Children and Nudism

It always bugs me when I hear a nudist or naturist use the adage that nudity does not mean sex, because for the most part it does. Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that nudity IS sexual. I'm just saying that I think too many nudists feel the need to justify their lifestyle by saying that nudity isn't sexual so that they aren't labeled as pedophiles and perverts. Most nudists learn during their life how to separate nudity from sexual feelings, but that doesn't mean that just because they are nude, they have no sexual thoughts what-so-ever. If they didn't, either they have been brainwashed or castrated as sexual feelings originate with hormones. The only difference between nudists and most others is that nudists learn to separate their sexual feelings from their lifestyle. That doesn't mean that they have no sexual feelings when they see someone attractive.

When children are brought up in a nudist type environment, they learn how to make that separation just like they learn any other values. They also learn more about sexual tolerance than non nudists. As teens and young adults they don't get so sexually turned on by our sexual culture. They become best friends to people who are overweight or otherwise are considered to be unattractive to most people. This is because they are taught in life that no matter what a person looks like on the outside, they look a lot differently on the inside. This is the type of argument I would rather hear from nudists. Using the cop out of nudity not being sexual doesn't fly well and just makes us look hypocritical.

 

Tim, your points are well-spoken and helpful.

As you said, nudity can mean any number of things, sometimes sexual, sometimes not.

No one is fooled by claims that nudists have no sexual desire, that oversimplifies the nudist ethic to the point of absurdity.

Nude recreation at a family-friendly nudist park is not a sexually-charged environment, not at the places I go. However, once in a while I do meet a woman at this park who is physically attractive. I can think of a similar occasion at a regular campground where I met a clothed woman and my attraction to her was strong too.

While I think that a beautiful woman is more lovely without her clothes, my sexual attraction is not necessarily greater because she is naked. I have been a nudist for about 10 years, but I am not in resorts every weekend and meeting a single nude attractive woman can still be a fresh and exciting event for me.

But without common interests and mutual attraction, that's all it is, a moment of joy and beauty that is a small part of my day.

 

My wife, I and her 2 daughters for several years were practicing nudists. Recently this practice had to stop when we gained custody of my two children, one being a boy. My son is obsessed with trying to catch peeks his sisters and my wife, so I understand the idea that being brought up in this lifestyle takes away the curiosity that develops in children who have not been exposed to this lifestyle. We have gotten him over the past year to stop trying to peek in on his sisters, but will enter our room when I am not home and he knows that there is a possibility that my wife is naked. I know that the curiosity is healthy, but under the circumstances, we have had to repeatedly talk to him about boundaries. I don't think that he is capable of handling a nudist environment with regards to his sisters at this time, but my wife and I have discussed allowing him to see her naked or not. We are torn that this may do one of two things:
1. Curb the curiosity and help him understand that the females body is nothing to obsess over and remove the taboo aspect of seeing girls naked, or
2. Turn south and he will interpret this in the wrong way. We want him to view my wife as a mother-type-figure, and we feel that he sees the female body with a strict relationship to sex. (There are other behaviors that have brought us to this conclusion.)
We are going to take him to therapy for his ADHD and ODD, and hopefully with the help of the therapist, we can break the idealism of nudity = sex mentality that we see in him.
Any thoughts??

 

Any reason why you haven't discussed your son being nude so that he himself can 'slip into the groove' and perhaps the curiosity will stop naturally? You didn't mention his age, but I would hazard a guess he is in his teens and this would be a period of persistent curiosity over the female form and little if any about the male form. If you discussed with him that he could be nude if he wished (I understand you may rail at the suggestion, but it is just that — a suggestion). In the circumstances though it's probably not a good idea as he could become overtly sexually promiscuous (as a nudist) leading to all manner of more serious problems.

Is your son's behaviour directly related (by cause) to ADHD / ODD? Or is there an undercurrent of autism that may or may not have been explored? Again, this may seem a crude suggestion, but many parents with ADHD/ODD disorders often are blinded by professionals reporting an autism spectrum disorder that requires focused attention. A therapist will be able to examine this, and his nudity=sex displacement and make the path clearer, but keep an open mind. ASD is not a fault or disease, but a behavioural characteristic and nothing to be horrified or ashamed about as a parent.

Perhaps just wait now until a therapist gets Prodigal Son organised and makes an assessment. In the meantime, have the door shut and remained shut when Missus is all-a-streaky and needs privacy.

 

I think it is fine and could be such a great life lesson for kids.

 

It seems absurd than four practicing nudists have to abandon their way of life in the privacy of their own home because this boy has joined the family.

But in view of the disorders you mentioned (and maybe autism?), his transition to family nudity will need professional guidance. But it must be done. This is too important to your daughters' well-being and the happiness of you all.

And certainly the peeking and obsessions must stop. As I see it, this makes an even stronger case for guiding him to a nudist way of thinking about nudity with all the professional medical support it may require.

 

Yes it is sad.....

Like those of us WHO WOULD LOVE BEING NAKED but cant be cause no one else in our family is like that

 

Dude, in the case of a family of four established nudists, the new child will eventually have to adapt to life without clothes.

If you are the first nudist in your family, obviously you would consider the possibility of helping guide your close relatives to the freedom we enjoy, but if they are stubborn, it may take starting your own family.

Find a woman who already participates in your life style.
Failing that, find an open-minded woman. If she embraces nudism early in your relationship after learning about it from you, then maybe she is the soul mate you are looking for.

Finding and marrying a closed-minded woman should not even be up for consideration.

Kids are natural-born nudists until we teach them otherwise.
Second generation nudist kids have it so much easier than those of us who are the first to break free in our families. What a wonderful gift you can give the next generation of your family!

Don't live in a textile ghetto! I want to encourage you to venture out and find kindred spirits. Don't settle for someone who rejects our values and way of life.

The Internet makes it a lot easier to make the connection than in previous years.

 

Very good points my friend!

 

Children are the most natural on naturists; they only learn that the body is something to be ashamed of and covered up from their parents, who tell them to cover up. Children also seem to be very well protected in a naturist atmosphere. They are not only there with their parents, but have around them their peers and adults that see nudity in a healthy and non-sexual way.

 

There are not very many children as nudists, in family or single-parent settings, here in Australia. Probably, I suspect, due to the heightened awareness of pedophiles. They are unfortunately found on nude beaches with peculiar behavioural dispositions, very unlike the sex pests that can also be seen on textile beaches (e.g. Nipper events). On the nude beaches, families take a lot of care to ensure the kids are safe from perverted eyes.

 

I was raised a nudist and raised my daughters as nudists. Not all nudist venues are suitable for families but many are and I have never had second thoughts about taking my children to them. My daughters just grew up accepting nudity as normal and they still choose to be nudists although they are old enough to opt out if they wanted.

 

My opinion is that encouraging children about nudism can be a very positive experience for young kids. I know it does wonders for their self-esteem and promote a very positive body image. Years ago I often took my two sons and my little cousin swimming naked and also we would stay naked in my house and they really enjoyed not having to wear clothes. I do wish there had been a nudist community in my area. I did occasionally take them to the gym and we would shower with all the other boys and men so they could just see how different or the same that the other males were.

 

From the time I was a very little boy I hated wearing clothes and I would be naked most of the time. My family wasn't really open to that sort of thing some mostly I would get naked in the woods and sometimes with friends of mine as we would also go swimming naked. As I got older I would wait till I was home alone and immediately take off my clothes. In school I enjoyed taking showers with the other boys because it just felt comfortable to me and also because I felt more like one of the boys. I moved in with my uncle when I was 15 years old and I already knew that I could be naked around him and he also could be. He had an adopted little boy and we all would be naked, either watching TV or outside swimming in the pool. My little cousin absolutely loved being naked and I know it was very healthy for him. I would also take him and my nephew skinny-dipping and a pond by my parents house. I don't know about little girls, but I do know that most little boys would prefer to go around naked if given the choice. I think it was also healthy that they could see me as a young adult, naked as well. So all in all I believe strongly that children that experience nudism and especially with others have a higher self-esteem and it's just really healthy for them