I feel awkward seeing my friends naked

[Sundaycoffee]

How do you feel about seeing your friends walk around in the nude? Is it assumptious of them to think you would be fine with it? Or am I the prude?
One of my friends is perfectly comfortable whipping everything out when we are away together (e.g when she is changing she will just stand there chatting to me totally naked). It makes me feel awkward and I don't know where to look.
She's a size 22 so everything is very "out there" I don't think her being smaller would make me feel differently but it's definitely a lot harder to try and ignore her gigantic boobs 🤣
Would you be fine with this? AIBU?

Because if she had the body of a Barbie doll (thin, tanned, big boobs, long legs, toned tummy) you could perhaps understand why she was so immensely proud of it’s naked form.

Size 22 is big. Some overweight people, I’d go as far to say most feel self conscious about their body. That’s it. If you can’t genuinely see why the OP mentioned that, you’re delusional.

My colleagues invited me along to a naturist club. I was mortified, but went along with no intention of taking anything off. An hour later, we were sitting on towels naked on the grass, having tea and cakes. Then we had a swim. It was utterly glorious

I saw lots of friends naked in my late teens and twenties. Sunbathing, girls holidays, dorms, the Sanctuary in Covent Garden (chatting naked on swings in the pool). It was all perfectly normal.

I think dd in her mid 20s and dil in her late 20s probably not so much.

Now my friends are in their 60s I think we'd cover up.

My parents were pretty open about nakedness and so were DH and I. The DC less so, so perhaps times are changing. DD and DIL don't sunbathe topless but none of us sunbathe much nowadays at all. Perhaps that's the key.

Well I've seen a few flashes of boobs but not all-out naked, no.

@mardirousse because her size makes her breasts larger and even more noticeable

Because of men and the sexualisation and objectification of women.

I have a naked chat friend. She doesn't see an issue with it and although I'm no prude, I was taken aback the first time it happened.
Used to it now.
My DM used to be starkers too and most girls at high school changing rooms/ showers.
Had a bf once who would stay in the nude after dtd and go about the rest of the day as if it were normal.
Saying that, I do housework naked but only when alone or with DH.
Never naked in front of friends.

I’m a naked friend, and seem to attract other naked people as my friends and I are all pretty comfortable with it 😂 I don’t strip off just for the fun of it, but if we’re getting changed on holiday, or at home getting ready to go out, nobody seems to leave the room to do so.

I also stood holding my friend’s gigantic wedding dress when she needed a nervous poo on the morning of her wedding!

For my hens, my friend that had a regular spray tan lady said to come to her house before the other hens arrived. When she opened the door, she was completely naked! I'd known her many years, never seen her topless nor naked, so this was quite a shock. She stayed nude for several hours and long after I'd got dressed. It was such a surreal moment and so after, I moved abroad, she divorced and we have little contact.

If its something you've done with friends since early 20's, been topless together etc at the beach/gym then I can understand its common in some friendship groups. I grew up abroad, going to the beach with friends weekly, but being naked was never a thing- except that 1 evening before my hens!

I suppose you might have felt weird if you were the only person with your clothes on.

I swim at the local pool every morning and there is a group of us who choose to use the communal changing room as we like a chat while we are getting dry and dressed.
We gave up long ago trying to be discreet in front of each other as it’s far easier to get dry properly when you’re not trying to keep bits covered. No one bats an eyelid

Completely depends on the context.
I personally wouldn't get naked in front of any of my friends.
However if they were naked in front of me in situations such as in a changing room or whilst getting changed to go somewhere or whatever normal circumstance one might potentially be briefly naked in.. I wouldn't mind it.
If they just got naked for no reason I'd have concerns!!!
But I guess if you are in a situation where someone might be nude you take the risk of seeing someone nude don't you?
Like if you are in their bedroom and they start getting changed... I think if you have an issue you should leave that situation.
However if it's happening in situation where it's completely unexpected I would take issue

Well I won’t be surprised, Tesco and Sainsbury’s both don’t have changing rooms anymore so stripping off among the aisles might look quite logical, especially among canned goods - quiet and far from the fridges.

On a serious note I would feel uncomfortable too if someone was talking to me fully naked.

This. I've had so many naked conversations with other women (friends, colleagues, teammates, strangers) in the gym. Or at my old rowing club (very small female changing room which was entirely open with communal showers). It's quite normal in the circles I mix in. No-one is dancing around swirling their tits but hiding under a towel (or those annoying women who hog a shower at peak time to get changed in) is also considered pretty uptight (and slow!!)

She's not strutting around showing off her body, she's just standing there having a conversation in a private room with a friend.

I’m a bit of a naked friend. If people seem uncomfortable then I cover up more, I’m not deliberately trying to make things awkward. But I only cover up if I notice someone is uncomfortable with it. I don’t have any sense of modesty about my body around other women (even though, horror!, I’m not a Barbie figure). I find it really sad that people are freaked out about the naked body. It’s kind of oppressive, a nasty streak in our culture telling us our bodies aren’t good enough.

Have you never been to a public pool changing area?

My friend is from a nordic culture and we went to get changed and she just started talking to me naked. Was wierd for about 30 secs and then we moved on. It was great practice when I went to Finland and we went to the sauna together (and other women).

My other friend grew up in a house of girls and an mum (no dad) and she just walked around naked indoors. I just put it down to the fact I was the only girl in between brothers (as was my mum) so it was different.

Yes many times, but only because changing backstage means you're naked and rushed.

I've gone lingerie shopping with friends before. We've all seen each other's boobs.

I do have some friends I'd never be naked in front of because they would be uncomfortable.

I have a friend who I used to go swimming with and the changing rooms were communal. She used to wrap a towel round her waist and then have a full conversation with me and I found that very awkward. A university friend used to think nothing of whipping her top off to get changed into her pjs in front of a group of us and have a conversation on the way, taking her time getting her pj top on and another would breastfeed in front of me which was fine but then sit with her boob still out!

Try this? 🤣

This got me thinking. We happily make holiday friends who most of the time we only really ever see in beachwear, and not a lot of that. We also have “home” friends who we have only seen fully dressed, and it would seem awkward to see them in underwear. Context is everything!

no, that's really weird. I would hate that. Tell her it makes you uncomfortable

Lol try visiting public onsen (hot baths) in Japan with your mates. No clothes allowed and nowhere to hide 😅 We survived but it didn't cure us of our prudishness

I would feel uncomfortable but that's how I am.

I'm from a country where women usually feel comfortable sunbathing topples. And in winter friends might go to sauna together. Naked. Mix sexes.... 🤢 (not my kind of thing I must add, I must've been British before I set foot on this island.