I never really had any major body image issues, don’t get me wrong, I have plenty of things I would like to change about how I look, and I’m certainly no sex symbol by a long shot, but I’ve always been pretty comfortable in my own skin.

But what little problem I did have pretty much evaporated when I decided to try out a nudist resort.

I think if you spend a day walking around naked people, you pretty quickly get some perspective. Most of the people at a nudist resort aren’t exactly the kind of people you particularly want to see naked.

Fat, skinny, stretch marks, scars, weird lumps and bumps, piercings, tattoos, pale, tan (though certain there are more heavily-tanned people that average,) dicks, balls, tits, and asses of all shapes, sizes, and configurations, little kids, people who look like they’re old enough to remember when dirt was invented (though some of that might just be all the sun-exposure,) it’s all out there on display.

And none of it matters a bit. They’re just bodies, we all have them, and they’re all a little weird, and I think experiencing something like that in-person really drives it home in a way that just thinking and talking about it can’t really do justice.

I kind of ended up there on a whim. The year before I first went to one, I did our city’s naked bike ride with a couple friends (also a very body-positive experience, but understandably the crowd skews a bit younger and fitter because bike ride) and had a blast riding around in our underwear with them.

The next year we couldn’t make it because of our schedules, but in searching for other things to do we stumbled onto something happening at this resort that sounded fun, so we went for it, and enjoyed it. We’ve talked a couple other people into joining us and they’ve also had a great time once they get over the initial shock of being naked around other naked people.

Also what really sold me on it was when we first arrived, I got there a bit before my friends. It was one of those hot, humid days where the moment you step outside you’re immediately drenched in sweat and your clothes start sticking to you.

I had kind of figured I’d set my tent up first then take my clothes off so that I’d have somewhere to put them, but after barely getting my tent unpacked I was already drenched in sweat and feeling gross, and the lightbulb went off in my head "just take your clothes off dumbass) and so I did. I was dressed pretty appropriately for the weather, but even still that made a world of difference, so by the time my friends showed up I was already sold and walked over to greet them naked, which I think also helped to put them at ease with the situation.