Having read through all of this forum’s threads again, (Which really is a well thought out and a good read) I would like to throw in some observations, which I do feel play a role in today’s society as a whole, which is in my belief being led in several directions.

The first being the most obvious, which we have touched on here. “Diversity” It is my own personal view, but I do feel there is a genuine attempt to separate us into defined groups, usually under the premise of these people should have special rights, and of course, women have been caught in that net, which means they are to a degree seen as a specific group that need to be recruited, and a lot of effort, money and promotion is being put into that, but I cannot help but feel that the message they give is “Singles Only” 


Diverity and separation are creeping into naturism, as they are all aspects of society, driven by a mainstream agenda, and in all cases we should try to hold it back a little. The message I have read and heard so much of natuism "Should be for eveyone" needs to be rephraised to "naturism is for everyone" It has to be all embracing, not divided into sections and groups. I would argue against "all mens groups," equally as hard as "All female groups" A naturist can be only one thing, "A natural human being" sex should have nothing to do with it.

As many men know, if they are single or widowed, in mainstream naturism they are done for, and yet, that is not the case for females, they are actively encouraged by the truck load. So that firstly is one of the problems, in this rush to gather women on mass, very few are considering the parent or “Married” aspect of all this.

My other observation,which may ruffle a few feathers is two fold, and is something that until 2020 (when I stopped) in my therapy work, I had many issues around, which is the views of males. We all know about the male population who sexualise the female body and how women fear their behaviour, so it is pointless to dwell on that, but what I would like to highlight is how some men view themselves, and their partners.

It may come as a surprise, but a lot of women would happily run naked to the nearest club, because in what is still accepted as a traditional lifestyle by most men (Him big earner, her housewife) women get hooked quickly on the liberation and freedom faster than men. (That is currently seen in young females) We do live in a modern world, and on the surface all appears to be very different as men embrace their sensitive sides which is a good thing, but scratch the surface and something else appears, and it is driven by the way many have been taught by their peer groups, and as much as I hate saying it, I could write stacks of papers to show how most men want control, and that starts with their wives and partners. If I had a pound for everytime I have heard a female say, "My husband would not approve of that." I would be living in  a mansion.

I have seen too much of this in my life, and it is the most negative aspect of today’s society, and this concept of macho that most men believe in, is damaging. The facts are, most men may be happy to be naked, as long as they can get over the penis size hang ups driven by their friends, but as happy as they are to show all of their bodies, there is a part of them that does not want anyone to see their wife or partner naked. They fear firstly their macho friends will humiliate them, and secondly, they may lose their partner to another man. Do not underestimate the insecurity of some men, it is deep and has been nurtured for a long time.

It is actually this weakness that social media has exploited incredibly well, especially with younger men. Because the way we have structured society in the past, and driven the narrative of the patriarchy and male chauvinist idea, a lot of men have been pushed out of society, and it is within that part of society that this resentment has fostered into insecurities when it comes to women, and what has appeared is basically that a lot of men are driven to play Alpha, when in truth they are Beta, and they apply a lot of controls to a partner when they find one.

Society is not quite as liberated as one thinks, under the surface there is a very different picture, and to a degree, that does play a great deal into the women not entering into a naturist life. It is deeply complex, and has its part to play in all this.

Encouraging families in this instance becomes ten times more important to the naturist cause, because as we know, most male naturist currently involved in naturism happily share their naturist life with their partners, and as they develop into families, it is vitally important we lead the way in showing them how to raise their children as naturists. Children raised as naturist are scientifically and psychologically proven to be more stable well rounded individuals.

Targeting women alone will not reap the rewards it has promised to, it has to be families in order to overcome the narrative of macho sexist behaviours at an early age, and by the same chalk, young girls need to be raised as liberated self aware individuals, who understand their bodies, because the opposite of the male scenario above, is played out also by women, who shame their own sex, especially in regard to body shaming.

Understanding these things opens the view of this situation to allow for a more open understanding of the issue, and through that, we can in our conversations undo some of the narratives that plague our society, and then drive the message of all inclusive family naturism. As far as I can see, it is the only way forward if naturism is to continue

With International Women's Day in the middle of next week and Andee's cool campaign running throughout this month. https://www.anaturistworld.com/member-blog/46164/women-inspiring-women-campaign 

I would like to look at this topic again and get some new input. 

Yes I see the benefit of campaigning to women; and even more so having women campaigning. I will support any campaign for naturism that has the good of naturism (or nudism) at its core. I have sent an image to Andee for the campaign - yet I am now kicking myself for not asking Andee if I could have included my children (tastefully naked for modern societies sake) on a picture with me. For there maintains this segregation. My naturism is a family thing - and yes I am a woman supporting naturism but I am also half of a couple and a quarter of a family. Maybe there is more of a statement to be made by women placing their situation into their support of naturism. Myself standing strong with my family is maybe more poignant than standing strong alone. For naturism is more than the resolve as an individual. And even for those naturists who do not have partners or families to share naturism with there is a positive comfort in knowing that there is a multi-layered community of different ages, genders, family set-ups, sexual orientation etc that exists to support and protect you as an individual and the naturist community as a whole. 

I do completely agree with RnR when it comes to the best way to promote naturism is the all inclusive family view point. 

What Robin has written above about men taking control of their women and their body is a very interesting point. How many men feel confident and comfortable with their partner being naked in front of other men? "No one can look at my prize accept me." On the opposite side some men wish to show off their wives as trophies, which can be equally disconcerting literally objectifying them like a hunted deer head on a wall. I have met women for example who have actually stated that they did not breastfeed because their husband would not allow it - because the breasts were their territory and so not to be shared with the baby or because of the fear that others will see their wife's breasts. So the idea of taking that further to naturism is not that big a leap. 

Do share you thoughts about Women and Naturism here.

It is been interesting to revisit this forum thread and read through all of it again, and there is a lot to unpack here. I think it is easy to look to the media and throw blame at it for the destructive messaging that they promote, and to a degree, it is right, they are without doubt the peddlers of body shame. I have no idea now how many posts have had taken down, for quoting known psychological research from Facebook. There was a time when I almost lived in FB jail permanently, and yet all the items I posted were peer reviewed and proven science.

It is not just media, it is also political, and financial, and there in lies the crux. Political parties use pressure to influence the media, as do business, as we stated in our recent blog, advertising is one of the biggest peddlers of misinformation. They use subtle insults to sway people minds and make them buy a product, so when you understand that social and mainstream media is driven entirely by cash from advertisers, it really does not take much to understand why it is so body negative.

The political side of this fuels hate, in order to try and split society into an almost us and them approach, and love it or hate it, and United States plays the biggest role in this, as it is seen as the worlds leading power, and biggest world influencer. What happens in the USA, trickles down through social media into every other country, and household. The current situation of gender identity trends is mainstream all over the world, but one has to ask, if the Democrats had not taken over the Presidency, and influenced the world, would it be as bad? Under a Republican led administration previously it was not as pervasive, but there again, the Rebulicans have their agenda, and so the game flips. The thing is, regardless of your views, it bis the influence that creates the divisions.

Divide and conquer have become a common place aspect of human lives, keeping us separated and at loggerheads with each other, but all done under the banner of diversity and inclusion makes it sound like it is a good thing, and so people accept it, without peeling back the layers to really see and understand what is actually going on. By the same chalk, body negativity also pays dividends for political gain and big business, but people fail to understand that.

Naturism is about unity, inclusion, and body free positivity, it literally goes against the grain of every mainstream and political narrative, but ask yourself why? The truth is, naturism is about building people up, but the political, business and mainstream and social media world is created to tear people down. Add to that the fact that women are more emotionally driven, and they become the weakest target, because in a world where shame has become a tool for sales and destruction, attacking women using body negativity achieves the maximum effect and impact, and that creates a victim mentality.

At the risk of sounding like some dystopian, tin foil hat wearing idiot in my mothers basement, what we are seeing in the world today, is nothing short of a military grade psychological operation inflicted against the masses. Family values are being eroded, sexual and gender diversity is the new emperors’ clothes, and certain colours are good, and others bad. Everything has been targeted and made sexual, especially women’s breasts, and yet in all of this chaos, the puritanical ideal of covering the body still rules, but it is a fake modesty, as nudity sells, and yet most people fail to see that, and get swallowed in the message contradictions. The result, is confusion and self doubt, and no one really understands any longer what is and is not truth.

After twenty five years, I was glad to walk away from therapies, because every women I encountered, no matter what her problems in life were, hated her body, and herself, and it can be soul destroying to see that.

Accepting your naked form, makes such huge differences to the mind, it literally does free you, it is not a metaphor. I know, I encouraged young women at home to close their curtains and spend their day alone naked in their house. They would report back to me how they caught sight of themselves in reflective objects, and looked at themselves in a way they never had, and it made such a huge difference to them. Nudity, undoes the societal narrative, and it is very powerful.

We are fostering a victim mentality in all generations, I do feel that those aged above fifty are hard to convince, hence I feel the strongest voices today, tend to be of that age and above. The young have embraced victimisation and wear like it is the latest fashion, and so it is hard to get a positive narrative through to them, without them being offended. I cannot tell you how as a trained counsellor, how many of my son’s friends I have offended by proving their ideological views are not based on any provable facts from science, psychology or biology, and I show it for the hypocrisy it is.

It concerns me that young women embrace this new idealised doctrine more than the men, which again I feel plays its part in keeping women away from any form of nudity, or acceptance of their bodies. Again, the key here is to promote the family, I have found that no matter how indoctrinated the young are, at some point, mother nature gives them a push, and in their search for validation, they look to a long term, stable relationship, and it is within that, I have seen to a degree that the power of the narrative dwindles.

I feel, if naturism wants single women, it will fail in its attempts, which is why Rin and myself are such vocal campaigners for family naturism. Families, parents and their children is the most positive way to even the numbers, because not only does it balance out the genders, it also shows our youngest the road to a happy, body positive and accepting attitude to all, it truly is the most equal and diverse way forward. Naturism has to welcome and embrace everyone regardless of who they are, for that I feel is the only way forward.

One last note, because I have banged on a bit. In sessions with clients, I would not allow the use of the word “victim.” I feel it is the most negative word a person can say, I always told those I worked with, you are no longer a victim, that was then, and this is now. You are a “survivor” because you made it through. On a conscious level, those who see themselves as a survivor, make better progress towards recovery.   

Thanks for adding new thoughts to this Robin.

You are so right. Victims are those that do not recover - survivors are those that do. I find it interesting that the use of the word victim above does tend to be linked to continued negativity and not recovery. Like this line "Media likes to live with them, constantly picking, making the scars rebleed and never heal. Hate, damage, anger, resentment, paranoia, social problems. They want victims of child abuse, victims of rape, victims of hate crime, racial, gender or sexual inequalities to shout and shout and shout. No answers just segregation. No positives just negatives." I think maybe I was a victim of abuse at one point as it was having an ongoing negative effect on my life despite the abuse ending - I guess the abuse didn't end in some ways just continued in another form. I was guilty of abusing myself to a certain extent - continuing the role of a victim. 

Family naturism has to come first. Hence my line in a recent H&E article about International Women's Day . "Will naturism be celebrating International Children's Day in May? It should!"

I loved your line about Childrens Day in your article, as we have said many times, they are massively important to the future, and also vital towards the inclusion of more women in naturism.