To ask how often you need to wash yourself to be clean?

[Goldencurtain]

I have a shower every other day but wouldn't admit that publicly because fear I would be shamed for being dirty. When my mum was growing up it was standard to have a bath once a week, no shame attached at all to that. Indeed it's probably only been fairly recently there has been an expectation of a daily/twice daily shower.

When did social attitudes start to change on what 'dirty' meant and what do you do?

I was brought up having a bath once a week. Didn’t have a shower. I started having baths daily as a teenager of my own accord. Then showers when I left home. A couple of years ago I started showering twice a day. It started during a hot summer and then I never felt clean or could sleep without two showers a day. I get really dry skin as a result though, it’s not good. I have only ever washed my hair every three days.
My parents never bathed enough . I find a once weekly bath disgusting .

Twice daily. X

I’m in my 50s so Ive been through the ‘bath once a week to shower once a day’ change.

I’d say it was the late 1979s / early 1980s.

The miner’s strike was over, coal & electricity were available again and people were starting to install central heating and showers.

The fitness craze started so people were encouraged to wash after working out.

New shower gels such as Fenjal and Matey started to be introduced. Prior to that you had a choice of bath crystals or Radox.

Personally I think a 5 minute shower once a day isn't unreasonable.

Depends on the time of year and what I'm doing.

At the moment it's a bath once a week - I live in an old house with not a lot of heating and I'm pretty sedentary.

In the summer, working outdoors labouring/cleaning jobs getting sweaty and dirty it'll be come home at the end of the day -climb in the bath unwind relax muscles.

We now live in houses with indoor plumbing, hot water, showers and baths. Why would you put yourself through a strip wash by the sink with a flannel when you can just jump in the shower for a couple of minutes?

I do a strip wash in the bath fairly often. Can't always shower because I am disabled and have mobility issues which are worse some times than others. I don't like to fill up the whole bath tub all the time for a bath because it seems wasteful to me. Strip wash (though I've never called it that before), while sitting in the bath, is my preference when I can't shower.

I hate flannel washing with a passion. Just take a quick shower! Standing at the sink, scrubbing yer fanny with a flannel, no thanks. Just the word flannel makes me cringe

Shower probably 4/7 days, hop in the bath with toddler DS at weekend sometimes. If it's a non showering day deodorant and clean clothes are essential.

I think cigarette smoke used to hide a multitude of smells.

Now, I can tell what food people have eaten, if theyve had tea coffee or alcohol, if theyve got pets or if theyre incontinent or if theyve just not washed (cheesy smell for men and oniony smell for women).

I have a bath every other day (sometimes 3 days). If I'm going out I strip wash at the sink on the inbetween days.

Before kids twice a day, as I love the warmth of the water and it makes me feel relaxed. After kids, once a day and occasionally skipping s day! I bath my kids every other day. Except the baby gets a bath daily as it helps her sleep and also because she wears diapers, so I feel she needs a rinse off after being in diapers!

I too lived through a time when bath once a week was the normal. I also went through a period showing and washing my hair every single day because it became the new norm. It took so much time of the day - my hair would like 4 hours to dry. and my skin was dry, my hair was dry - this was before I knew the harmful nature of sulphates in shampoos. I hated it.
Now it's shower every 3-4 days. I don't sweat much at all so it works

Eh where did being a Muslim fit in to it OP?

I don’t think it’s a generational thing either - my 87 year old grandmother showers daily.

@LouReidDododo

I'm guessing that OP was referring to the fact that Islam has some rituals relating to hygiene, like washing before each of the five daily prayers (Wudu).

Do those of showering every other day or less often,ash your fanjo in between?

Growing up in the 80s we only bathed once a week. Mum had no money and our bath was a huge old iron thing that took a lot of water to fill.

I think I started to wash more often once I was in my teens, there was more money coming in then so I was allowed a bath more regularly.

I shower every other day now except in summer when I’ll have one at least once a day.

I wash my hair daily though by bending over the bath with a jug, my hair is stupidly greasy but I definitely don’t think the rest of me is smelly enough to need scrubbing every day.

Why on earth would you bend over the bath with a jug when you could jump in the shower everyday

Strip washes are not that. Quick wipe down with a face cloth. Basically the eco friendly equivalent of a wipe down with wet wipes.

I remember as a child only having a bath and hairwash on a Sunday...seemed normal in those days 😂 I shower every morning - I don't feel ready for the day otherwise.

Quicklittlenamechange

A couple of reasons really.
I’m a terrible morning person so it’s quicker and less faff and my skin is very dry so it keeps it out of water.

I have a bath every night, I hate showers. My DH has to wash every day else he absolutely reeks of BO and that’s after using strong anti-perspirant. I wash every day because I feel like my ‘bits’ smell if not .

My DC tend to bath every other day.

I shower most days. I have a bidet which i use at least once a day even when I've showered. I only discovered how brilliant bidets are when we moved house and I tried it. I wouldn't be without one now.

My skin is dry ( menopause) Boswells so I use shower oil which makes it lovely.
Each to their own I guess -fannying about with a jug would do my head in

Yes, I can smell if folk havent washed daily It's not a BO smell just not clean and a bit beddy. And no I'm not talking about reeking of perfume, I'm actually allergic to fr agrance, just clean!

I want to know HOW you sink wash without getting water everywhere?

@Onlyherefortheconspiracies hot water, wring flannel out well, apply soap, wring flannel out again and wipe soap away