Not very long as an adult, handful of days, maybe 4 or 5 when very sick.
this post was submitted on 23 Jun 2025
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If you swim in a pool every day, you don't need to really shower much.
Chlorine is nature's soap.
-ze germans
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Maybe three days? I canβt stand not showering.
It's the getting in bed dirty that bothers me. Sticking to sheets keeps me up. I could go a long time if I was camping and what not, but if I'm using sheets .. it bothers me way to much. My feet have always ran warm so if I don't shower I usually have to at least wash my feet so they don't feel stuck to sheets and I get claustrophobic or such feeling like I'm being held down.
Damn, same here. Couldn't have described the feeling of marinating in your sheets filthy better than you have
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About three weeks. But I was in an area where water was scarce and unsafe (Some central African nations)so there were other priorities. Baby wipes and an occasional wash cloth with water we boiled beforehand had to be enough.
But I must have looked and smelled funny when I finally made it back to civilization and walzed into the lobby of a very very posh hotel. That shower was pure heaven, though
Several weeks. Usually I shower before leaving the house so when I was too depressed and anxious to leave the house I felt no reason to take one. But I don't shower as much as most people in general. Once a week maybe unless I'm sweaty or dirty. I also brush my teeth inconsistently. But I've never had a cavity, fungal infection or anything else hygiene related anywhere on my body. I also don't stink in case you're wondering π I disinfect my pits and use deodorant daily, I always check myself and my clothes and I also ask friends sometimes to be sure.
I've switched my tooth brushing from before I go to bed (it became a mental barrier for going to bed) to doing it after washing my hands when I arrive home.
I was in the "I don't brush my teeth consistently but I've never had a cavity so it's probably fine" camp until I got dental insurance and found out I did, in fact, have cavities :[ they had been slowly progressing and I was lucky they got to them before they broke all the way through the enamel
if you have the means to do so, even if you have to look up dental training schools that do exams really cheap, please get your dental exams as close to biannually as you can, you're worth it <3
2 weeks. Riding my motobike across the Simpson Desert (including getting there and coming back). Stayed at a country pub in western outback Qld on day 14 and & showerd. Prior to that, had been camping out in the bush.
Probably pushing 2 months. I was thru hiking the Appalachian Trail and was in full on dirty hippie mode.
This is so cool seeing inspiring stories where I only expected grossness!
A week is my usual. I know, I know, but my mental health is a lot worse than my body odour.
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Two weeks, a few times. Backpacking in the sierra, kayaking in Baja, and climbing trips to j-tree. Except j-tree, trips included swims but no soap. DYK salt water kills most bacteria that cause body odor, some salt rash but no odor kayaking in Baja.
About six weeks. I was attached to someone else's unit at NTC in California for a training excersize with them. There were no showers in the field, and the showers pre and post excersize were colder than a witches tit, and open as a gay mans asshole after all night orgy.
And that wasn't the worst part of the whole experience either.
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a month,I was in the woods. there were no baths
This thread was way more interesting to read than I expected!
I am boring, probably 6, 7 days at max
Just 3 days. Finals week in the university.
Probably about 1-2 weeks, unless jumping in a lake during that time counts. We were in the back country deep in Canada :)
Like 4 days, but I was LARPing and I was a sweaty, stinky mess from running around the entire time.
probably a week
A day, maybe ?
First thing that comes to mind is spending a week camping on the shores of Lake Mead many years ago. Didn't shower for a week, though one could argue that being scoured by lake water when you either go flying off an inner-tube or make a mistake while water skiing, does a fine job of taking the dirt off.
Couple months. Severe depression does that to me and all health care just stops. It's bad.
4 days: family and work
Not really went without: when our bathroom was being repaired for a whole week, we went to the local swimming pool and used the showers there. Then went for a swim, so was actually quite nice.
A week or two probably, when in the army.
And since wr actually we're responsible for actual foods hygiene, we always got sauna/bathing priority. So never went more than two weeks imo.
A week at max, high altitude and chilly wind can be daunting.