Going all-natural at home with your kids around

Learn about: Going all-natural at home with your kids around from Wendy Walsh, PhD,...
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Going all-natural at home with your kids around

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The research is mixed regarding nudity in the home. It's important to remember that how that nudity is expressed is the key. So, one research study I read showed that when girls have been exposed to their father nude in a very comfortable way, like I'm not running to grab a towel if someone catches me getting out of the shower, etc. Those girls actually have later onset of sexual behavior. I guess there's no mystery for them that they don't need to explore and discover. They've seen that. But the important thing is how it's presented. If nudity involves a lot of shame or a lot of sexualization, then it's not necessarily good. So if it's comfortable nudity with your toddlers and kids and nobody's touching anybody's genitalia and people are just comfortable with their bodies, this actually can have a positive effect on people's psyches and on the development of your kids. If on the other hand, mom is walking around partially nude and she's all proud of her sexy body, well that's sending a very different message to children in the household. When mom is acting very provocative in the house, that's telling kids that nude means sex. It's our natural state of being actually and you can be nude without thinking sexual thoughts and without dealing with sex. So the important thing to remember is how nudity is expressed. My feeling is as long as there's no genitalia touching, take bath with your kids, hang out nude if you need to, as long as you're comfortable with your body. If you feel ashamed of your body and you want to make sure that they don't feel ashamed of theirs, then don't act very shamy about it. Don't do that "Cover yourself up!" when they're 2 years old because that's when the message start. When you start screaming at your kids to hide their nudity because there's something bad about it.

Learn about: Going all-natural at home with your kids around from Wendy Walsh, PhD,...

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Wendy Walsh, PhD

Relationship & Parenting Expert

Dr. Wendy Walsh was nominated for an Emmy Award for her work as co-host on The Dr. Phil spinoff, The Doctors TV show. She also hosts Investigation Discovery Network’s “Happily NEVER After,” as well as being part of Dr. Drew’s Behavior Bureau on HLN Network. On CNN and 9 Network, Australia, she breaks down the psychology of sex, love, gender roles, divorce, parenting and other human behaviors. Dr. Wendy is an Adjunct Professor of Psychology at California State University, Channel Islands. She holds a B.A. in Journalism, a Masters degree in Psychology, and a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, and is the author of three books and numerous publications, including The 30-Day Love Detox. She appears regularly on The Today Show, CBS This Morning, Good Morning America, The Steve Harvey Show, The O’Reilly Factor, Inside Edition, The Katie Couric Show, Jane Velez-Mitchell, and The View.

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