"I Cannot Wait" To Get Naked With My Kid

[Moriji]

This morning, the ladies of "The View" were discussing whether it is appropriate for mothers to be naked in front of their sons. Sherri Shepherd, whose two-year-old son Jeffrey lives in Los Angeles with her ex, chimed in: "I am flying home to see my kid, and I cannot wait to take my clothes off."

Sherri continued, "I always walk around naked in front of Jeffrey," and described Jeffrey's reaction: "Right now he just goes, "Mommy boobies' and he laughs hahahaha." Don't think Sherri is that permissive when it comes to fathers and daughters, though. She thinks that a naked father in front of his daughter would be "traumatizing" but insists, "My breasts do not traumatize my kid."

www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/02/20/sherri-shepherd-i-canno_n_87603.html

[portlander]

I dunno. I've watched and listened to the video attached to the Huffington article, but I'm not sure I get her intent and what she's trying to say.

I could see it either way:

If she's trying to say that she likes to walk around naked in her house and if her 2 year old kid just happens to see her it's no big deal, then, well, that's one thing.

On the other hand, if she's trying to say that she gets a special joy out of walking around naked specifically in front of her kid, then that's another thing entirely and cause for concern.

In general, I'm not sure where I stand on the subject of Parent/Child nudity. I think it depends on the totality of the circumstance including age, family culture, and motive.

As I've posted elsewhere, my stepmothers occasional nudity was troubling when I was 8 to 15 years old. But in her case it was part and parcel with the psychological games and manipulations she was aiming at me. Take away the games and manipulations and would her mere nudity have been troubling to me ? Probably not AS troubling, to say the least.

As for AGE, I think there probably is an age in the kid where it doesn't matter, and probably an age where it does. Personally I'd probably put it at maybe 4 or 5 years old. But up here where I live, the county-run parks and swimming pools allow boys to accompany their mothers into the showers and changing rooms up to age 8.

I also think family culture is a factor. If a kid is used to seeing his parent(s) naked, absent any games or manipulations, such as what might be seen at a nude beach or nudist resort, then maybe that's not such a bad thing. I've known adults that grew up that way as kids and seem to be none the worse for it. In fact, they seem to actually be more well-adjusted than I am.