MIL bathing habits

[Bitesize89]

My in laws come to stay with us pretty frequently and I've noticed over time that mil never bathes when she comes. She can be here 3-4 days without a shower or bath. It recently was revealed that she only ever uses baths and no soap in her bath. This came up after she bagged my DD and didn't use any soap on her and she said well there was bubble bath in the water, I was shocked as I don't think that's a proper way to bathe and she said when she bathes she doesn't use soap and only bubble bath. So not only does she not bathe for days on and but when she bathes she just has a bubble bath and no soap.im really grossed out.

Exactly this. We very rarely smell other people in reality therefore their hygiene practices are none of our business.

How do you know? Surely you don’t ask every person you meet when they last washed?

If you were an adult in the 70s, you must remember all the powercuts and the 3 Day Week.
I found it a rarity that people bathed frequently until I was working in the early 80s. However, maybe your background was different.

It really does bring out the delusional soap dodgers.

I’m in my mid 50s and remember a daily bath (took years to have a shower installed)- always!

People get a bit nose blind to themselves. After 4 days of not bathing Ops MIL will have a ‘musty’ smell- at the very least. She will smell musty even if she faffs around with various flannels at the sink- surely it’s much quicker to take a shower?

Your MIL doesn't smell, obviously. You're now only grossed out because you've found out her bathing habits which do not align with yours. If it's all ok, leave well alone.
Although I suspect there's more going on here.

My father has a 2 minute shower once a week. I reason that he doesn't smell, therefore it's none of anyone's business.

Don’t need to. You can smell them on public transport and in shops and workplaces.

I assume you are trying to destroy relationships within the family.
Many women are on Mumsnet - are you hoping she's reading this? You would risk so much upset within the family, especially with dgc involved, just to publicly slag her off??
Edited for spelling.

Wait till @Bitesize89 and the other clean freaks find out that shower gel isn’t soap. Minds blown.

This kind of ageist nonsense really annoys me. It’s nothing to do with being older - I think it’s a British thing. I am no British and have lived in several countries. Outside of the UK I have never heard of people “washing at the sink” instead of a daily shower - unless really unwell and frail.

Given the water shortages we need to go back to the old days. Daily baths and showers are not good for the skin and people wash clothes too often. Using a deodorant will stop body odour. I think theOP doesn't like her MIL and is finding reasons to justify it. Personally I love my daily shower but know it is not good for the environment.

That’s absolutely vile 🤢

Maybe she doesn’t think your bath is clean.

I'm in the "bubble bath is detergent" camp, especially when bathing children as their skin is more delicate and I wouldn't want to layer more and more different detergents if I didn't have to.

For MIL, is she washing the essentials with a flannel/sink wash in between baths? Its probably better for her skin and definitely better for the environment to be having a sponge bath in between full on washes. We do a lot more washing of our clothes and ourselves now than humams ever would have done for hundreds of thousands of years.

As long as she doesn't smell of BO, she has a system that works, so why bother about it?

100% a British thing. Sorry friends but soap dodging is gross. Wash your bodies including your arse and groin with soap at least once a day.

I'm not meaning to be cheeky, but surely water and a very basic/mild soap would be no more irritating than a 'body wipe'?
Also, hair/a scalp that isn't washed really does smell, even if you don't think it does.

Eh, no, not 'a British thing' at all.

No. You smell people who smell. You have no idea what their bathing habits are.

Nor do you know what the bathing habits are of people who you think don’t smell.

Some people need two showers a day or they start to smell by the evening. Others do not.

There’s not an official amount of soap and water that everyone needs that has been defined by you.

Judging your MIL for such a trivial matter, posting it on here, if that's your only gripe with her consider yourself luck, I will make a very blunt and opinionated MIL by today's standards but would protect my kids and grandchildren with my life.

It’s fine to have a daily shower - just keep it very short.

Not unusual at all for older generations to wash less than younger. It's possible she washes the essentials at the bathroom sink every day. Not really your business either way OP, forget it.

Yes I remember them well.
I don't though see the connection with not having a bath regularly.
Our coal fire heated the hot water. A bath by candle light was a lovely experience.
Although the power cuts were timed, so you could easily take a bath when the lights were on.

She is very likely having what used to be called ‘a proper wash’, which was entirely normal before most people had showers, or enough hot water for everyone to have a bath every day.

Unless her MIL is in her 90s, your post doesn't apply.

Would you stereotype another nation in this way?
How offensive.