‘It made me less body confident’

KATIE BURNETTS, 33, A TV PRODUCER, LIVES IN LONDON WITH HUSBAND BEN, 33, AND IS PREGNANT WITH THEIR FIRST CHILD. SHE WAS RAISED BY PARENTS WHO WERE OFTEN NAKED. SHE SAYS, “I’m all for being open with your kids – honesty is indeed the best policy. But there’s a difference between being open and honest and having no boundaries.

“My mum and dad weren’t naturists, but they preferred being naked at home as they found it comfortable and freeing. When I was younger, I didn’t notice it and was often naked too. But when I hit 12, my brother and I started asking our parents to put on clothes if we had friends coming over. We could never have anyone round unannounced and worried that our parents would suddenly waltz in completely starkers.

“When I reached 15, it became a real problem to me. Seeing them naked so often made me respect their rules less, as I felt they didn’t respect my wish for privacy. And their laissez-faire attitude made me feel I could get away with more, so I’d stay out later or sleep over at my boyfriend’s more often.

“And it didn’t help my body confidence. It made my hang-ups worse as I was always confronted by nudity and it made me think about my own body more. It also didn’t give me any added confidence to get naked in front of partners. It actually made me more shy, because I associated nakedness with my parents.

“I’m about to have my first baby, but I won’t be raising them the ‘naked’ way. Nakedness made me feel uncomfortable in my family home and I don’t want my child to feel the same.”