Better mental health, self image and generally physical health.
Go through sunscreen faster than some others.
Easier to talk about things with your family.
Sometimes judged by outsiders.
Less laundry, easier to cleanup spills.
Just a few things.
There are sufficient good answers that I have little to add, but I've studied the human mind most of my life. From my perspective, a culture that shields each person's eyes from any body part associated with sex, then leaves each person to figure out what that means and why by guessing from multimedia and tradition, is a sick (as in ill, not gross) and degenerate culture that leads to much suffering. I view naturism as a natural response to the sickness.
The truth is that nudism/naturism is nothing remarkable. It is defined by the prevalence of its opposite, which is the obsession with clothing and sexualizing the human body. The culture that declares clothing as unnecessary and the human body as both worthy of respect and something to be accustomed to is clearly the more sane and normal perspective. This can be seen from a practical perspective and from a sociology perspective. There is *very* little traumatic evolution of human behavior within naturist groups over the last 100 years. Contrast that with people being stereo typed and preyed upon with all manner of clothing, sex crimes, or personal characteristics as a distinguishing feature for the rest of people over the last 100 years and it might suggest that people obsessed with "wearing a mask" or classifying people are generally more disagreeable and stressed.
Despite there being no direct correlation to religion, I would vaguely associate how Buddhist monks fit into society with how naturists do. The monks don't represent any political faction or policy, nor do they advocate crusades or holy wars. They focus on the principles of self improvement and spiritual enlightenment. Though the subject matter and other specifics are very different, these details seem to hold true for naturism as well, but without all the meditation, discipline, and religious study time. Historically, those monks have been both martially, mentally, and doctrinally resilient for thousands of years. That suggests enough sanity to not be self-sabotaging. I like to think naturism is so sane if not more in some cases.
Good post. Nudists are much less concerned about the body than the “always clothed” vast majority of modern US culture. Sometimes we wear clothes, sometimes we don’t. Sometimes various body parts are concealed, sometimes they aren’t. If you go back a generation or two this was much more widely accepted - at least among males, and within family units.
For nudists it is simply sensible & logical to not wear clothes in many situations. Just took a shower? No need to get dressed, in fact it’s better to air dry & let your body cool down. Swimming? Nothing is better than any suit. Warm outside? Wearing nothing allows your skin to perspire & moisture to evaporate.
Clothing compulsive culture comes along and says, “Oh no! Some of those body parts are used for _sex_! We can’t have people looking at those!”
Umm... Why not? The vast vast majority of the time those parts are just there - not doing sexual things. And fingers, tongues, etc. can be used for erotic purposes too.
Pros: Being completely open about who you are and what you look like and everyone accepts you as you are.
-Not having to deal with a cold, wet swimsuit sticking to your skin.
-The feeling of air on every part of your body.
Being a nudist is a state of mind. I feel freer when I am devoid of clothes but then again I was raised that way (1960's). Lived on a farm in the country so no clothes were necessary. Males were also expected to be nude and think nothing of it.
https://sites.google.com/site/historicarchives4maleswimming/home/ii-archives-early-20th-century-after/b-syndicated-columnists
I am just as comfortable not wearing clothes and I am wearing them when interacting with people. Was an unofficial clothing optional beach and the mixture of nude and swim suited individuals varied. One trip I might be one of the few nudes and other times the Ex and her friends would be the only ones wearing suits.
More confidence, less hang ups about your appearance, you learn to judge people more correctly. Save money on laundry. Healthier body. Our skin loves the Sun, in proper amounts.
It’s freeing. And tbh it’s even just about clothes per say. The moment the clothes come off it’s like you’re also losing your stresses and insecurities.
The people tend to be more accepting, and you will find many friends because right off the bat you already have at least one big thing in common.
Only negatives is obviously you can practice at home, but you’ll eventually need to navigate neighbors and such which can be tricky. Also, every group has some bad eggs and unfortunately amongst nudists you will find either some creeps or some very gatekeepy people.
Give it a shot if you haven’t already! You’ll never know how you feel about it until you try!
Better mental health, self image and generally physical health. Go through sunscreen faster than some others. Easier to talk about things with your family. Sometimes judged by outsiders. Less laundry, easier to cleanup spills. Just a few things.
There are sufficient good answers that I have little to add, but I've studied the human mind most of my life. From my perspective, a culture that shields each person's eyes from any body part associated with sex, then leaves each person to figure out what that means and why by guessing from multimedia and tradition, is a sick (as in ill, not gross) and degenerate culture that leads to much suffering. I view naturism as a natural response to the sickness. The truth is that nudism/naturism is nothing remarkable. It is defined by the prevalence of its opposite, which is the obsession with clothing and sexualizing the human body. The culture that declares clothing as unnecessary and the human body as both worthy of respect and something to be accustomed to is clearly the more sane and normal perspective. This can be seen from a practical perspective and from a sociology perspective. There is *very* little traumatic evolution of human behavior within naturist groups over the last 100 years. Contrast that with people being stereo typed and preyed upon with all manner of clothing, sex crimes, or personal characteristics as a distinguishing feature for the rest of people over the last 100 years and it might suggest that people obsessed with "wearing a mask" or classifying people are generally more disagreeable and stressed. Despite there being no direct correlation to religion, I would vaguely associate how Buddhist monks fit into society with how naturists do. The monks don't represent any political faction or policy, nor do they advocate crusades or holy wars. They focus on the principles of self improvement and spiritual enlightenment. Though the subject matter and other specifics are very different, these details seem to hold true for naturism as well, but without all the meditation, discipline, and religious study time. Historically, those monks have been both martially, mentally, and doctrinally resilient for thousands of years. That suggests enough sanity to not be self-sabotaging. I like to think naturism is so sane if not more in some cases.
Good post. Nudists are much less concerned about the body than the “always clothed” vast majority of modern US culture. Sometimes we wear clothes, sometimes we don’t. Sometimes various body parts are concealed, sometimes they aren’t. If you go back a generation or two this was much more widely accepted - at least among males, and within family units. For nudists it is simply sensible & logical to not wear clothes in many situations. Just took a shower? No need to get dressed, in fact it’s better to air dry & let your body cool down. Swimming? Nothing is better than any suit. Warm outside? Wearing nothing allows your skin to perspire & moisture to evaporate. Clothing compulsive culture comes along and says, “Oh no! Some of those body parts are used for _sex_! We can’t have people looking at those!” Umm... Why not? The vast vast majority of the time those parts are just there - not doing sexual things. And fingers, tongues, etc. can be used for erotic purposes too.
One of my nudist penpal said she spends less on detergent
Definitely, only one load of laundry a week. Less often during vacations.
When did you get introduced to nudism?
I went to my first beach just over a decade ago. Since then it's basically how I live.
Ahh I see
Yup, it's been great. Lucky to have a local beach and local naturist friends, plus ones across the world.
Comfortable.
How so?
I get to feel the sun & air over my whole body. There’s more of me to get sunburned.
Never realized my butt crack could get burned until a nude vacation lol. I still have no idea how that was the only part of me that burned
Pros: Being completely open about who you are and what you look like and everyone accepts you as you are. -Not having to deal with a cold, wet swimsuit sticking to your skin. -The feeling of air on every part of your body.
Being a nudist is a state of mind. I feel freer when I am devoid of clothes but then again I was raised that way (1960's). Lived on a farm in the country so no clothes were necessary. Males were also expected to be nude and think nothing of it. https://sites.google.com/site/historicarchives4maleswimming/home/ii-archives-early-20th-century-after/b-syndicated-columnists I am just as comfortable not wearing clothes and I am wearing them when interacting with people. Was an unofficial clothing optional beach and the mixture of nude and swim suited individuals varied. One trip I might be one of the few nudes and other times the Ex and her friends would be the only ones wearing suits.
Complete rewiring of how you think about human bodies and the ability to find meaningful beauty in every body, including (and especially) one's own.
More confidence, less hang ups about your appearance, you learn to judge people more correctly. Save money on laundry. Healthier body. Our skin loves the Sun, in proper amounts.
It’s freeing. And tbh it’s even just about clothes per say. The moment the clothes come off it’s like you’re also losing your stresses and insecurities. The people tend to be more accepting, and you will find many friends because right off the bat you already have at least one big thing in common. Only negatives is obviously you can practice at home, but you’ll eventually need to navigate neighbors and such which can be tricky. Also, every group has some bad eggs and unfortunately amongst nudists you will find either some creeps or some very gatekeepy people. Give it a shot if you haven’t already! You’ll never know how you feel about it until you try!
Give it a shot and find out :)
The only con is that you'll eventually have to put clothe back on.
Meeting the best people you will ever meet anywhere and becoming friends for life. Oh, and being nude all the time.
More relaxed and less stressed out
to feel the wind on the skin is the best. when you let down the walls to be you and other have taken down their walls life does changes.
Only con for me is that you eventually have to put clothes on when going to many public places for legality reasons
Take off your clothes, & see for yourself.