Whenever I feel afraid, I hold my head... ?

My previous post concerning “That Rude Problem” is a revamped version of a post first sent to the Forum at truenudists.com. In the original post I tried, perhaps clumsily, to put things into perspective by saying the following:

“If some naturists/nudists have problems with the fact that some men have involuntary erections at times, then they aren’t true nudists. To put a new spin on an old saying, “Its presence doesn’t matter; it’s what you do with it!”

It wasn’t my intention to say that erections should be on display, just that we shouldn’t be so uptight about them. Clearly, this was unacceptable to some. One wrote, "Bollocks!" and proceeded to say, essentially, that I was completely wrong in thinking that involuntary erections even existed. Good thing I’m no longer an impressionable teenager or young adult, or I might have believed him!

He also asked, "Are you going to think that if some guy with an "involuntary erection" walks past your eight your old child?"

Further on, he wrote, "The line of thought that erections are natural and should be accepted in the nudist environment is complete horsesh*t (sic). It’s a libertine’s argument and nothing to do with nudism."

I responded by saying I wanted to keep an open mind and asked if he could provide sources to support his statements. I then mentioned a few of my own and stated emphatically that I refused to judge others on whether or not they had erections.

I noted also that my “eight-year-old son” (he has aged seven years since) could very well become an unwitting victim if he ever had an erection at a naturist centre, despite his young age and the low probability he would have “naughty thoughts” at that age.

The person to whom I replied didn’t bother writing back.

In a different but related thread, the topic came up again and I think I was able to make a better point. I started out tongue-in-cheek by saying that www.sexualityandu.ca, which is administered by the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC), says erections sometimes happen for no reason at all, and may even occur before birth! I then suggested we strike a committee to visit the SOGC and ask them to revisit that statement.

Naturally, someone wrote in to say I had “missed the point.” If an erection occurs in a social setting, don’t draw attention to it and, if needed, cover it. As I stated in my reply, that was EXACTLY my point. I noted that experienced nudists weren’t making the necessary nuances in their posts, and that this could scare away potential members.

Involuntary erections do occur. They are exceedingly rare, even for a first timer, and usually should not be a problem for anyone, and certainly shouldn’t be encouraged. But every now and then, especially in younger men and teens, it can happen.

What matters is dealing with it in a respectful way. That’s the message that should be getting out. Young people generally don’t have the life experience we older people have. And they would be the future of the movement.