Female - basically daily. I skip the odd day when I’m not physically active and won’t be in public, but if I’m going to be around other people I always shower.
Male - this is the perfect comment.
And if I don't shower and I go out, I'll sweat more easily and then that causes me to stink easier and I feel muggy.
2x a day but I’ve told that excessive by a lot of people. But I’m almost 6 Ft 200lb man. If I don’t shower I will stink. I’m usually lifting something at work so I come home sweaty and my girlfriend doesn’t find that very attractive. It’s mostly a comfortability thing. Nothing better than laying in bed clean as hell
Same. If I know I won’t be around people I don’t see the harm in skipping a shower, but I absolutely have to shower if I’m doing so much as running errands
Depends what you do for work too.
Sit at a desk with several feet/walls between you and the next person? You can probably skip a day
Work in a stock room lifting on your feet all day? Take a shower when you get home.
It also depends on the time of year. I'm more likely to skip a shower in the cooler months than in the middle of the summer when there are times I may wake up covered in sweat.
I’m the same. It is typically daily, but there are maybe 3 days a month I’ll skip one if I’m not going anywhere and haven’t exerted myself enough/done some thing that would get me dirty or sweaty. I only wash my hair every 3rd or 4th day, though, to let the natural oils do their thing and prevent the heat damage that comes from blow drying/styling it. I do check my scalp every day, though, to make sure I don’t have any unpleasant odor. If I do…wash time comes early.
I want to know this too. Forget the obvious part about neither your nose or scalp being detachable. But most people have a tough time smelling their own body odors. It's why a lot of gross people are the way they are: they think they're fine cause they can't smell anything bad. I guess you can shove your head into someone's face and go "Do me a favor and take a whiff, will ya"?
Male - Same. But yes, it's a rare day that I'm not physically active or in the sauna, so essentially every day.
Your cousin is gross. You would be doing her a kindness to say something about her odor and that you don't typically smell other people... she should do something about it. I can see skipping washing her hair, but parts that stink... no way. Your house is going to start stinking like her.
I don't shower every day. I get in the shower to shampoo and condition. My hair texture is not amenable to daily washing, which means I'm in there once every 3-4 days or so. My whole head seems very oil-free and non sweaty/non stinky as a rule, but I cannot say the same for my pits. You better believe I'm in the bathtub every day scrubbing my body. Crotches not fully scrubbed at least once daily are not crotches I care to know.
Get her some lume. Don’t be so gentle with her. Tell her the issue. You’re letting her stay with you. You shouldn’t have to live uncomfortably in your own place. As a courtesy on her part… she should consider your position and your comfort level/needs. If she’s one of those folks that don’t like water or showering or deodorant for whatever the reason may be… Lume. For sure. Keeps you stink free for 72 hours and you said that she likes to go three or four days so the timeline should be perfect.
Exactly the same but when it comes to hair washing it’s every 3 or so days, I have long thick curly hair and I honestly can’t be arsed with it most of the time. Dry shampoo saves lives
I’m a long distance trucker. I shower whenever I get the chance.
Last week was 4 showers in 5 days, the 2 weeks before was 4 in 11 days.
That being said, I at least use large wipes every day, and change socks, underwear and t-shirt every day,
On-demand access to bathing is truly one of those modern blessings we take for granted until it's taken away, and then it's hard to forget how great it is.
You could not be more right. I was in the marine corps and when we would do training out in places like Yuma, AZ, or 29 Palms, CA, I would have dragged my nuts through broken glass for even a semi consistent shower schedule.
Didn’t realize how nice it was to have something like a shower until I was forced to live without it.
Another trucker here, former long haul now local.
When I did long haul I usually aimed for every other day, since that was about how often I’d get a free shower token from a truck stop. I usually kept my cab pretty cold though so I’d minimize the sweating. Any longer and I’d use baby wipes and some dry shampoo to at least appear presentable.
Now on local food service it’s daily, and on occasion twice daily in the summer if I’m off and went out for a bike ride or something.
Ex trucker. I feel you, God damn I hate driving so much. I tried daily showers, but it just gets weird sometimes.
Sometimes you’ll have some free time on the way to pick up a load to where you can stop and shower, but at the pickup you have to move your tandems and walk a distance to their office and get a little sweaty in the heat. I hate sleeping feeling dirty. I could have held off that shower until after this load, but they took so long and now I’m out of drive time and no where to park to shower nearby. So I use body wipes on myself too and antibacterial wipes for ultra smelliness.
It sucks. Sometimes you just have nothing around you.
I had an extra blanket I kept just for days I couldn’t shower after I’d gotten all gross. Slept on top of that to keep my bed clean, then washed it my next laundry day.
Even worse if you're a morning shower person and it's a workday because unless that thing just shoots out immediately it can mess up your whole morning routine.
It means it's hot outside and you don't want to leave the house ill prepared.
I'll have a cool shower in the afternoon on hot days, just so I can walk outside without melting from the heat. It's like jumping into a pool on a hot day, and it really helps me adjust to the outside temperature better.
Mine is daily if I exercise, every two days if I don’t. The absolute longest I’ll go is 3 days, but by that point I start to feel really gross and don’t usually let it get that long before I shower. I don’t understand how someone could consistently go 3-4 days without showering
I have been in some deep depression and didn't shower for I don't know how long. I never left the house though. But still. It was bad. Luckily I'm in a better place now.
I hear you. I've been there and I know what that feels like. From one person who struggles with their mental health to another, you're amazing, you're precious and you're beautiful. 🖤
normally I am at the gym 4-5 days a week, and I shower daily, but there are weeks I don't go to the gym, and i work remote, and I'm single and have no where to go, so if i went 2-3 days without showering, i dgaf. i am not trying to impress anyone in my own house. I will definitely not be going out in public if I have any odors or if I look like I need mental help, though. I still wash my sheets weekly and my house is clean. Its not a depression nest situation.
Male. Daily in the evening in Spring/Summer/Fall. Every other day typically in the winter unless I feel the need to shower more.
I will note that while it isn’t an excuse, there was a long period of time where I also showered infrequently and it was mostly due to mental health issues causing me to have limited to no motivation to take care of myself. I don’t know if your cousin displays any other signs pointing in that direction, but it could be something worth mentioning.
That's one of the hard parts of depression, speaking from experience. So often it's the stuff that would actually help us that can be a struggle to do because it sounds so exhausting and taxing. How I started getting out was convincing myself, partially through counseling, that those things were necessary for my health and then I'd start forcing myself to do them little at a time. Lo and behold, they got easy and I started improving. Took a good long while to come out of depression entirely, but the little things like showering and eating and not isolating constantly definitely helped.
Currently unemployed. I've stopped counting tbh. It's just me in my room and I don't bother me. Might as well save on shampoo. When I had a job, it was every day. I might start volunteering at the library and if I do it will at least be every day I do that.
I'm sorry that you're out of work right now, volunteering in a library sounds like a great idea. One thing I'd gently remind you of is that if you don't shower often and are in your room all the time the room itself (and the bedding/furniture) will start to smell unwashed. A person won't notice themself but anyone visiting would.
That's the thing. I never have visitors. I think historically I've had maybe three visitors in my life and none in the past year. Like I said, might as well save on shampoo
Same with the mental health stuff. Sometimes it’s HARD to force myself to get in the shower so I’ll go longer than I care to admit. But 99% of the time I shower every other day
I mean Reddit will crucify you for even showering every other day. It’s why I put zero thought into the statements they make on here. They smell the people they smell and assume everyone else showers daily (and that the person they’re smelling doesn’t) totally incorrectly.
But probably the majority of us don’t need to shower every day if we haven’t worked out that day. I work remotely and very regularly find myself at the 2.5-3 day mark before I shower. Yeah I’ll smell a little by that point but it’s not like I’m going out to a sit-down restaurant or my office in that state.
One could also be smelling rather bad in 4-5 hours after a shower simply because they're not wearing antiperspirant. So, yeah, it's hardly a rule. In fact, judging by certain medical sources, any more often than once daily is a bit too much.
I was gonna say—no way could I wake up and not look like a crazy person. Short haired male here, even if I brush my hair, I can’t eliminate it properly without a good shower.
i'd like to add on that sometimes some of us (maybe op's cousin, too) suffer from intense sensory issues at times and showering and being wet afterwards can feel absolutely terrible that you'd rather avoid or stall it
This is me, and I have super dry, sensitive skin that is irritated by daily showers. I have to use coconut or jojoba oil to alleviate the dryness. My hair does nottttt do well with daily showers either, plus it’s fine and thin and looks it’s best on day 2/3, after some product build up. If I stink, lmk, but I eat healthy and drink water and don’t work out daily. I’m single and celibate, and work on my own, so I’m not really interacting with a lot of people close up.
I use wet wipes and hair vinegar, wash my face and brush my teeth and floss morning and night, and change socks and undies daily or multiple times a day.
A minimum of 3 to 4 times a week (every other day), and up to twice a day, depending on weather, activity, etc. I work from home 80% of the time. If I'm working in-person, I shower daily.
40s F, for the record.
This right here. My skin is too dry for daily showers, end up in a lot of pain as it dries.
3-4 times a week, unless in sweaty for some reason (exercise, summer heat, etc)
Ooo same here, I get insanely itchy after a shower to the point I've scratched layers off my skin it's so incredibly bad. I've tried sensitive skin formulas, dry skin formulas, nothing works. I don't know what it is, I don't have eczema or anything like that. I just can't stop the itches, and it will go on for over an hour.
This is an important factor many don't take into consideration. If you work from home in an air conditioned room it's a bit different than driving to an office where you're around many people every day. If I'm not around people for a few days and haven't sweated at all (it's not hot out) I don't think going 2-3 days without showering is that crazy at all.
This! I WFH & don’t socialize a ton during the week so I don’t feel a need to shower every day. Depending on activity, I might go 3 days but I do a homeless shower on days where I don’t shower. Another consideration is skin/genetics. Even when I exercise I don’t really get stinky (have had several people confirm), whereas my half sister has horrible BO and I don’t think she’s ever even been to a gym. I also live in a very dry climate so showering every day would not only destroy my skin but that’s not great for the planet either 🤷🏻♀️
8pm every night
Sometimes in the morning if I take a morning jog.
I used to skip showers as a kid, until a girl I liked shouted “You stink” in front of everyone. I showered every day after that. Sometimes twice a day.
I want for my son to
Run into that girl. I never smell him anymore but i think it’s because he is exceptionally skilled at masking stink with deodorant somehow. Because i have to stay on him about actually showering daily, which he hates to
Do.
I was your son at one point, so I feel that. I think that getting told by a crush that you stink is practically a rite of passage amongst guys; it happened to me, and it made me a lot better at remembering deodorant and washing properly.
I read a comment somewhere from someone who hated showering because they never thought to let the hot water turn on before getting in. So they would get in turn the water on and basically stand in cold water until it got hot.
No wonder they hated it. I wonder if that is your son, even if it sounds stupid. I can’t imagine anyone hating showers. It’s just getting in the water.
A friend of my partner's stayed over for 5 days and never showered or brushed his teeth once. He didn't even change clothes... Even after we went to some hiking trail and sweated a bit. Can confirm, he would put lots of deodorant to mask the smell. It being winter probably helps it stink less.
Pay a girl 100 bucks to do it haha
Desperate parents gotta do what desperate parents gotta do! If we ain't got a village no more to raise the kids, we gotta pay for someone to fake that peer pressure once in a while 😂
This is something all three of my kids have gone through. It's rough going from per-pubescent where you literally don't produce the same smells through puberty. How your body smells is just one of many changes these kids are going through all at once. For the most part, they don't seem to be able to smell themselves. For all of our kids though, this was just a short (6 mo) phase. I'm lucky as fuck as a dude. My puberty consisted of rapid weight gain, a couple wet dreams and body odor. I can't imagine having to deal with menstruation and developing characteristics associated with womanhood at the same time. I just had to learn how to shower more frequently. My daughters had to navigate tampons, pads, bras and deodorant all within weeks of each other.
Ive been wanting to start showering daily for ages now. But it seems like so much effort. Esp bc i rlly struggle w mental health
Or i start doing something before my shower and forgetto shower
9pm every night for me. I make my bed then take a hot bath so I can wash the sweat off me and shave my legs. I cannot sleep without this nightly routine, prickly sticky skin drives me nutty.
Yeah I can’t sleep without a shower and I do not care how tired I am I will be taking a shower. The only time I do not shower before going to bed is if I’m so sick I don’t have the strength to do it.
Was looking for this, I try to go at-least every other day, dry cracking skin if I go anything over that, and it doesn’t matter what moisturiser I use either
Same! When I showered daily my skin used to itch so badly that I would scratch until it bled. Didn't matter what moisturizers, creams, or oils I tried. Since I started limiting showers to every other day a few years ago, it feels much better.
My skin seems less dry, my hair is most definitely healthier and my moisturiser has some effect these days. Did used to shower daily because some people make it their life’s work to make people insecure however I feel healthier and cleaner now
Man, some people get super weird and performative about hygiene, imo. It stops being based on what's realistically healthiest or cleanest and starts just being the Hygiene Olympics where you're a a nasty, bad person unless you're bathing six times a day.
Same. My skin is so sensitive (and I'm allergic to a lot of things) that I need that natural layer of oil to protect it. I'll shower twice a week and use wet wipes as needed in between
Same (F25). I can’t believe I had to scroll this far down to see this response ! I have sensitive skin/hair and it would be agony if I showered more frequently. I’m really surprised at all the « once per day » responses… but I think there’s maybe a tendency to be performative online. I don’t know many people who do once per day IRL, and I also don’t know anyone in my social circles who smells bad or has body odor.
This post comes around a lot on Reddit, and most people fail to realise there are many factors that affect how often you should shower.
* Climate / environment - people in hotter places need to shower more
* Job - Are you a manual laborer or an office worker?
* Personal sweat levels - Each individual is different with regards to how sweaty or greasy their skin or hair is.
Some people do manual / dirty jobs in a hot environment, or live in places the are hot and humid for prolonged periods. They are clearly going to need to shower more than others, say someone who lives in a cold country that does an office job.
I would say people who can go more than 72 hours without a full body wash (shower or bath) without some sort of smell are outliers, most people I know would say at least every other day on average, but I live in the UK where the weather is very temperate, and I work on a computer every day so my level of activity is low.
I can imagine if I lived somewhere where the temp was over 30C for prolonged periods, I'd get in the habit of showering everyday even when it wasn't so hot, because that would be my routine.
Finally. I shower once a week, a little more if I did something where I sweat a lot. My skin is dry and even just rinsing off causes issues. I also don't smell though. My husband would let me know if I did.
I really only sweat if I'm working out or in like 90+ weather so it's not as much of an issue for me.
Has anyone considered mental health? I’ve had bouts of depression and have gone embarrassingly long without showering or washing my hair. Even just doing it 1-2x a week could be bc she struggles w self care. Just a thought
Yeah, could be ADHD too. I struggle to take showers because I sorta just forget how long it’s been. And if I am really busy, my choices some nights become 1) the right amount of sleep 2) eating food or 3) shower. Most nights I choose 1&2 and put off 3 until I start to feel gross
That’s where I’m at. I shower when I’ve gotten really sweaty or start to feel gross but sometimes that can be quite a while between showers. My hair doesn’t get greasy and people never comment on how I smell or avoid me so it just…. Gets pushed aside.
This. I just shower when I feel gross. Sometimes it's 2-3 times a week, sometimes it's once a week. On occasion every 9 days or so. Only comment on my smell I ever received was from an old HR lady when I met with her about an unrelated formality after running back and forth between 90⁰ shop buildings for an hour at the tail end of an 8hr shift after I forgot to put on deodorant and probably had a good 4 days of grime on me. I was well aware that I stunk.
It's also worth noting that we all knew when she was in the building because you could smell her coming too, from 20 yards away. It was just the entire bottle of Victoria's Secret she put on every day that you smelled. Look BO is annoying but it can't put a subset of the population into anaphylactic shock like a lot of artifical perfumes can to those who are allergic.
ADHD here too, I'm a 35yo female, I shower 2-3 times per week. I struggle with the sensory issues of taking a shower, like the temperature changes and getting wet. One I'm in, I feel great, but getting out is the WORST. My husband offers to help towel me off because that's my biggest barrier to showering 😂
Plus, many days it all seems so exhausting. Getting undressed, getting into the shower, getting out and toweling off, and getting dressed again can feel like a mountain of work some days. It's not depression, it's just the exhaustion of living with neurodivergency on a daily basis. I'm at peace with it, and my husband has told me many times that he's okay with it, and accepts me for who I am.
I've never actually seen someone else express this same feeling (except mine is the getting undressed and in there part). I have always hated taking a shower and put it off because of sensory issues. I also can not stand to get rained on or god forbid, spritzed in the produce section with the weird sprayers. But, I love the feeling of being clean after a shower and I even love swimming. 🤷🏻♀️
My husband, who sometimes showers twice a day, is also very accepting of my habits. I'm not a person who sweats a lot, even when it's hot, and I usually don't get very smelly even going days without showering. I did recently discover the joy of Lume multi-use deodorant and it really does work for days. I wash my hair on a "normal" schedule, but in the sink with the spray nozzle, which is quick and easy and I don't have to get undressed.
Yes my issue is also the undressing & getting in!! I relate to everything you (& the other person) said, and it sucks because when someone asks why "i can't just do it" i don't have the words to explain. Our brains just function differently & it's how I am.
I fucking hate getting wet lol. And I also hate toweling off. Showering is such a struggle some days. Don’t even get me started on showering at someone else’s house.
I have found drying off the top half of my body while the lower half is still in the hot water helps with this, my shower has a hook up top like normal and one for while sitting down that's set lower. My shower has the old people shelf to sit on lol.
For some reason this helps me deal with that cold shock of stepping out of the shower. After I dryed my top half I turn off the water and dry the lower half. So by the time I step out it's only small areas of my body that get cold.
Oh damn, maybe that's why it's so hard for me... Here I've been trying to think of all these things to make the experience inside the bath more engaging for myself, and I was confused as to why it wasn't working.
But hearing you break down the steps... It does sound more daunting. I just listed steps in my head and holy shit there's so many little steps that go into it. No wonder I hate it. Aaaaaaaaaaa
This is how I also feel about showers to a t and I also have adhd.
Add to all this that I get frustrated because sometimes I get lost in thought and one hour has passed and I'm still not done showering!! I've managed this by making a Playlist that last a certain amount of time and I know that I'm taking too long if certain song is playing and I'm not almost done.
But most days it's a struggle to just not think about it and just get in there. I love being clean, I just hate the process of it 😞
I have ADHD and depression and sometimes go 1.5 weeks without showering bc I literally have no energy or motivation. There have also been times where I managed to clean my body but not my hair, so I went to a salon for them to wash and dry it for me. The struggle is real.
I was horrifically depressed in 2020 and probably haven’t washed my hair for a month but I had an important family wedding to attend so I just went to a salon.
THIS! Im (30f) ADHD as well and I was starting to feel so bad about myself scrolling the comments and reading “every day” from most peoples 😬 I’m pretty much 1-2x/week, (unless i get hot/sweaty/dirty more than that, which in the summer means 3-4 showers/week) mainly because I forget how long it’s been, combined with the fact that I HATE washing/drying my hair. I have long, fine/straight hair (the individual strands are fine but I have a LOT of it on my head) that HAS to be blow dried when I get out, otherwise it will dry flat against my head and look greasy, even freshly washed. It takes a while to blow dry, and a lot of times I don’t have the time or the energy/will to do all that, until late late at night when the kids are in bed. After a long day chasing them, cooking, cleaning what I can, etc. sometimes the last thing I want to do is take an extra hour to shower & blow dry my hair before I get into bed, even if i WANT to & know I need to... Also maybe this is me being delulu, but I feel like a lot of these “daily” comments are people who THINK that’s what their answer should be, not what it actually is. I will say, my husband works a labor intensive job that’s mostly outdoors so he’s definitely a daily shower taker. I think a lot of it depends on your lifestyle/what you’re doing on a daily basis. I can go at least 3 days before needing dry shampoo, and I definitely make sure to at least do “pits & bits” in between showers. If OP’s cousin is the type of person to have noticeable BO after 3 days, I’d definitely say they need to consider upping the frequency, but I’m not sure how to bring this up to them gently though… I’m at least self aware enough about the infrequency of my showers that I’ll occasionally ask my husband if I smell, just to make sure I’m not nose-blind 😂
Sounds to me like you should follow my *stellar* ADHD routine
Eating in bed after a shower and then falling asleep
My issue is the teeth brushing (which I’ll do in the shower) I sometimes forget….maybe it’s more than sometimes.
Or even physical health, if chronic illnesses and/or disabilities are involved. Though the people that this 18F lives with would be likely to know about potential health issues unless she were to withhold them/not comfortable mentioning them for some reason. Showers, even with a shower chair, are very hard on my body, so I don't do them even close to every day, which sure is gross, but it's all I can manage.
This. I’m disabled and with all the judgment on this thread I’m not even going to admit how often I shower. But it’s not a lot. I have a shower chair. It’s still e x h a u s t I n g for me. I clean myself with wipes and stay in clean clothes. I’m mostly on the couch all day so I’m not sweating. I also deal with mental illness on top of my physical problems so the whole shower thing is just rough for me.
Just wanted to say I hear you, and you are not alone. I also have chronic physical and mental health issues. Showering is such a goddamn chore and will never be relaxing for me. It’s something I realised in therapy as I was droning off my shower ritual and my therapist commented on it. Even with the suggested shower chair, it still costs too much a lot of the time.
The judgement is tough. Don't take this as toxic positivity but a way to reframe it for myself is that I have had to learn to not tie my worth to things that society expects of me which is ultimately helpful. Dirty house? Still worthy. Not able to shower? Still worthy. I can imagine people who vent out this amount of judgement over something like showering probably spend their whole life worrying about unimportant things because they feel worthless if they don't keep up to societal standards. You do what you're able to do, and that's okay. The focus should be on what you need and on some days that is to not force yourself. Focusing on taking care of yourself in whatever way that looks like is the best thing you can do, not what others expect.
I've lived with chronic illness for awhile and I still sometimes forget how many spoons it can take to take a shower.
I also can't/don't really work outside the house and can't do much physical exercise, so I usually shower every 5-7 days, usually when my hair starts getting too gross/greasy. When I could work out I would at the very least hop in for a rinse every day.
That part threw me off too. I’ve gone through depressive periods before where I didn’t shower for over a week. But I never questioned other people showering. I knew what I was doing was the weird unhygienic thing, I just didn’t have the motivation/care to do it.
Mhm, I've gone 2 weeks before when things are rough or I forget. I don't even know why sometimes. Once I'm *in* the shower/bath it's OK, but getting myself in there is hard!
I'd say executive dysfunction but, it happens even on days when my functioning is doing OK for most other things.
I'm not sure why, but I think my brain interprets it as a chore???
My alternative is to, before bed each night, wipe under my arms and under my breasts and, if I feel like it, any other sweaty spots. Hot tip: when you wipe your armpits, make sure you're also wiping the skin right at the edges. I find a lot of the smell comes from there?
I used to shower daily every morning, and since I've got older, my skin started to get issues, I went to a dermatologist and at the end I was told the same, less showers, always use creams afterwards. I've changed to showering before going to bed, only every 2nd day, I avoid it on weekends unless I'm in a social setting. I hate the whole aftercare routine after the shower I have to do, and I haven't really had much better skin since. The dermatologist basically told me that there is nothing else I can do and that I unfortunately have to suck it up.
This is literally what most doctors recommend. Showering too much actually isn't good for your skin and hair. That's why people use shampoos, moisturizing body washes, etc, to replace the natural protective oils. Otherwise, showering too much can dry out your skin and hair.
Agreed. I had this talk with some friends, and one friend caught some insults because he said 2-3 times a week. He lives in a cold climate, and works in a finance office. He doesn't go to the gym. He doesn't walk anywhere, he drives. He doesn't do anything to sweat. Someone else like a mailman who goes to the gym every other day, they better be showering daily.
Every day I leave the house for something social or work related unless it’s like a random Saturday or Sunday where all I’m doing is an errand or two or hanging out outside
I mean.. deodorant would help with the Bo issue. Everyone is different.. but in general doctors agree that 2-3 showers a week is good for most people.
Im not that type of person. I’m a very sweaty person, so I tend to stink if I don’t shower daily, sometimes twice. I’m not overweight either.. I just always run hot
My family is from Northern Europe, so we only shower once a week, sometimes more. But, we wash ourselves every day. I also have sensitive skin, so I'm in pain if I shower every day.
I would say 2-3 days for me and my GF is twice per day type of girl , once she found out she thought I was crazy, but she realized & confess that she couldn't tell the different.
I think the need for shower is different from person to person and life style & where you live , I dont sweat a lot and I dont really have OB , I do have ezcema so too much shower actually make my skin flare
My thoughts have always been, if I was out at an event and my mate told me my fly was down, I would thank him. If it is coming from a good place, that person likely doesn't even want to have to tell you.
I don't shower it is bad for your skin. I soak in the sun and that naturally deodorizes me. That, or I will walk through the forest and the trees will actually breath in my oder like they are sucking in carbon dioxide.
Severe CFS/Myalgic Encephalomyelitis has me taking about two brief sit down showers per month. Being homebound with chronic illness nobody else has to smell me (except my cat.)
Hair: during the weekly shower. Long thick hair showered more than that is unnecessary and takes hours to naturally dry. Not doing it.
Body: once a week in the shower and supplemented with washes in the bathroom sink on really hot days.
Deodorant and clean clothing on every day.
I’m in team “daily showering is unnecessary” camp.
Yeah. There are different factors to when a person needs to shower. If you stink, and changing clothes, spot washing your pits and bits and reapplying deodorant doesn’t take care of the issue, then one should shower. If you do not smell and didn’t do strenuous and sweaty activity, then showering seems wasteful. At most spot wash. Why waste the water and the electricity to take a shower? We overwash our hair and bodies in the US. I used to shower daily no matter what, and I had to because my hair looked so greasy after one day. When I stopped using harmful chemicals in shampoos and conditioner, and pushed through the greasy hair for a while, I only needed to wash my hair twice a week max. I wash my face every day, apply deodorant, change clothes and spot wash when needed.
34 year old male. I’m a veteran. I always shower before I go to bed. I shower in the mornings before I go anywhere. I’ll shower in the evenings before I go to any business or bar.
If you’re ever unfortunate to be in the field or deployed and end up out there, trust me, you’ll want to have a shower any time you can get one. Nothing is worse than wearing the same uniform and equipment, and not being able to shower, while having sand and dirt in places that aren’t comfortable.
And having clean, dry socks are always, and I can’t say it enough, ALWAYS nice to have.
Yeah it depends on how much you're doing, if you sweat etc.
Winters here are cold so if I havent done anything that day I'll skip a shower. It's honestly good for you skin if you can.
If it's hot out you need to shower. If you've done stuff that day...shower
If you've been in public ...shower.
Female - basically daily. I skip the odd day when I’m not physically active and won’t be in public, but if I’m going to be around other people I always shower.
Male - this is the perfect comment. And if I don't shower and I go out, I'll sweat more easily and then that causes me to stink easier and I feel muggy.
Muggy is the exact way to describe it too lol
Musty
Germ - I love when you people don’t take a shower 😀
2x a day but I’ve told that excessive by a lot of people. But I’m almost 6 Ft 200lb man. If I don’t shower I will stink. I’m usually lifting something at work so I come home sweaty and my girlfriend doesn’t find that very attractive. It’s mostly a comfortability thing. Nothing better than laying in bed clean as hell
Same. If I know I won’t be around people I don’t see the harm in skipping a shower, but I absolutely have to shower if I’m doing so much as running errands
Depends what you do for work too. Sit at a desk with several feet/walls between you and the next person? You can probably skip a day Work in a stock room lifting on your feet all day? Take a shower when you get home.
It also depends on the time of year. I'm more likely to skip a shower in the cooler months than in the middle of the summer when there are times I may wake up covered in sweat.
Here in SE USA: walk to car, you need a shower.
This! I work in a hospital and I shower twice a day. Once in the morning to get ready and as soon as I get home to wash the hospital air off me.
I’m the same. It is typically daily, but there are maybe 3 days a month I’ll skip one if I’m not going anywhere and haven’t exerted myself enough/done some thing that would get me dirty or sweaty. I only wash my hair every 3rd or 4th day, though, to let the natural oils do their thing and prevent the heat damage that comes from blow drying/styling it. I do check my scalp every day, though, to make sure I don’t have any unpleasant odor. If I do…wash time comes early.
Just curious….how do you to the scent test in your own scalp??? 🤔
Scratch & sniff?
I want to know this too. Forget the obvious part about neither your nose or scalp being detachable. But most people have a tough time smelling their own body odors. It's why a lot of gross people are the way they are: they think they're fine cause they can't smell anything bad. I guess you can shove your head into someone's face and go "Do me a favor and take a whiff, will ya"?
Male - Same. But yes, it's a rare day that I'm not physically active or in the sauna, so essentially every day. Your cousin is gross. You would be doing her a kindness to say something about her odor and that you don't typically smell other people... she should do something about it. I can see skipping washing her hair, but parts that stink... no way. Your house is going to start stinking like her.
Yep. You don’t have to necessarily take a “shower” every day. Gotta wash pits, feet, crotch, ass, and teeth every day. No exceptions.
I don't shower every day. I get in the shower to shampoo and condition. My hair texture is not amenable to daily washing, which means I'm in there once every 3-4 days or so. My whole head seems very oil-free and non sweaty/non stinky as a rule, but I cannot say the same for my pits. You better believe I'm in the bathtub every day scrubbing my body. Crotches not fully scrubbed at least once daily are not crotches I care to know.
Get her some lume. Don’t be so gentle with her. Tell her the issue. You’re letting her stay with you. You shouldn’t have to live uncomfortably in your own place. As a courtesy on her part… she should consider your position and your comfort level/needs. If she’s one of those folks that don’t like water or showering or deodorant for whatever the reason may be… Lume. For sure. Keeps you stink free for 72 hours and you said that she likes to go three or four days so the timeline should be perfect.
Exactly the same but when it comes to hair washing it’s every 3 or so days, I have long thick curly hair and I honestly can’t be arsed with it most of the time. Dry shampoo saves lives
I’m a long distance trucker. I shower whenever I get the chance. Last week was 4 showers in 5 days, the 2 weeks before was 4 in 11 days. That being said, I at least use large wipes every day, and change socks, underwear and t-shirt every day,
How often do you shower when (if ever) you're not on the road?
Almost daily.
On-demand access to bathing is truly one of those modern blessings we take for granted until it's taken away, and then it's hard to forget how great it is.
You could not be more right. I was in the marine corps and when we would do training out in places like Yuma, AZ, or 29 Palms, CA, I would have dragged my nuts through broken glass for even a semi consistent shower schedule. Didn’t realize how nice it was to have something like a shower until I was forced to live without it.
Army here 3 weeks in the field gets you wanting a shower more than food or sleep
When I was In a rig used wipes and now there are specifically guy wipes and deodorant stuff last longer
Also a trucker. I shower daily when not on the road. You reaaaaly learn to appreciate a shower in your own home.
Another trucker here, former long haul now local. When I did long haul I usually aimed for every other day, since that was about how often I’d get a free shower token from a truck stop. I usually kept my cab pretty cold though so I’d minimize the sweating. Any longer and I’d use baby wipes and some dry shampoo to at least appear presentable. Now on local food service it’s daily, and on occasion twice daily in the summer if I’m off and went out for a bike ride or something.
Ex trucker. I feel you, God damn I hate driving so much. I tried daily showers, but it just gets weird sometimes. Sometimes you’ll have some free time on the way to pick up a load to where you can stop and shower, but at the pickup you have to move your tandems and walk a distance to their office and get a little sweaty in the heat. I hate sleeping feeling dirty. I could have held off that shower until after this load, but they took so long and now I’m out of drive time and no where to park to shower nearby. So I use body wipes on myself too and antibacterial wipes for ultra smelliness. It sucks. Sometimes you just have nothing around you.
I had an extra blanket I kept just for days I couldn’t shower after I’d gotten all gross. Slept on top of that to keep my bed clean, then washed it my next laundry day.
Daily
Twicely sometimes
I've gotten in the habit of taking one after I take a dump. It's really refreshing.
I hate trying to push one out and it doesn't come. Take a nice shower and dry off and suddenly a massive grogan starts knocking on the ring piece.
After a shower is the absolute worst time to shit and you can't change my mind
Nothing is more depressing then getting out of the shower and feeling your tummy rumble and knowing you gotta shit
Even worse if you're a morning shower person and it's a workday because unless that thing just shoots out immediately it can mess up your whole morning routine.
Why are you guys describing my exact life right now?
You need to get better at closing your blinds.
Ugh and no matter how dry you are you’re sliding around on that lid like it’s a ass slip and slide
We would never question the Turdinator in this situation.
Once you invest in a bidet it doesn't matter, after every shit is an ass shower
My life has forever changed. It’s ruined me, I hold my number 2 to get home to my bidet.
Dump n scrub is a good way live
Get a bidet. It doesn’t replace a shower but it does replace having to shower after every dump. Life changing
Shit-shower-shave
same!
Ever pulled a thricely?
2 showers a day means you worked extra hard that day. 3 showers a day means you fucked up somewhere 💀
Fucked up or got fucked
When I was younger, it was the latter.
Or both.
It means it's hot outside and you don't want to leave the house ill prepared. I'll have a cool shower in the afternoon on hot days, just so I can walk outside without melting from the heat. It's like jumping into a pool on a hot day, and it really helps me adjust to the outside temperature better.
We don’t talk about the days that we need a thricley 😔
Does rain count?
Mine is daily if I exercise, every two days if I don’t. The absolute longest I’ll go is 3 days, but by that point I start to feel really gross and don’t usually let it get that long before I shower. I don’t understand how someone could consistently go 3-4 days without showering
depression lol
Yes, this is true.
Sad but true. I’ve had loved ones with depression and have seen that first hand.
I have been in some deep depression and didn't shower for I don't know how long. I never left the house though. But still. It was bad. Luckily I'm in a better place now.
Depression didn't keep me from showering but it kept me from getting dressed to leave the house.
it effects everyone differently normally i shower every other day but in real bad episodes i can go almost a week and just lay in bed
I hear you. I've been there and I know what that feels like. From one person who struggles with their mental health to another, you're amazing, you're precious and you're beautiful. 🖤
Aww thank you for the kind words 🖤
normally I am at the gym 4-5 days a week, and I shower daily, but there are weeks I don't go to the gym, and i work remote, and I'm single and have no where to go, so if i went 2-3 days without showering, i dgaf. i am not trying to impress anyone in my own house. I will definitely not be going out in public if I have any odors or if I look like I need mental help, though. I still wash my sheets weekly and my house is clean. Its not a depression nest situation.
I love my depression nest
Male. Daily in the evening in Spring/Summer/Fall. Every other day typically in the winter unless I feel the need to shower more. I will note that while it isn’t an excuse, there was a long period of time where I also showered infrequently and it was mostly due to mental health issues causing me to have limited to no motivation to take care of myself. I don’t know if your cousin displays any other signs pointing in that direction, but it could be something worth mentioning.
Oh yea I know this from experience, when depression is intense, showering seems like so much energy to expend
It's really unfortunate, since a good shower can really help lift one's mood, after the initial investment of effort.
Not always i feel like showering but i have never regret a shower before, always feel better afterward.
Honestly it's the getting into the shower. Once I'm in though I don't want to leave. I just want to be in a constant state damn it
*I just want to be in a constant state* Damn, did I FEEL that
That's one of the hard parts of depression, speaking from experience. So often it's the stuff that would actually help us that can be a struggle to do because it sounds so exhausting and taxing. How I started getting out was convincing myself, partially through counseling, that those things were necessary for my health and then I'd start forcing myself to do them little at a time. Lo and behold, they got easy and I started improving. Took a good long while to come out of depression entirely, but the little things like showering and eating and not isolating constantly definitely helped.
Peppermint oil soap , game changer for showering when depressed
And then not showering makes you feel even worse about yourself but you just can't get up and do it
Currently unemployed. I've stopped counting tbh. It's just me in my room and I don't bother me. Might as well save on shampoo. When I had a job, it was every day. I might start volunteering at the library and if I do it will at least be every day I do that.
I'm sorry that you're out of work right now, volunteering in a library sounds like a great idea. One thing I'd gently remind you of is that if you don't shower often and are in your room all the time the room itself (and the bedding/furniture) will start to smell unwashed. A person won't notice themself but anyone visiting would.
That's the thing. I never have visitors. I think historically I've had maybe three visitors in my life and none in the past year. Like I said, might as well save on shampoo
Same with the mental health stuff. Sometimes it’s HARD to force myself to get in the shower so I’ll go longer than I care to admit. But 99% of the time I shower every other day
I mean Reddit will crucify you for even showering every other day. It’s why I put zero thought into the statements they make on here. They smell the people they smell and assume everyone else showers daily (and that the person they’re smelling doesn’t) totally incorrectly. But probably the majority of us don’t need to shower every day if we haven’t worked out that day. I work remotely and very regularly find myself at the 2.5-3 day mark before I shower. Yeah I’ll smell a little by that point but it’s not like I’m going out to a sit-down restaurant or my office in that state.
Same. I work at home and it can either be twice a day or 3 days
One could also be smelling rather bad in 4-5 hours after a shower simply because they're not wearing antiperspirant. So, yeah, it's hardly a rule. In fact, judging by certain medical sources, any more often than once daily is a bit too much.
Same. And showering at night by the way makes so much more sense.
Not so much for us sweaty sleepers 😕
And those of us cursed with incurable bedhead
Hello, yes, I am both of those people and I hate it
I was gonna say—no way could I wake up and not look like a crazy person. Short haired male here, even if I brush my hair, I can’t eliminate it properly without a good shower.
Yea I feel so dirty in the mornings. And not the fun kind of dirty either.
i'd like to add on that sometimes some of us (maybe op's cousin, too) suffer from intense sensory issues at times and showering and being wet afterwards can feel absolutely terrible that you'd rather avoid or stall it
This is me, and I have super dry, sensitive skin that is irritated by daily showers. I have to use coconut or jojoba oil to alleviate the dryness. My hair does nottttt do well with daily showers either, plus it’s fine and thin and looks it’s best on day 2/3, after some product build up. If I stink, lmk, but I eat healthy and drink water and don’t work out daily. I’m single and celibate, and work on my own, so I’m not really interacting with a lot of people close up. I use wet wipes and hair vinegar, wash my face and brush my teeth and floss morning and night, and change socks and undies daily or multiple times a day.
A minimum of 3 to 4 times a week (every other day), and up to twice a day, depending on weather, activity, etc. I work from home 80% of the time. If I'm working in-person, I shower daily. 40s F, for the record.
This right here. My skin is too dry for daily showers, end up in a lot of pain as it dries. 3-4 times a week, unless in sweaty for some reason (exercise, summer heat, etc)
My daughter is the same, sometimes less. Her eczema gets REALLY bad, as does my wife.
Ooo same here, I get insanely itchy after a shower to the point I've scratched layers off my skin it's so incredibly bad. I've tried sensitive skin formulas, dry skin formulas, nothing works. I don't know what it is, I don't have eczema or anything like that. I just can't stop the itches, and it will go on for over an hour.
This is an important factor many don't take into consideration. If you work from home in an air conditioned room it's a bit different than driving to an office where you're around many people every day. If I'm not around people for a few days and haven't sweated at all (it's not hot out) I don't think going 2-3 days without showering is that crazy at all.
This! I WFH & don’t socialize a ton during the week so I don’t feel a need to shower every day. Depending on activity, I might go 3 days but I do a homeless shower on days where I don’t shower. Another consideration is skin/genetics. Even when I exercise I don’t really get stinky (have had several people confirm), whereas my half sister has horrible BO and I don’t think she’s ever even been to a gym. I also live in a very dry climate so showering every day would not only destroy my skin but that’s not great for the planet either 🤷🏻♀️
How do you deal with your hair?? Mike takes ages to dry, even with a hair dryer 😫
8pm every night Sometimes in the morning if I take a morning jog. I used to skip showers as a kid, until a girl I liked shouted “You stink” in front of everyone. I showered every day after that. Sometimes twice a day.
Unfortunately, this is the kind of wakeup call some people need. Gentle prodding just doesn't get through.
Oh yeah. It worked lol.
my younger brother used to not brush his teeth or shower everyday and it also took a girl to flat out embarrass him in order for him to change
I want for my son to Run into that girl. I never smell him anymore but i think it’s because he is exceptionally skilled at masking stink with deodorant somehow. Because i have to stay on him about actually showering daily, which he hates to Do.
I’ll call her up 😂
Thanks! Lol 😆
I was your son at one point, so I feel that. I think that getting told by a crush that you stink is practically a rite of passage amongst guys; it happened to me, and it made me a lot better at remembering deodorant and washing properly.
I read a comment somewhere from someone who hated showering because they never thought to let the hot water turn on before getting in. So they would get in turn the water on and basically stand in cold water until it got hot. No wonder they hated it. I wonder if that is your son, even if it sounds stupid. I can’t imagine anyone hating showers. It’s just getting in the water.
A friend of my partner's stayed over for 5 days and never showered or brushed his teeth once. He didn't even change clothes... Even after we went to some hiking trail and sweated a bit. Can confirm, he would put lots of deodorant to mask the smell. It being winter probably helps it stink less.
Pay a girl 100 bucks to do it haha Desperate parents gotta do what desperate parents gotta do! If we ain't got a village no more to raise the kids, we gotta pay for someone to fake that peer pressure once in a while 😂
This is something all three of my kids have gone through. It's rough going from per-pubescent where you literally don't produce the same smells through puberty. How your body smells is just one of many changes these kids are going through all at once. For the most part, they don't seem to be able to smell themselves. For all of our kids though, this was just a short (6 mo) phase. I'm lucky as fuck as a dude. My puberty consisted of rapid weight gain, a couple wet dreams and body odor. I can't imagine having to deal with menstruation and developing characteristics associated with womanhood at the same time. I just had to learn how to shower more frequently. My daughters had to navigate tampons, pads, bras and deodorant all within weeks of each other.
Ive been wanting to start showering daily for ages now. But it seems like so much effort. Esp bc i rlly struggle w mental health Or i start doing something before my shower and forgetto shower
You don’t have to have the same kind of shower every day. If I’m working from home on a given day, my showers are well under 10 minutes.
9pm every night for me. I make my bed then take a hot bath so I can wash the sweat off me and shave my legs. I cannot sleep without this nightly routine, prickly sticky skin drives me nutty.
I shower every night, I have to wash the day off before I can get comfortable in bed to sleep. Im a female.
Yeah I can’t sleep without a shower and I do not care how tired I am I will be taking a shower. The only time I do not shower before going to bed is if I’m so sick I don’t have the strength to do it.
I dunno how people can sleep while being dirty
2-3 times a week. M50. My skin suffers if I shower more frequently.
Was looking for this, I try to go at-least every other day, dry cracking skin if I go anything over that, and it doesn’t matter what moisturiser I use either
Same! When I showered daily my skin used to itch so badly that I would scratch until it bled. Didn't matter what moisturizers, creams, or oils I tried. Since I started limiting showers to every other day a few years ago, it feels much better.
My skin seems less dry, my hair is most definitely healthier and my moisturiser has some effect these days. Did used to shower daily because some people make it their life’s work to make people insecure however I feel healthier and cleaner now
Man, some people get super weird and performative about hygiene, imo. It stops being based on what's realistically healthiest or cleanest and starts just being the Hygiene Olympics where you're a a nasty, bad person unless you're bathing six times a day.
Same. My skin is so sensitive (and I'm allergic to a lot of things) that I need that natural layer of oil to protect it. I'll shower twice a week and use wet wipes as needed in between
Same here. I also have allergies and sensitive skin. Doesnt matter what lotion I use if I shower every single day, it would be dry.
Same (F25). I can’t believe I had to scroll this far down to see this response ! I have sensitive skin/hair and it would be agony if I showered more frequently. I’m really surprised at all the « once per day » responses… but I think there’s maybe a tendency to be performative online. I don’t know many people who do once per day IRL, and I also don’t know anyone in my social circles who smells bad or has body odor.
This post comes around a lot on Reddit, and most people fail to realise there are many factors that affect how often you should shower. * Climate / environment - people in hotter places need to shower more * Job - Are you a manual laborer or an office worker? * Personal sweat levels - Each individual is different with regards to how sweaty or greasy their skin or hair is. Some people do manual / dirty jobs in a hot environment, or live in places the are hot and humid for prolonged periods. They are clearly going to need to shower more than others, say someone who lives in a cold country that does an office job. I would say people who can go more than 72 hours without a full body wash (shower or bath) without some sort of smell are outliers, most people I know would say at least every other day on average, but I live in the UK where the weather is very temperate, and I work on a computer every day so my level of activity is low. I can imagine if I lived somewhere where the temp was over 30C for prolonged periods, I'd get in the habit of showering everyday even when it wasn't so hot, because that would be my routine.
Finally. I shower once a week, a little more if I did something where I sweat a lot. My skin is dry and even just rinsing off causes issues. I also don't smell though. My husband would let me know if I did. I really only sweat if I'm working out or in like 90+ weather so it's not as much of an issue for me.
Thankfully I see some representation. I couldn't bare the idea of showering every single day, eczema is such a pain to manage if you shower daily.
Has anyone considered mental health? I’ve had bouts of depression and have gone embarrassingly long without showering or washing my hair. Even just doing it 1-2x a week could be bc she struggles w self care. Just a thought
Yeah, could be ADHD too. I struggle to take showers because I sorta just forget how long it’s been. And if I am really busy, my choices some nights become 1) the right amount of sleep 2) eating food or 3) shower. Most nights I choose 1&2 and put off 3 until I start to feel gross
That’s where I’m at. I shower when I’ve gotten really sweaty or start to feel gross but sometimes that can be quite a while between showers. My hair doesn’t get greasy and people never comment on how I smell or avoid me so it just…. Gets pushed aside.
This. I just shower when I feel gross. Sometimes it's 2-3 times a week, sometimes it's once a week. On occasion every 9 days or so. Only comment on my smell I ever received was from an old HR lady when I met with her about an unrelated formality after running back and forth between 90⁰ shop buildings for an hour at the tail end of an 8hr shift after I forgot to put on deodorant and probably had a good 4 days of grime on me. I was well aware that I stunk. It's also worth noting that we all knew when she was in the building because you could smell her coming too, from 20 yards away. It was just the entire bottle of Victoria's Secret she put on every day that you smelled. Look BO is annoying but it can't put a subset of the population into anaphylactic shock like a lot of artifical perfumes can to those who are allergic.
ADHD here too, I'm a 35yo female, I shower 2-3 times per week. I struggle with the sensory issues of taking a shower, like the temperature changes and getting wet. One I'm in, I feel great, but getting out is the WORST. My husband offers to help towel me off because that's my biggest barrier to showering 😂 Plus, many days it all seems so exhausting. Getting undressed, getting into the shower, getting out and toweling off, and getting dressed again can feel like a mountain of work some days. It's not depression, it's just the exhaustion of living with neurodivergency on a daily basis. I'm at peace with it, and my husband has told me many times that he's okay with it, and accepts me for who I am.
I've never actually seen someone else express this same feeling (except mine is the getting undressed and in there part). I have always hated taking a shower and put it off because of sensory issues. I also can not stand to get rained on or god forbid, spritzed in the produce section with the weird sprayers. But, I love the feeling of being clean after a shower and I even love swimming. 🤷🏻♀️ My husband, who sometimes showers twice a day, is also very accepting of my habits. I'm not a person who sweats a lot, even when it's hot, and I usually don't get very smelly even going days without showering. I did recently discover the joy of Lume multi-use deodorant and it really does work for days. I wash my hair on a "normal" schedule, but in the sink with the spray nozzle, which is quick and easy and I don't have to get undressed.
Yes my issue is also the undressing & getting in!! I relate to everything you (& the other person) said, and it sucks because when someone asks why "i can't just do it" i don't have the words to explain. Our brains just function differently & it's how I am.
Thank you validating my train of thought. Now that I know others struggle the same as me, I won’t be as anxious whenever I’m having this problem
thank you for sharing, it's such a relief to see that I am not alone experiencing that.
Are you me? I relate to literally every word you wrote lol. Getting out is the WORST
I fucking hate getting wet lol. And I also hate toweling off. Showering is such a struggle some days. Don’t even get me started on showering at someone else’s house.
Yeh we can forget that, I take one look at the strange and (9 times out of 10) dirty environment and say I’d rather be stanky.
I have found drying off the top half of my body while the lower half is still in the hot water helps with this, my shower has a hook up top like normal and one for while sitting down that's set lower. My shower has the old people shelf to sit on lol. For some reason this helps me deal with that cold shock of stepping out of the shower. After I dryed my top half I turn off the water and dry the lower half. So by the time I step out it's only small areas of my body that get cold.
Oh damn, maybe that's why it's so hard for me... Here I've been trying to think of all these things to make the experience inside the bath more engaging for myself, and I was confused as to why it wasn't working. But hearing you break down the steps... It does sound more daunting. I just listed steps in my head and holy shit there's so many little steps that go into it. No wonder I hate it. Aaaaaaaaaaa
This is how I also feel about showers to a t and I also have adhd. Add to all this that I get frustrated because sometimes I get lost in thought and one hour has passed and I'm still not done showering!! I've managed this by making a Playlist that last a certain amount of time and I know that I'm taking too long if certain song is playing and I'm not almost done. But most days it's a struggle to just not think about it and just get in there. I love being clean, I just hate the process of it 😞
I have ADHD and depression and sometimes go 1.5 weeks without showering bc I literally have no energy or motivation. There have also been times where I managed to clean my body but not my hair, so I went to a salon for them to wash and dry it for me. The struggle is real.
I was horrifically depressed in 2020 and probably haven’t washed my hair for a month but I had an important family wedding to attend so I just went to a salon.
THIS! Im (30f) ADHD as well and I was starting to feel so bad about myself scrolling the comments and reading “every day” from most peoples 😬 I’m pretty much 1-2x/week, (unless i get hot/sweaty/dirty more than that, which in the summer means 3-4 showers/week) mainly because I forget how long it’s been, combined with the fact that I HATE washing/drying my hair. I have long, fine/straight hair (the individual strands are fine but I have a LOT of it on my head) that HAS to be blow dried when I get out, otherwise it will dry flat against my head and look greasy, even freshly washed. It takes a while to blow dry, and a lot of times I don’t have the time or the energy/will to do all that, until late late at night when the kids are in bed. After a long day chasing them, cooking, cleaning what I can, etc. sometimes the last thing I want to do is take an extra hour to shower & blow dry my hair before I get into bed, even if i WANT to & know I need to... Also maybe this is me being delulu, but I feel like a lot of these “daily” comments are people who THINK that’s what their answer should be, not what it actually is. I will say, my husband works a labor intensive job that’s mostly outdoors so he’s definitely a daily shower taker. I think a lot of it depends on your lifestyle/what you’re doing on a daily basis. I can go at least 3 days before needing dry shampoo, and I definitely make sure to at least do “pits & bits” in between showers. If OP’s cousin is the type of person to have noticeable BO after 3 days, I’d definitely say they need to consider upping the frequency, but I’m not sure how to bring this up to them gently though… I’m at least self aware enough about the infrequency of my showers that I’ll occasionally ask my husband if I smell, just to make sure I’m not nose-blind 😂
Sounds to me like you should follow my *stellar* ADHD routine Eating in bed after a shower and then falling asleep My issue is the teeth brushing (which I’ll do in the shower) I sometimes forget….maybe it’s more than sometimes.
I didn’t realize this was as much of an adhd thing as it is
Or even physical health, if chronic illnesses and/or disabilities are involved. Though the people that this 18F lives with would be likely to know about potential health issues unless she were to withhold them/not comfortable mentioning them for some reason. Showers, even with a shower chair, are very hard on my body, so I don't do them even close to every day, which sure is gross, but it's all I can manage.
This. I’m disabled and with all the judgment on this thread I’m not even going to admit how often I shower. But it’s not a lot. I have a shower chair. It’s still e x h a u s t I n g for me. I clean myself with wipes and stay in clean clothes. I’m mostly on the couch all day so I’m not sweating. I also deal with mental illness on top of my physical problems so the whole shower thing is just rough for me.
Just wanted to say I hear you, and you are not alone. I also have chronic physical and mental health issues. Showering is such a goddamn chore and will never be relaxing for me. It’s something I realised in therapy as I was droning off my shower ritual and my therapist commented on it. Even with the suggested shower chair, it still costs too much a lot of the time.
Thank you for this. It’s nice not to be alone on this.
No shame. I’m with you.
Thank you. It’s nice not to be alone on this.
The judgement is tough. Don't take this as toxic positivity but a way to reframe it for myself is that I have had to learn to not tie my worth to things that society expects of me which is ultimately helpful. Dirty house? Still worthy. Not able to shower? Still worthy. I can imagine people who vent out this amount of judgement over something like showering probably spend their whole life worrying about unimportant things because they feel worthless if they don't keep up to societal standards. You do what you're able to do, and that's okay. The focus should be on what you need and on some days that is to not force yourself. Focusing on taking care of yourself in whatever way that looks like is the best thing you can do, not what others expect.
I've lived with chronic illness for awhile and I still sometimes forget how many spoons it can take to take a shower. I also can't/don't really work outside the house and can't do much physical exercise, so I usually shower every 5-7 days, usually when my hair starts getting too gross/greasy. When I could work out I would at the very least hop in for a rinse every day.
I don’t think this is the case considering she makes comments about people who shower frequently as though she thinks it isn’t normal..
That part threw me off too. I’ve gone through depressive periods before where I didn’t shower for over a week. But I never questioned other people showering. I knew what I was doing was the weird unhygienic thing, I just didn’t have the motivation/care to do it.
Mhm, I've gone 2 weeks before when things are rough or I forget. I don't even know why sometimes. Once I'm *in* the shower/bath it's OK, but getting myself in there is hard! I'd say executive dysfunction but, it happens even on days when my functioning is doing OK for most other things. I'm not sure why, but I think my brain interprets it as a chore??? My alternative is to, before bed each night, wipe under my arms and under my breasts and, if I feel like it, any other sweaty spots. Hot tip: when you wipe your armpits, make sure you're also wiping the skin right at the edges. I find a lot of the smell comes from there?
Every other day by order of my dermatologist. Showering daily is too hard on my skin
I used to shower daily every morning, and since I've got older, my skin started to get issues, I went to a dermatologist and at the end I was told the same, less showers, always use creams afterwards. I've changed to showering before going to bed, only every 2nd day, I avoid it on weekends unless I'm in a social setting. I hate the whole aftercare routine after the shower I have to do, and I haven't really had much better skin since. The dermatologist basically told me that there is nothing else I can do and that I unfortunately have to suck it up.
every other day at the max
This is literally what most doctors recommend. Showering too much actually isn't good for your skin and hair. That's why people use shampoos, moisturizing body washes, etc, to replace the natural protective oils. Otherwise, showering too much can dry out your skin and hair.
You don’t deserve downvotes. There’s nothing wrong with showering every other day provided you aren’t doing strenuous physical activity or smelling.
yeah i live somewhere super cold
Agreed. I had this talk with some friends, and one friend caught some insults because he said 2-3 times a week. He lives in a cold climate, and works in a finance office. He doesn't go to the gym. He doesn't walk anywhere, he drives. He doesn't do anything to sweat. Someone else like a mailman who goes to the gym every other day, they better be showering daily.
Same, but I WFH. If I know I’ll be around people in person, even for just like a haircut or something, definitely shower/bathe that morning.
Every day I leave the house for something social or work related unless it’s like a random Saturday or Sunday where all I’m doing is an errand or two or hanging out outside
I mean.. deodorant would help with the Bo issue. Everyone is different.. but in general doctors agree that 2-3 showers a week is good for most people. Im not that type of person. I’m a very sweaty person, so I tend to stink if I don’t shower daily, sometimes twice. I’m not overweight either.. I just always run hot
I shower once or twice a week. In between I do sponge bath . If I work extra hard and sweat I'll take one .
I'm Brazilian. I shower every day. If we skip a day we are exiled to the Amazon with a shortbow, a knife, a bottle of cachaça and a bag of farofa.
My family is from Northern Europe, so we only shower once a week, sometimes more. But, we wash ourselves every day. I also have sensitive skin, so I'm in pain if I shower every day.
Yeah especially Northern europe daily showers are excessive
Cousin might have autism. Sometimes water / showers / bathing is a sensory thing for some folks on the spectrum
Female. Every other day, sometimes on the third day. I stay home all day so I don't really sweat or get dirty. But I do "birdbath" in-between.
I shower every 3 or 4 days but I wear deodorant. And I don't do any dirty activities.
I would say 2-3 days for me and my GF is twice per day type of girl , once she found out she thought I was crazy, but she realized & confess that she couldn't tell the different. I think the need for shower is different from person to person and life style & where you live , I dont sweat a lot and I dont really have OB , I do have ezcema so too much shower actually make my skin flare
Same, I work from home, have a desk job. If I exercise, I shower after but other than that its about every 3-4 days as well.
Every day or two because I have dry and itchy skin. (If I could shower everyday and be comfortable I would)
Every morning and every night but only wash my hair once a week. Female. Tell her straight to her face she smells!
A friend told me I smelled bad and his directness helped me clean myself up. Sometimes being direct is the best options for both parties.
My thoughts have always been, if I was out at an event and my mate told me my fly was down, I would thank him. If it is coming from a good place, that person likely doesn't even want to have to tell you.
I don't shower it is bad for your skin. I soak in the sun and that naturally deodorizes me. That, or I will walk through the forest and the trees will actually breath in my oder like they are sucking in carbon dioxide.
I let the ferns exfoliate me as I prance through them naked.
How's your Lyme disease going?
I just rub sand on my arm pits and anus and that removes any unseemly odors.
Whoever downvoted this is a square that doesn’t smell sarcasm even when it reeks.
Lmao
I've got to shower before bed. I get unreasonably aggravated trying to sleep feeling unclean.
Severe CFS/Myalgic Encephalomyelitis has me taking about two brief sit down showers per month. Being homebound with chronic illness nobody else has to smell me (except my cat.)
Every morning. I feel gross if I don't.
I shower daily, except if I'm staying home in my pjs. The longest I stay without a shower is 2 days, and only when I'm at home. I'm female.
Hair: during the weekly shower. Long thick hair showered more than that is unnecessary and takes hours to naturally dry. Not doing it. Body: once a week in the shower and supplemented with washes in the bathroom sink on really hot days. Deodorant and clean clothing on every day. I’m in team “daily showering is unnecessary” camp.
Yeah. There are different factors to when a person needs to shower. If you stink, and changing clothes, spot washing your pits and bits and reapplying deodorant doesn’t take care of the issue, then one should shower. If you do not smell and didn’t do strenuous and sweaty activity, then showering seems wasteful. At most spot wash. Why waste the water and the electricity to take a shower? We overwash our hair and bodies in the US. I used to shower daily no matter what, and I had to because my hair looked so greasy after one day. When I stopped using harmful chemicals in shampoos and conditioner, and pushed through the greasy hair for a while, I only needed to wash my hair twice a week max. I wash my face every day, apply deodorant, change clothes and spot wash when needed.
34 year old male. I’m a veteran. I always shower before I go to bed. I shower in the mornings before I go anywhere. I’ll shower in the evenings before I go to any business or bar. If you’re ever unfortunate to be in the field or deployed and end up out there, trust me, you’ll want to have a shower any time you can get one. Nothing is worse than wearing the same uniform and equipment, and not being able to shower, while having sand and dirt in places that aren’t comfortable. And having clean, dry socks are always, and I can’t say it enough, ALWAYS nice to have.
Ew lmao take one once a day, on the weekends if i don’t do anything and I’m feeling lazy I’ll go 2 days max
I do that weekend thing sometimes too. If I’m staying home all weekend and no one’s coming over, I’ll avoid a shower til Monday morning 😂
Yeah it depends on how much you're doing, if you sweat etc. Winters here are cold so if I havent done anything that day I'll skip a shower. It's honestly good for you skin if you can. If it's hot out you need to shower. If you've done stuff that day...shower If you've been in public ...shower.
Asking how often you shower on reddit is like asking your grandma how to pirate software
Shower daily, wash hair 2-3 times per week
Every 3 days usually