditions like MS or autoimmune issues

Other Benefits:

Reduces harm to animals

Smaller environmental footprint (less water, land, emissions)

Encourages mindful eating and nutrient awareness

🥗 2) Flexitarian (mostly plant-based, with occasional meat or fish)

Health Benefits:

Offers many of the benefits of vegetarianism without complete restriction

Easier to maintain long-term for many people

Can reduce red/processed meat intake, lowering inflammation and gut strain

Allows flexibility for health needs or cultural moments

Other Benefits:

A sustainable and realistic way to reduce animal product consumption

Supports diversity in meals and nutrients

Ideal for those with chronic illnesses or sensitive digestion who still need variety

Note : Throughout most of human history, people didn’t eat meat every day.

Meat was often rare, seasonal, or reserved for special occasions. Our ancestors’ diets were largely plant-based, supplemented by fish, eggs, or small amounts of meat when available not driven by habit or craving, but by need.

In traditional Japanese culture, Mediterranean diets, and many Indigenous foodways, plants, grains, roots, beans, and wild herbs formed the foundation.

Animals were consumed in moderation with deep gratitude, not casual excess.

Today, especially in wealthier countries, people often eat meat multiple times a day, every day.

That’s not only unnecessary, it’s also harmful.

In many ways, flexitarianism reflects how humans were meant to eat and how many traditional cultures around the world used to eat before industrialization changed everything.

🐟 3) Pescatarian (vegetarian + seafood)

Health Benefits:

Includes omega-3 fatty acids from fatty fish (good for brain, heart, inflammation)

Rich in lean protein and vitamin D, often helpful for conditions like MS

Still avoids red and processed meat

Easier nutrient balance (like B12, iron, zinc) compared to strict vegetarian diets

Other Benefits:

Gentler on animals and environment than meat-heavy diets

Good balance between ethics, health, and tradition (especially in coastal cultures like Japan)

🌿 Final Thoughts

Vegetarianism — or even a flexible, semi-vegetarian approach — is not a weakness, a restriction, or something extreme.

It can be a deeply nourishing, thoughtful way of eating, especially for people living with chronic conditions like MS or digestive disorders. Choosing more plant-based foods, or reducing certain animal products, can bring relief, balance, and support to the body when it needs gentleness the most.

It’s not about perfection. It’s about intention.

And as for our differences — in health, in lifestyle, in values — they’re not a problem to fix.

They’re part of what makes us human. Part of what makes life meaningful.

Some people need meat. Others feel better without it.

Some are driven by ethics, others by health.

And some, like me, are still evolving, finding a path that feels honest and kind to both body and heart.

There is no single right way to live, or eat, or exist.

🌸 Life is diverse.

🌊 Humans are diverse.

And there is room for all of us.

🌸 With love, Seri 🧜🏻‍♀️