I was lucky enough to grow up in a household where my parents were not shy about their bodies. As far as I know, they weren't active naturists, but they often walked around the house half clothed or completely naked - more to do with getting distracted while dressing or undressing than any deliberate choice to be naked for a period of time, so they've said. Although at the time I sometimes felt embarrassed; "What if the neighbours saw?", "What if they absent-mindedly walked out of their bedroom naked when a house guest was staying?"; I've since come to appreciate that this is one of the things that has made me feel easier about my body and nudity than most of the people I know.
I'm half Swiss and in my teens I was sent off to Swiss youth camps to improve my German and increase my independence. At these camps none of the young women blinked twice at the communal showering arrangements and having their bodies on show in front of one another. This was another experience that helped me to think about my body - and all bodies - in a more relaxed way.
I met my partner in my late twenties and although he was initially shyer about nudity, with small steps, we both learned to increasingly embrace public nudity. A memorable step was one holiday when we got on a train to the south of France with no plan, spotted Heliopolis in the guide book and decided to hop on a ferry to the island. Since then, several stays at Birmingham's Clover Spa 'Couples Weekends' - just a short train ride away for us - have opened our eyes to naturist culture and organisations. It was here that we met the membership secretary for our local club and we were introduced to British Naturism through the magazines.
One thing I would like to see for women is greater celebration and visibility of fully natural bodies - including body hair - to reduce the pressure, stigma and discomfort involved in women being expected to fit media images of 'perfection' and infantilisation. I am pleased to see that broadening the appeal of naturism to embrace the full diversity of people in the world is something that is on the agenda. Appealing to younger and more a diverse membership will ultimately make the naturist movement richer and stronger.
One other thing I would like to see is (some) men in naturism being more thoughtful about how to make sure that women always feel comfortable in naturist spaces, such as beaches, especially if they are single or on their own. We are there to feel the joy of the sun on our bodies and deserve to have space to do so without unwanted attention.
As a final word, I am going through boxes of old photos from the family home and recently found a beautiful shot of my Mum during her pregnancy - completely naked. My Dad must have taken the picture, maybe my parents were a bit more into nudity than they gave away after all!
Mel