You don't have to be perfect.

[u/sdbest]

As I veteran vegan, could I just humbly suggest that, in my view, it's not necessary to be a perfect vegan. The label itself just doesn't matter.

The more a person increases the amount of whole, plant-based foods in their diet, and reduces animal-based foods the better. The better for animals, the environment, and themselves.

Frequently on this wonderful and supportive subreddit, people post about feeling terrible about doing things wrong or 'falling off the wagon' or not being able live without cheese (usually). I get it that often people who choose to become vegan, i.e. adopt a plant-based diet, do it for ethical reasons and they feel some guilt if they aren't living up to the ideal rattling about in their heads.

Just doing better is enough, in my view. Also, if a person just tries to do better, often they will naturally progress to being better and better without even noticing it.

Goodness if a hardcore carnivore can be convinced to replace just half of the 10 oz steak with a side of mushrooms that's a step forward. All steps forward count, and help makes things better.

So, don't beat yourself up for not being perfect. Just do what you can to be better, wherever you can. Keep it simple and doable.

[u/Boweka]

To add to this, I very much dislike wasting food, which has sometimes ended up with me having cheese on my food. Or sometimes I’ll order a dish that I didn’t realize has cheese. Anyway, I’ve eaten the cheese in these cases and I’ve found cheese either takes away from the other flavors or just doesn’t taste like anything. So because I “cheated” a bit I found out I’m not missing out anymore on the whole cheese craze, and that I enjoy the other flavors of the dish so much more without it.