Desexualizing nudity

[luckyboySD]

Hi

I would like to know how you guys deal with public nudity. I enjoy going to naked beaches or bath spots but I feel that the reason I enjoy it the most is sexual, to watch other guys dicks etc. At the same time I have this conflict where I would like not to see nudity as an exclusively sexual thing. I would like to just be naked around other people and not think anything sexual. When I see other straight guys naked together and how natural they act in the situation (obviously not always and I'm aware a lot of them sexualize it as well) I feel a bit of envy because I would like to act the same. How is your guys relation with nudity as a gay man?

 

[Tbprivate]

I always connect nudity with sex and can’t unlink it.

If I’m with someone attractive it makes me horny.

If I visit a nudist beach I usually go with the intention of meeting and hooking up with someone.

I’m sure most single gay guys go to a nudist beach for more than an all-over tan.

I’ve been naked with straight guys (and unattractive gay guys) and I didn’t enjoy the experience.

To be frank and honest I hate being around naked bodies that don’t do anything for me.

I hosted a straight couchsurfer who asked if he could be naked and it was interesting chatting and making dinner together but I was glad when he covered up.

I’ve discussed this with a gay friend and he said a similar thing.
If naked companions are cute it’s frustrating if something sexual doesn’t happen
If they’re not attractive to him. He doesn’t want to see their body.

Just my shallow opinion

 

[luckyboySD]

I always connect nudity with sex and can’t unlink it.

If I’m with someone attractive it makes me horny.

If I visit a nudist beach I usually go with the intention of meeting and hooking up with someone.

I’m sure most single gay guys go to a nudist beach for more than an all-over tan.

I’ve been naked with straight guys (and unattractive gay guys) and I didn’t enjoy the experience.

To be frank and honest I hate being around naked bodies that don’t do anything for me.

I hosted a straight couchsurfer who asked if he could be naked and it was interesting chatting and making dinner together but I was glad when he covered up.

I’ve discussed this with a gay friend and he said a similar thing.
If naked companions are cute it’s frustrating if something sexual doesn’t happen
If they’re not attractive to him. He doesn’t want to see their body.

Just my shallow opinion

Thanks man, just looking to understand more and get more opinions. I know how you feel! haha

 

[Dutchstud]

It is a great summer and I take a swim every evening at the nude part of the lake. But outside that, I go to the pool almost daily and I see dicks in the changing room. No any connection with sex. It has become normal. I think continental Europeans are quite relaxed when it comes to public nudity.

 

[Silbot.]

In the past, unless sex was on the immediate horizon, I always tried to avoid it, with the exception of dressing out for sports, which never seemed to be a problem (I was never really subjected to open showers all that often, and always kept the water ice cold -- just in case). At this point, I could walk into the hottest 50 man gang bang and, unless I'm was direct participant, stay completely disinterested. So, there is a disconnect now. I attribute it to the prevalence of porn.

 

[handcuffsfan4]

About a year ago i wanted to go to a nude beach just to be naked in nature once in my adult life. It was a pretty busy beach and i just got naked there.

Idk its not like you can stare at someones body for too long, so it's not really sexual.

 

[arbies]

I'm currently at a nudist resort near Dallas...laying out by the pool right now. I went to a nice church service here this morning. It was the first church service I've attended in years. I played my musical instrument for the service in front of everyone.. naked. Needless to say, that was not a sexual experience.

 

[622675]

I have only been to a nude beach a few times. One or two of those times were at an age when I would get an erection if a fly landed on me.

However, every time I have gone, I have found that I quickly become accustomed to the environment and neutralize unless there is some overt sexual activity going on in my immediate area.

I also find that it is a lot more fun to go with someone to share the experience with. Somehow if I am with someone it keeps me from feeling like I am “sticking out”.

 

[effedi7]

The familiarity with nudity helped me to desezualize it. Nakedness among naked people leads it to be normal, at least in my experience. A week in a naturist camping in Croatia was the best way to start!

 

[852838]

I don't necessarily link nudity and sex. I wasn't naked around anyone when I was younger. In college I lived with a good friend I met in my fraternity and he got naked in our room on day one and didn't rush to cover up. I pretty much saw him naked on a daily basis and it was completely non sexual. He's straight and while he wasn't bad looking, I wasn't interested in him. He definitely helped get me comfortable with nudity and eventually I was naked about as much as him.

I'm at the stage in my life where I would rather be naked than clothed in certain situations. My current roommate isn't a prude but asked that I keep it covered when I'm not in my room. He does the same and it's not a big deal but I would rather live with someone who was more open about it. My previous roommate wasn't gratuitous but I saw him naked several times and vice versa.

This past weekend I visited the clothes optional, gay campground nearby and most guys were naked for at least a part of the weekend, myself included. I'm sure there was a lot of hooking up but I didn't do anything except chat with some guys and take in the scenery. I did enjoy myself and plan to head back sometime.

 

[ChicagoPole]

Desexualizing nudity comes with exposure to nudity. It started for me when I was living in Finland. The sauna culture there is a place where friends spend time naked before, during, and after. I've actually found that I'm closer friends with those who can share nudity without guilt or shame.

From nude resorts to the Korean or Russian baths, there's something so freeing about being comfortable in your own skin. In this state we're completely equal - free from the cultural attributions of dress. Shared nudity has also helped me understand that everyone is beautiful in their own way. I shed a lot of body issues myself when I became comfortable with shared nudity.

Males are visual creatures and our survival is attributed, in part, to being aware of our surroundings. Are guys going to look? Yes. Are you going to look? Yes. It's kind of wired in but so what. And sure, there's a time and place for it. But enjoy it and use it as a bonding experience with your buddies.

 

[kdubb]

My lover and I are home nudists and occasionally will engage in social nudity. For us, home nudity is the normal as we are most comfortable sans clothes, but sex can (and does) happen anytime. As for social nudity with others, it depends on the people and circumstances - but most of the time it is not sexualized as we enjoy hanging out with others who are also nude.

 

[hot showers]

I don't know that you have to 100% de-link them, just enough that you don't give any unintended signals to others. For me, this meant a very long gradual process of learning to not get erections in these situations. I overcame this in phases by gradually increasing the duration of nudity and distance from a towel in appropriate situations (locker rooms, nude beaches, etc.), to the point where I could eventually use gang showers, walk across the locker room naked, etc. I still enjoy the visual stimuli of seeing other naked men and feel a sense of excitement being an active participant with my penis completely uncovered even though I am able to keep things in check.

 

[1040806]

I have ventured into naturism a few months ago and unlinking nudity and sex is key to success and to enjoy naturism.
I often meet with other dudes (some are str8, some others are gay) for a nude drink or coffee. We spend some time just chatting, or playing board games or cards but none of us ever gets a hard on. We are just comfortable like that. It's a great feeling too to be nude for something else than sex. It's really relaxing.

 

[OKCLane]

I basically grew up in locker rooms, wrestling from knee high to university. I also enjoy nude beaches and events, pool parties, etc. For me there is no correlation between nudity and sex. These uptight locker rooms and private shower stalls blow my mind. I’m nude most of the time.

 

[622675]

On one of my trips to a clothing optional beach, I traveled with a group of college friends. These were 5 guys from my dorm. I might have never seen some of these guys nude without visiting this kind of environment nor would I have ever seen them free to act out while being nude.

We traveled along the waters edge as a group and observed other nude males and females. On one occasion we ran into one male/female couple having sex while standing in waist deep water. Near them another girl gave her bf a BJ just above the water line. Best guess is both couples were high as they were totally into what they were doing, at least the guys couldn’t have been any more turned on.

My group just stood on the shore, watched the action, and mounted our own very solid erections. We all checked each other out, made a few remarks about the couples going at it in the water, then moved on down the beach. We might have stayed longer, but anticipated the park rangers would soon arrive to break up the action.

Somehow the trip to the beach coupled with our fully displayed erections and horny (school kid) discussions allowed regular nudity to become an enjoyable but “so what” kind of event between us.

I lived around most of these guys during several more years of college. From that point forward we had no problem being nude together. We spent numerous times nude in different dorm rooms (on the way to or from the showers). And since the room door was generally always open, different guys would often join the group. They came with a towel in hand, but often left with the towel around their neck and no modesty issues.

 

[Barberseville]

@levi101
Sounds like the park rangers there had one of the best jobs in the world. They must have had permanent stiffness...

 

[622675]

@levi101
Sounds like the park rangers there had one of the best jobs in the world. They must have had permanent stiffness...

With respect to the OP’s question, it would appear that Texas only clothing optional beach and park has become more restrictive (with regard to fluidity) than less over its near 50-year history. However, the changes may just be the effect of bureaucratic management.

In the early days it was just a place where singles and families could take their clothes off and do their thing. Here is a brief report from a local Austin newspaper written back in the “good old days”.

With the title “Hippie Hollow wedding exposes couple’s love.”

“The bride and groom said they didn’t get cold feet. The preacher said she had to give her blessing in disguise. And the guests, well, what could they do but grin and bare it – all.

Bill Scales and Karen Loomis threw caution – and their clothing – to the wind, saying their nuptials in the nude as they married Saturday along the shores of Lake Travis.

Some 50 friends, also in the buff, watched the brief double-ring ceremony at Hippie Hollow, Texas’ only public nude beach. The minister, who stripped before the ceremony, declined to give her name.”
===============

Now it is no children, no pets, and no one under 18. Today, with over 100k paying visitors each year it has become a commercial enterprise for the city of Austin.

Since Austin has a very liberal attitude regarding LGBT issues, there are many events with a gay focus held at the park. Both gay and straight park rangers enjoy their assignments and there are enough “stiffies” to go around for everybody.

hippy hollow austin tx - Google Search

 

[1141702]

I wonder if it’s not accepting nudity as sexual, but accepting sexual as a natural part of life. If no one became aroused, no one would have sex.

 

[PhxChub]

Sex and nudity are pretty connected in my mind, but I imagine that it's like anything else... with adequate exposure, we can break the ties.

The therapist in me wants to believe that if I were on a nude beach and wanted to break the tie between sex and nudity, I might use the cognitive therapy technique often referred to as "thought blocking" where, when the undesired thought enters my head, I address it and counter it with the logical, desired thought. Another technique might be some sort of aversion therapy - perhaps a chastity device with steel spikes on the inside, so that upon physical arousal, I were met with a rather unpleasant (for me, at least) sensation.