Poll Do You Have Problems With Personal Hygiene?

[Lucky Laser]

No, I haven't seen that show... Sooo, I just looked it up and found that they have episodes online you can watch for free. :) I'm watching now and I am glad to see that the show is really geared towards women (I was admittedly a little afraid because of the title, lol). I know in my rational mind that female nudity is not a dirty, scary thing, I just need more things like this to convince myself of that. Thank you upstream!

 

[nightowl52]

I have to divide each step with sit & rest periods. Choosing what I wear is frustrating, then having everything I need in there & I run the bath. Showers requiring standing & I get pain & have to sit, stand, squat to relieve it. Then I sit . Then I bathe , dry & sit again. Then I blow dry my hair, well sometimes I just let it dry on it's own. It takes hours for me to get ready for the day & I don't wear make up, color my hair or cut it. It's too much work! And the fact that the hair dressers shop is crowded & she's got you in the chair. I'll stop there. sorry

 

[Murphy's Law]

I don't know whether to laugh or cry. I have felt so alone, and disgusted with myself for this exact issue.
I always used to shower 1 or 2 times a day. My hair, massive red curls, was my crowning glory. Now, I go weeks without washing or combing my hair. Just last week I hacked most of it off in a fit of... I don't know.
As for showers, at first it went to when i had to go out. Now I put on a hat, and leave the showering for days with the doctors. Gross.

 

[Anonymoose]

Personal Hygiene-related Avoidance and Triggers

Sometimes I experience a great deal of avoidance around personal hygiene. Tasks like showering or brushing my teeth trigger me. However, I've managed to get around them when they trigger me unbearably. There are oral hygiene wipes to use and I can wash up or use wipes designed for use without water. Though I may not always feel like tending to my personal hygiene, I am able to do so consistently.

 

[graebrahm]

I have serious problems with this - probably partly due to the water issue and my near drowning (my twin babies did drown). Sometimes I don't even care if I am going somewhere - I figure - I live on a farm so they'll just think I was working... I would never have done this before my accident - it would have horrified me. I can't figure a way out of it - really stinks (no pun intended).

 

[bustedflat]

Definitely have issues with it lately

I have been home for 3 mos and this last time it's been like a week and I have been out on store runs. My hair is shoulder length and curly so it's not hard to wet it, mousse it and look halfway ok but I still know. It's gross but I am so glad to know that you others struggle with it too.

 

[Dylan]

I try to stay in the middle somewhere, but I have pendulum swung to both extremes.

In the past, it was most often the the high anxiety, over-energized, states that I experienced and with that I tended toward hyper-hygiene. Shower 2-3 times a day. If I even tried on a shirt to wear to work, I had to wash it.
I could be obsessive about the house cleanliness, etc.

In recent years, it's gone more toward the depressive states where I can barely muster enough concern to even get to work, let alone care about appearance and such. Then, I can go a couple of weeks without showering, just do swipes with the toothbrush on my front teeth, never wash my face, etc etc. With this last "episode" it became obvious. Wrinkled clothes, not necessarily very clean, my hair a frizzy wreck....all self-care goes down the toilet as I try and bolster up my INNER self-care enough to pull myself up and out of the spin.

-Dylan

 

[xxarmywifexx]

I notice this in my husband...how can I motivate him to take care of the basics like brushing his teeth. That is the main one really. HELP!

 

[sassy-snape]

im very aware of how clean i am and if i smell, to the extent i pester my other half to tell me if i smell, stuffin his head under my arms to check lol.

but when deppressed even brushing my teeth seems to much of a chore

 

[gentlelady]

I would probably slip into the sometimes category had it not been for my grandmother drilling into me the importance of cleanliness. Any slips ups brought down her wrath.

 

[Lionheart]

I have disabling anxiety and depression, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, and other chronic physical illnesses, so it really depends more on my energy levels than anything!!! I struggle sometimes when I am ill too, but it has gotten much better of late.

 

[7Cs]

It's weird... when I get really stressed out I'll find that days have gone by without me bathing. Sometimes even brushing my hair. I don't even realize it until my hair gets stringy or greasy or really tangled. I just completely forget. Sometimes I also forget to eat. I somehow get the kids fed and bathed but don't even think to care for myself in these basic ways. Luckily I work from home for the most part so no one really sees the results other than family!