A large reason many people are not more comfortable with nudity is simply that they are rarely (if ever) exposed to nudity in a normal, everyday, non-sexual context. However, when people are exposed to unashamed nudity they often become comfortable with it very quickly. This is a place to share experiences of others encountering our unashamed nudity (as opposed to our grabbing for clothes). Experience shows that most such encounters are positive and often help others overcome their body shame. It could have been planned or unexpected, at home, at a beach, pond, or pool, gym, on a trail, anywhere! If you have a story you would like to share, please send it to Hopefully the stories shared here will encourage others to be more open about nudity, helping to strike many blows against body shame.Closet Nudists
My fiancée, Stephan, started out as 'closet' nudists. We have always loved being nude together around our New York apartment. On those rare weekends when we have no commitments, we spend our time almost exclusively nude. We have ventured to Gunnison Beach, the largest legal nude beach in our area, and vacationed at Paradise Lakes one winter. I call us 'closet' nudists because until recently, we engaged in our nude activities under the guise of anonymity. Certainly, we always kept our little 'secret' from family and friends, not so much because we were ashamed, but because like other details of our intimate life together, it was simply none of their business. We never imagined that 'coming out of the closet' and sharing our secret with our friends would impact our lives the way it has.
Last summer, our dear friend Drew and his wife Diane invited us to spend the weekend with them at their new home in New Jersey. They told us they had a lovely pool and spa and Drew joked about skinny-dipping, or at least we thought he was joking.
We enjoyed catching up with Drew and Diane. Their new house was truly gorgeous. After dinner and a couple bottles of wine, Drew and Diane suggested we move the party into the hot tub. Drew went to change while we brought the dishes inside. He appeared a few minutes later in a white terrycloth bathrobe.
"Hurry up and get changed! There are robes in the guest bathroom for you." He said and headed outside.
Stephan and I went to our room and changed into our swimsuits, assuming that was the proper thing to do. When we went outside, Drew and Diane were already in the hot tub. I noticed them exchange an awkward look as we got in with our swimsuits on. In the dark and under the bubbles, we could not tell that they were totally nude. After a while, the heat from the hot tub began to get to us. Drew offered us a cold drink and very nonchalantly stood up to get out of the tub.
"Honey!" Diane cried, but it was too late. We saw it all.
Drew did not seem ashamed of his nudity as he walked the short distance from the hot tub to hook where his robe was hanging.
"Honey, will you give me a hand?" He asked his wife.
Diane looked embarrassed but got up out of the tub. She was naked too. They hurried into the house without giving us a chance to respond. Stephan and I looked at each other and cracked up. Immediately, we took off our swimsuits.
A few minutes later, Drew and Diane returned with drinks. They were both in their swimsuits. Drew apologized to us.
"We never wear swimsuits in the hot tub, or in the pool for that matter. We didn't mean to make you uncomfortable." He explained.
Stephan stood up to take the drink from Drew, revealing just enough to show that he was nude. I followed suit, flashing my bare breasts to Drew who gave me an approving smile.
"You mean you don't care?" Diane asked.
"Of course not." We laughed.They removed their swimsuits and joined us in the hot tub. The conversation that followed was a huge catharsis for both couples. Drew and Diane confessed that they love being nude together. While they had never been to a nude beach or resort, they listened attentively as we told them about our experiences. They seemed relieved that we did it too. They told us that they purchased this house mainly because of the extremely private backyard.
"He cleans the pool nude, he works in the garden nude. I can't get him to put on clothes most days. Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining!" Diane laughed.
"It's great for our sex life!" Drew added.
"I used to think we were a couple of perverts." Diane confessed. "I'm glad to know our behavior is relatively normal."
We spent the remainder of the evening together nude, swimming in the pool and relaxing in the hot tub. We even talked about renting a place together at Paradise Lakes for our next vacation. Before retiring for the evening, we declared the rest of our weekend "clothing optional."
The next morning, I woke up early. I went down to the kitchen and made a pot of coffee and went out on the patio to read the paper. I was somewhat surprised to see Drew, across the yard, watering the garden completely nude. Somehow, it felt different in broad daylight and without the alcohol to dull my inhibitions. As I admired his body, I felt strangely guilty, like I was cheating on Stephan. I quickly realized that seeing Drew nude had nothing to do with my fidelity to Stephan. While it was definitely a sensual experience, it was not a sexual experience. Stephan came out on the patio in his robe. Taking a cue from Drew, he jumped in the pool nude for a refreshing morning swim. I was right behind him. Drew came in from the garden as we were drying off on the patio. There was an awkward moment as we checked each other out in broad daylight, but it soon passed. We spent the remainder of the weekend virtually "clothes-free" and we all felt extremely comfortable. Being nude together instantly removes the pretense and the charades couples often play together. It was as if removing our clothing also granted us express permission to remove our "masks" and share the best and the worst of ourselves without reservation.
Since that first weekend, we have gone to several nudist resorts with Drew and Diane and we have invited a third couple, Mario and Natasha, to join us on some of our nude adventures. I must emphasize that outside of the sensual experience of being nude together, there is no 'funny business' going on between any of us. We are all very much in love with our respective partners and we all trust each other implicitly. We have, on occasion, shared sexy dreams we've had about each other, and we have openly acknowledged that we find each other attractive, but we have no desires or intentions to act on these feelings. In fact, we all feel that our 'nude adventures' have strengthened our relationships with our respective partners. Stephan and I find that spending the day nude with our friends is like a whole day of tantalizing foreplay. Inevitably, we have fabulous sex afterward.
My friendships with Diane and Natasha are among the most honest and authentic friendships I have ever experienced. We all agree that we are more secure with our bodies and thus, with our sexuality, after experiencing the nudist lifestyle. We have seen, and our partners have seen, that real women come in all shapes and sizes. As young women, all three of us are concerned about staying fit and having nice bodies. Diane confessed that when she and Drew first met, she would not have sex with him with the lights on because she thought she was fat. (Diane is a size 10! She is not fat!) Natasha and I both share the old-fashioned, shapely hourglass figures that were popular in the 1950's but are entirely out of vogue on today's fashion scene. We have both come to love our voluptuous, healthy size 12 bodies. Our partners have ALWAYS loved them! While I definitely watch what I eat and exercise regularly, it is without the unhealthy obsessive feeling I used to know so well. I'm pretty sure I'll never be a size six, and it is a huge relief to say that I've truly stopped aspiring to be one!
The nudist lifestyle has had similar positive effects on Drew, Stephan and Mario too. Their relationships with each other are almost completely non-competitive, which is rare between men in their thirties. I find Stephan to be more demonstrative and affectionate with me since we started getting naked with our friends. He is also more secure about his body. Mario, who was about thirty pounds overweight when he started, has found the incentive he needed to 'get in shape' and while he's not thin by anyone's standards, his cholesterol has dropped more than 20 points and his blood pressure has gone down. Drew says he'd never put clothes on again if he didn't have to!
None of us ever imagined that the simple act of taking off our clothes and seeing each other in our natural state, as God made us, would give us the power to truly "see" each other and even to "see" ourselves.
ctmezzo@netscape.net
