I was vegetarian for 2 years before becoming a vegan. It was always about the ethics from the very beginning with the health aspect just being a nice coincidental bonus.

For me at the time (1998-2000) and virtually for everyone around me, vegetarian was the extreme position already. Dairy was hardly recognized as being an issue even by people receptive and somewhat concerned about animal cruelty and the meat industry. I think a majority of people at least where I was, didn't know what veganism even meant and when explained, were likely to give the response "oh, you mean the McDougall diet?" if anything. That said, it was still 100% an excuse for me not to go "all the way" since I knew what veganism was and how inseparable dairy etc was from the same industry I was trying not to participate in via vegetarianism.

I was increasingly aware that every single argument I would use with family and friends to explain why we should all stop eating meat applied in exactly the same way to why I shouldn't keep eating dairy or accepting other kinds of animal products. There was for sure some cognitive dissonance there (and by that I mean actual discomfort from knowing I was being hypocritical) just like there was back when I still ate meat as a self-professed "animal lover." As a vegetarian, I told myself "I'll go vegan some day, but for now I just have to get used to being a vegetarian. I mean hey, I'm already doing way more than almost everyone else around here."

What did the trick was learning more about and getting more involved in animal rights activism which of course included seeing what truly happened on factory farms regardless of whether the animals in question ended up specifically as meat or not. 'Dominion' obviously wasn't around at that time but 'Meet Your Meat' was. My girlfriend at the time, who I actually met on a vegetarian/vegan IRC channel, and I decided to both go vegan as a new years resolution a few months in advance. So at least in my case, it did help to plan ahead and commit to doing what I knew was the right thing, but at a set point in the near future. It also helped that it was a joint effort with a partner.

In retrospect though, it all would have been so much better, more honest, and really even much easier if I had just gone vegan to begin with and not done all that pointless, ultimately unnecessary hemming and hawing. The "hurdle" was so much smaller than I had made it out to be in my head, which I should have known since I had already given up meat. But because it was a process for me, I am generally forgiving and patient with vegetarians and others who "plan on" or are "trying to" become vegan, so long as it is genuine and that it really is their goal. I'll still tell them they need to recognize that they're just making excuses for themselves though.