What's the longest you've gone without a shower/bath. Why?
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6 months, during high school over the winter. Shower was broken (water would only come out perfectly hot or cold, nothing in between) and parents/landlord would not fix it. I kinda just gave up on it. Nothing bad came out of it. Nobody at home or at school ever said anything or even noticed, as far as I could tell. No, they were not just being polite. I watched everyone closely, as much as an experiment of personal curiosity as anything else, and there were no signs of disapproval, nobody had a clue. I suffered no social consequences whatsoever. Wearing a new set of clothes every day alone was sufficient to stay clean.
Can't decide whether I just have one of those Asian genes that make you not smell, or whether Americans as a culture are psychotically brainwashed by soap companies' propaganda to the point where even the idea of "spending more than 1 day away from shower" is worse than death for them. Never used deodorant either (other than to try it out - just makes me feel gross, sticky, and smelly). Imagine how much money those deodorant companies are missing out on me over a lifetime!
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wrote on last edited by [email protected]This thread makes my asshole itchy.
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1 day, I had covid and couldn't move.
You shower every day? Would turn my skin to paper lol
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Two weeks, a few times. Backpacking in the sierra, kayaking in Baja, and climbing trips to j-tree. Except j-tree, trips included swims but no soap. DYK salt water kills most bacteria that cause body odor, some salt rash but no odor kayaking in Baja.
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Do sponge baths count?
I lived in a van for a while, where I mainly used a wash cloth and a bucket. I had several plastic water bottles that I would pack into a backpack, bring into a public bathroom, and refill under the tap. When I got back to the van, one got mixed with no-rinse soap (that I'd gotten at a camping supply store), and 2 or 3 were used for washing my hair. On occasion I did go to the beach and use the free outdoor showers, but that wasn't a viable everyday solution.
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Mount Buffalo National Park, 1982. Four of us left the camping area to watch the sunset. I stopped to take a photo and lost the trail. Went running after the others, slipped and rolled down a cliff, landed upright, but felt both ankles pop and break. (The whole park is Australian bush around granite boulders and cliffs). The others thought I had gone back to camp and didn’t report me missing. Next morning the group packed up and hiked to the next camp site, no one noticed I was missing until that evening, so they looked in the wrong place. I crawled to a creek and fell down the gully, drank snow melt, no one heard me shouting and crying. Eventually they gave me up for dead. Three German tourists found me by accident three weeks later, one went to get help. I got a ride in a helicopter, in hospital for two weeks while they fed me through a drip. The school gave me a payout through their insurance on the condition we didn’t sue them. I’m almost 60 now and my ankles still hurt and grind and pop.
Wholly hell, that's wild, I been through that place a couple times. Rough area in parts!
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6 months, during high school over the winter. Shower was broken (water would only come out perfectly hot or cold, nothing in between) and parents/landlord would not fix it. I kinda just gave up on it. Nothing bad came out of it. Nobody at home or at school ever said anything or even noticed, as far as I could tell. No, they were not just being polite. I watched everyone closely, as much as an experiment of personal curiosity as anything else, and there were no signs of disapproval, nobody had a clue. I suffered no social consequences whatsoever. Wearing a new set of clothes every day alone was sufficient to stay clean.
Can't decide whether I just have one of those Asian genes that make you not smell, or whether Americans as a culture are psychotically brainwashed by soap companies' propaganda to the point where even the idea of "spending more than 1 day away from shower" is worse than death for them. Never used deodorant either (other than to try it out - just makes me feel gross, sticky, and smelly). Imagine how much money those deodorant companies are missing out on me over a lifetime!
What length of hair did you have?
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My nickname in junior school was "stinky" which probably tells you all you need to know. Grew up poor, primary caregiver had mental health issues and financial troubles meant electricity for hot water was not a regular thing..
I don't remember exactly but my mom who actually worked and did her best those days to support us would have made sure I was bathed on the weekends at least. So one week tops.
I'm still paying for the lack of regular teeth cleaning in my youth. Nowadays I'm pretty fastidious about hygiene, and showering regularly!
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What length of hair did you have?
Good question to ask! I had short hair then, which is why it worked. Have long hair now and could not get away with it again - start feeling too greasy after a week, and I like my hair silky with conditioner.
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You shower every day? Would turn my skin to paper lol
Often twice a day.
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A day, maybe ?
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Probably a week as a kid, when camping. But I'd swim every day which kinda caps the grossness to an extent.
Also before puberty I'd go days between baths.
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Probably pushing 2 months. I was thru hiking the Appalachian Trail and was in full on dirty hippie mode.
This is so cool seeing inspiring stories where I only expected grossness!
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4 days, music festival.
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This is a judgement-free zone, please be nice
Not very long as an adult, handful of days, maybe 4 or 5 when very sick.
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Mount Buffalo National Park, 1982. Four of us left the camping area to watch the sunset. I stopped to take a photo and lost the trail. Went running after the others, slipped and rolled down a cliff, landed upright, but felt both ankles pop and break. (The whole park is Australian bush around granite boulders and cliffs). The others thought I had gone back to camp and didn’t report me missing. Next morning the group packed up and hiked to the next camp site, no one noticed I was missing until that evening, so they looked in the wrong place. I crawled to a creek and fell down the gully, drank snow melt, no one heard me shouting and crying. Eventually they gave me up for dead. Three German tourists found me by accident three weeks later, one went to get help. I got a ride in a helicopter, in hospital for two weeks while they fed me through a drip. The school gave me a payout through their insurance on the condition we didn’t sue them. I’m almost 60 now and my ankles still hurt and grind and pop.
wrote on last edited by [email protected]Holy fuck that is a wild story. I'd watch the film adaptation.
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Get a bidet, and it makes it easier to put a day or two between showers.
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Several weeks. Usually I shower before leaving the house so when I was too depressed and anxious to leave the house I felt no reason to take one. But I don't shower as much as most people in general. Once a week maybe unless I'm sweaty or dirty. I also brush my teeth inconsistently. But I've never had a cavity, fungal infection or anything else hygiene related anywhere on my body. I also don't stink in case you're wondering
I disinfect my pits and use deodorant daily, I always check myself and my clothes and I also ask friends sometimes to be sure.I was in the "I don't brush my teeth consistently but I've never had a cavity so it's probably fine" camp until I got dental insurance and found out I did, in fact, have cavities :[ they had been slowly progressing and I was lucky they got to them before they broke all the way through the enamel
if you have the means to do so, even if you have to look up dental training schools that do exams really cheap, please get your dental exams as close to biannually as you can, you're worth it
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A week is my usual. I know, I know, but my mental health is a lot worse than my body odour.
I'm really irritated at how depression has made me an expert in cleaning individual parts of my body to prevent stink (pits, privates, hair over side of tub, feet, etc.) all to avoid just stepping into the fuckin shower and getting it all over with at once
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This is a judgement-free zone, please be nice
5 days. was so sick i couldnt even play video games. all i had was mr. beat videos to help me. i stunk like fucking shit on the 5th day but was finally well enough to actually get up and move around. best shower of my life
