I often contemplate, and write about, a naturist’s early days — discovering nudity, exploring its many gifts, experimenting, learning about naturism and considering what it all means. I like to think of it as a naturist’s awakening.
I’m not necessarily referring to the typical “first time” story. Those usually center on a first time going to a nude beach, nude hike, nude resort/club, etc…. It’s the first time a naturist was socially nude, or at least nude around others. Don’t get me wrong, those stories are great. Despite their general repetition, they are still favorites and always enjoyable to hear. Love ‘em.
But it’s rare that these “first time” events just happened on their own, with no lead up, no precursor, no preceding thought. It’s what happened before that, a naturists “first time” prequel, that I personally find really interesting, and often times undersold. It’s something that everyone, naturist or not, experiences — getting their head around nudity. Some reject it, some tolerate it, some embrace it. But why? It’s that story that is so fascinating. Why does one person come to enjoy nudity as a part of their lives and one person reject it as a sign of depravity? In “First time” stories, it’s glossed over with a simple “I had always been curious”, or “I liked being naked” or some other generality. But I think there is much more to it than that.
There is much more well researched and eloquently written work on this subject. I’m afraid you won’t find links to scholarly studies and journals here, my words filled with references and footnotes. While I enjoy such work and academic endeavors, that isn’t the objective of this Substack. This is more or less just open thought, spilling onto these “pages”.
My best source, in fact perhaps my only source — me and my personal story! I know….I hear ya. Disappointing. Sorry, but you’re stuck with me.
Born or Made?
You usually hear this in discussions of leadership — are leaders born or made? The typical answer — yes! In other words, a bit of both. Effective leaders seem to be born with a certain group of characteristics as a foundation, but learn to use these skills over years to become the leaders they are known to be. So, what is the case with naturists? Are we born with a penchant for nudity?
Most any parent will tell you that kids like running around naked. It’s true. The freedom, the comfort, it’s simply a natural. But let’s advance that several years. Do all naturists discover and develop a predilection for being nude? I’d say no. But, from my point of view, there is some level of interest that starts at the earliest days. Let’s call it the “naturist gene”.
My attraction to nudity started at a young age. In fact, for as long as I can remember, it’s always been there. At a very young age, I specifically recall coming out early in the morning, and deliberately taking off my pajamas to play with my toy trucks and cars. I liked they way being naked felt and how I felt when I was naked. I experimented with sleeping nude, I spent time nude when I was home alone. I created little nude adventures for myself like taking the trash out naked, washing our family car naked, etc…
I can’t say I ever really debated the idea of whether being nude was appropriate or not. I didn’t struggle with rejecting the norm of “nude is only ok for bathing, the doctor visit, or sex.” I simply knew in my heart that such a view was wrong, end of story. While I definitely kept my nudie time and interests under wraps, I certainly didn’t feel like I was doing anything wrong. I just knew it was different. Blissfully, wonderfully, joyfully different. I felt like I had discovered a hidden treasure. I was lucky.
So, was I born with a naturist gene? Was this all predisposed? I don’t know but the idea seems borderline silly to me. Regardless, I certainly wasn’t groomed or developed to be a naturist. I found it all my own, and a love affair was born.
But that said, I didn’t actually use the word nudist (I prefer naturist, but I wasn’t familiar with it yet) to tie all this into some kind of a label, until many years later. As I first discussed with my wife, the idea of me being nude around our home, regularly, more as a lifestyle than a unique event.
How did you first come to embrace your love of nudity? When did it become part of you? Thanks for sharing!
Thanks very much for sharing Daniel. Very interesting story. Glad you were able to navigate the troubled times and are in a better place now.
I find that so many naturists have a story of how naturism changed them. While I have viewed it as a part time hobby of sorts at times in my life, that certainly isn’t the case for me now. I feel like I discovered something that has bestowed me with more gifts than I can count. Glad to see it so intertwined with your happiness as well. Thanks again for taking the time to share a comment.
Like you, I had a love of nudity from a very early age. I also lived in an environment where this was forbidden fruit, if not perversity. I did what you did, spent free time alone naked and stayed dressed when others were likely to be around.
In some ways I was an extreme case of a free range child, being able to play unsupervised in large acreage of trees and fields with a river running through it. I didn't worry about it being perverse until puberty set in - and then all kinds of sexuality and fear entered the mix. I didn't get that sorted out until I left home for college and started modeling for art classes. I had zero experience of social nudity with females present. First time was a major embarrassment but I adapted and things calmed down. Its that same sexuality that may cause teenagers to drop out of nudism.
So, is a nudist born or made? I have a touch of autism. Enough to make my life intermittently miserable but not enough that anyone would call me on it. Call it high functioning or call it Asperger's.
Autistic children have great difficulty absorbing social conventions. It is the core of their problem. They don't fit in and are often socially isolated. That probably has a great deal with why I didn't absorb body shame. It's not that I wasn't taught it, I think I was incapable of learning it. It didn't feel logical and if I was anything, I was a little Spock. There were a lot of other lessons I didn't learn and it has been a lifetime of working things out.
Some autistic children have a great deal of difficulty staying dressed. That freaks out some parents (Mine would have gone ballistic!) and others couldn't care less. It could be a contributing factor. There could also have been events involving nudity that I don't remember that set me on a course that I persisted in, despite all social conditioning to the contrary.
I was more than a little rebellious and I was smart and sneaky and stubborn enough that I usually won. Being a solitary and unsocial child probably reduced the effectiveness of peer pressure. Being a somewhat feral child allowed enjoyment of nudity to continue to flourish without suffering adverse consequences in an otherwise hostile environment.
But... none of that matters. I am an old man. The past is fixed. I am a product of all that has come before. The things about myself I wanted to change have ether been modified or are not malleable. Being a lover of nudity is not one of the things I would want to change.