How naturists should cope with the pandemic’s disruption

Earlier this month, The Meandering Naturist posted an interesting and very timely article: Social Nudity in the Age of Isolation: Naked on ZOOM!. I won’t try to summarize it here. You should just go ahead and read it. What follows are my thought on the subject. (You’ll need to have read it to understand what’s said here.)

This blog is hardly the best place for news about COVID-19. But it’s not easy to escape thinking that the problems aren’t going to be over soon – most likely not this year. So naturists need to prepare for that possibility and start thinking longer term. For instance, don’t count on many or most naturist camps, clubs, and resorts to resume normal activities this year. Some may be open, but attendance levels will probably be down. Many traditional clothing-optional beaches may be open, but in the U. S. and many other countries, the beaches aren’t conveniently located for most people. Many organized naturist events will probably either be canceled or lightly attended. And besides, you’ll probably want to keep “social distancing” in mind just for your own health and that of others. It’s a different world we’re living in now, like it or not.

The upshot here for naturists is that it’s more important than ever to be able to enjoy nudity in their own homes and backyards. That implies several things. First and foremost, as a naturist you need to persuade everyone you live with to understand and accept your preference for being naked when you’d like to be. Perhaps others you live with know you enjoy being naked – but preferably somewhere other than where you live. They need to become more comfortable with your nudity at home.

Secondly, if you aren’t a renter, you should think about making your own home more like a traditional naturist facility. If you already have a swimming pool, you may need to make it a little more private to avoid problems with neighbors. If you don’t have a pool already and can’t afford to put one in, how about a hot tub or spa, either indoors or outside? Or maybe an indoor sauna? Even if you want just to sunbathe on your lawn, you may need to add some fencing or landscaping for more privacy. And if you don’t have the funds available for any of that, get to know your neighbors better so you can be sure they won’t be bothered if they happen to see you and others in your family naked.

But there’s another problem, whether or not you’re able to be naked where you live. That is, you probably want to interact with others who share your enthusiasm for nudity. If neither clothing-optional beaches nor naturist camps and resorts are available, what can you do? That’s where the subject of The Meandering Naturist’s article linked here is important: recent computer and communications technology comes to the rescue. You can interact – fully naked – with naturist friends, who might be almost anywhere in the world, at any time that’s mutually convenient. (Provided, as usual, others you live with are OK with the nudity.) Just read the linked article for lots of information about how to get started, if you don’t already have the know-how as a result of working at a job remotely.

There is, of course, still one more problem. What if you don’t actually know many other naturists to interact with over the ’net? Or if those naturists you know aren’t comfortable with the technology or don’t have a high-speed connection or lack some necessary equipment? In normal times, the way you initially meet other “real” naturists is usually in face-to-face interactions at clothing-optional beaches or naturist parks. That is, the very things that are no longer as easily visited – and may not be for some time.

It’s true that there are a variety of online naturist forums, chat-rooms, and social networks. But the main drawback is that it’s difficult with those facilities to get to know others as well as you could through in-person meetings. This is a tricky problem that requires a lot more discussion. Is that other person a “real” naturist – or an impostor? There could be an easier alternative to looking for new, trustworthy friends online. It might well be easier to persuade one or more current friends to accept your nudity – and maybe even dispense with some clothing themselves.

And guess what. You might find that someone you know well but who now lives hundreds or thousands of miles away will welcome using video technology to chat with you – even if you’re naked. You could start, for example, with a favorite sibling, parent, child, grandparent, aunt, uncle, or cousin. Because of living far apart from them, you and they may not have had as many interactions recently as you’d like. The new technology could correct that problem, regardless of whether nudity is involved.

Such folks are more likely to be amused or intrigued by your “eccentricity” than to disown you. Wouldn’t you enjoy explaining naturism to someone you like who’s interested to listen? They might perhaps try a little naturism themselves. Worth giving it a shot, don’t you think? (Tip: Be prepared to explain why nudity should be considered normal and to debunk any of the prevalent misconceptions of naturism.)

Please feel free to comment on the experiences you’ve had using video chat technology sans clothing.