Women In Wellness: Andee Rodgers On The Five Lifestyle Tweaks That Will Help Support People’s Journey Towards Better Wellbeing

An Interview With Wanda Malhotra

You will make meaningful, lasting relationships — One incredible bonus of being part of the nudist community is that I’ve developed deep, meaningful friendships. Nudists are some of the most genuine, caring people I’ve ever met. They will be my lifelong, chosen family.

Today, more than ever, wellness is at the forefront of societal discussions. From mental health to physical well-being, women are making significant strides in bringing about change, introducing innovative solutions, and setting new standards. Despite facing unique challenges, they break barriers, inspire communities, and are reshaping the very definition of health and wellness. In this series called women in wellness we are talking to women doctors, nurses, nutritionists, therapists, fitness trainers, researchers, health experts, coaches, and other wellness professionals to share their stories and insights. As a part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Andee Rodgers.

Andee Rodgers is a woman’s advocate and creator of the Women One Word (WOW) campaign. She is the Women In Nude Recreation (WINR) chair for the American Association for Nude Recreation (AANR) an organization that protects, promotes, provides and preserves nude recreation. Andee is the president of Serenity Mountain Retreat, Vice President of the AANR Northwest region, and was named AANR 2023 Woman of the Year.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Our readers would love to “get to know you” better. Can you share your “backstory” with us?

I grew up on a 265-acre farm outside of Cle Elum, Washington, and my last name was McDonald. Even though I loved being raised on my farm, I was my classmates’ favorite target for teasing. On the playground, in the lunchroom, during class if they could get away with it. Likewise, my brothers also teased me incessantly at home when mom and dad weren’t in earshot. Which was a great deal of the time. Ít was a large part of my life which resulted in very low self-esteem. I was told how ugly and useless I was daily. I believed it.

After struggling with negative body issues my entire life, surprisingly social nudism was how I overcame them. Society teaches us that we must be thin, but not too thin, curvy but only in the right places. I never fit those standards.

Media misconceptions are left at the gate when visiting a nudist community. I found a safe community in which to be nude because all AANR clubs must meet high standards of non-sexual nudity and are family-friendly. I met many incredible people through conversations alongside a mountain lake or sipping wine on a friend’s front porch. All the while finding most other women had many of the same struggles. These women told me about all the positive attributes they saw in me: bold, strong, beautiful, things I never saw in myself. This encouragement gave me a confidence I’d not experienced before. It took several years, I finally learned to love myself.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career? What were the main lessons or takeaways from that story?

The creation of the WOW campaign. The Women One Word campaign empowers and encourages women to love themselves just the way they are. I asked women to choose a word that best describes them. Then write it on their body and take a picture. I shared their photo through a myriad of social media. Along with the photos, if they chose to write a brief story to share, they were welcome to do so. Some chose to let their word speak for itself which was equally as powerful. One newcomer to social nudism is Mel who believes, “Becoming a nudist has given me the freedom to be myself fully…The freedom to love my body.” That’s a hard thing for some women to do.

The women chose such powerful words to describe themselves: bold, worthy, empowered, ImPerfect, courageous, proud, independent, survivor, confident, liberated, blessed, strong, self-confident, and self-assured.

My goal was empowering and encouraging women, across the nation, to love themselves just as they are with the focus on women only. However, another participant pointed out, “This campaign is also helpful for men to understand the struggles and accomplishments a woman goes through when she is completely vulnerable to the world, her family and most importantly, herself.” I hadn’t considered the impact on men. Surprisingly, one gentleman thanked me because he showed the calendar, created from the WOW campaign submissions, to a female friend. She has a prominent scar from sternum to belly button and is very self conscious about it. As she looked through the pages and saw the women of all shapes, ages, races, and especially those with breast cancer scars, she looked at him and said, “I am going to rock this scar.” The strength she gained seeing women who were empowered to share their stories, and their scars, is beyond inspirational to me.

It has been said that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about a mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

Lack of communication was my biggest mistake. Many women still haven’t heard about this amazing venture because it hasn’t been communicated widely enough. And that is entirely a mistake on my part. My biggest takeaway is that for more women to experience it or participate, planning needs to begin much sooner. Preplanning and thinking that far ahead is not my strongest attribute.

Let’s jump to our main focus. When it comes to health and wellness, how is the work you are doing helping to make a bigger impact in the world?

Empowering and encouraging women to love themselves as they are is life changing. It was for me. Through social nudism we experience a freedom perhaps we’ve never had before. Social nudists are less anxious about how others feel about their bodies. Mental wellbeing is achieved when we truly love ourselves.

Changing media misconceptions is a key way to make that much needed change of our mindset. Society tells us we must be perfect to be loved and accepted. I challenge that misconception. When the “Ï”and the“P” in imperfect is capitalized, it takes on a whole new meaning. I have many imperfections that have been the result of surgeries, childbearing, aging, and abuse. But those imperfections define my character. Actually, I dig them. When I chose to define myself, I became the power force in my own life. I changed into a stronger, bolder being. ImPerfect!

The WOW campaign gave women the opportunity to stop and reflect deeply about themselves. Jenny, a participant of WOW, told me that, “Personally, this experience pushed me to engage in some intense self-reflection, searching for a word that not only resonated with me but also captured the essence of my innermost self.” Self-reflection is a powerful tool that can help guide us on our path to wellbeing.

Each of the women who participated in the 2023 WOW campaign had feelings of inclusion and acceptance in the vulnerable act of being fully nude without apology. Their goal was to empower other women in their lives and beyond. WOW reached well over 500,000 people in various media outlets. For its first year, I think that is pretty substantial. Now that it has a footing, the 2024 campaign will have an even stronger, widespread impact.

Can you share your top five “lifestyle tweaks” that you believe will help support people’s journey towards better wellbeing? Please give an example or story for each.

1 . Name that negative voice in your head — we all hear that voice creeping in to tell us how we’ve failed, how fat we are, or that we are ugly. Give that voice a name and start talking to it. Have a conversation with her or him. By confronting the voice in a very real manner, we take control of the conversation and steer it where it needs to go.

2 . Don’t compare yourself to others — Everyone’s body is unique and everyone’s journey has been different. Nudism encourages body acceptance. Understand that your comfort and acceptance may take time to develop.

3 . Surround yourself with positive people — This seems like it should be a given, but it can be hard to let go of people you’ve had in your life a long time. Find a core group of women who edify you and then do the same for them.

4 . Connect with nature — Feeling the sun and wind on your body is enthralling. To swim without the constraints of a suit or feel the wind and rain directly on your entire body. Even if it’s just for five minutes, one time, connect your body with nature and write about how that connection felt.

5 . Journal your thoughts and respond to them — Journaling is powerful. Write down those conversations you’ve had with your inner voice. Look back on those conversations when you are in a better mental state. See how far you have come in your journey. Write down every positive word you know about yourself, what others tell you they see in you, and where you want to be in the future as far as your mental wellbeing.

If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of wellness to the most amount of people, what would that be?

Love the Skin You’re In — When women discover that they are beautiful, strong, and powerful just the way they are, the world will be in for substantial changes.

What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started” and why?

1. Every body is the perfect body — I hear it all the time, “I can’t do that until I lose some weight,” or “my body is just not good enough” which is exactly what I thought. Fun fact, every body I’ve encountered is just like every body you have. Social nudism is not Baywatch. Nudists are average people doing everyday things just like you. The onlything is we like to do it naturally. Afterward, people say, “I can’t believe I waited so long,” or “I wish I’d have done this sooner.”
2. Your self-confidence is going to skyrocket — as you begin to accept yourself, just the way you are, your confidence grows exponentially. That confidence will spread out into other parts of your life as well. You become a stronger person, one that’s able to meet life’s challenges head-on. Being confident pushes away the negative and self-doubt we may have experienced in the past, and it makes us a generally happier person. Who doesn’t want that?
3. No one is going to judge you — When I first went to a nudist club, I thought people would stare and point at my body and laugh. Of course they didn’t. What they did do was make me feel immediately welcome. No one cares about your size, shape, color, your sexual orientation or how much money you make. When I am nude, I bare my true nature. I’m equal with everyone else.
4. It’s an entirely non-sexual atmosphere — Removing our clothing is such an incredibly vulnerable thing to do. So the environment in which we choose to do that has to be entirely a non-sexual one. Nudism is about the freedom to make that choice and being safe when we take that step.
5. You will make meaningful, lasting relationships — One incredible bonus of being part of the nudist community is that I’ve developed deep, meaningful friendships. Nudists are some of the most genuine, caring people I’ve ever met. They will be my lifelong, chosen family.

Sustainability, veganism, mental health, and environmental changes are big topics at the moment. Which one of these causes is dearest to you, and why?

Mental well-being is foremost on my mind. Experiencing depression several times in my life, having positive mental thoughts on a daily basis is vital. As a preteen I wanted the pain to stop, so I tried ending my life with pills. It wasn’t until I allowed myself to love myself, that I’ve felt more in balance with my world than I ever have been. Nayyirah Waheed says it best, “and i said to my body. softly. ‘i want to be your friend.’ it took a long breath. and replied ‘i have been waiting my whole life for this.” Positive mental health begins with loving yourself. Being your own best friend. Who would have thought that was possible? I certainly didn’t. When I stopped caring about what others thought of me, I alone held the power of my mind.

What is the best way for our readers to further follow your work online?

Please go to my website and read all the incredible stories from bold, empowered women. womeninnuderecreation.com or email me at andee.rodgers@aanr.com. The 2024 WOW campaign will start on May 1st, 2024. Please follow along to read inspiring stories from empowered women.

Thank you for these really excellent insights, and we greatly appreciate the time you spent on this. We wish you continued success.

About the Interviewer: Wanda Malhotra is a wellness entrepreneur, lifestyle journalist, and the CEO of Crunchy Mama Box, a mission-driven platform promoting conscious living. CMB empowers individuals with educational resources and vetted products to help them make informed choices. Passionate about social causes like environmental preservation and animal welfare, Wanda writes about clean beauty, wellness, nutrition, social impact and sustainability, simplifying wellness with curated resources. Join Wanda and the Crunchy Mama Box community in embracing a healthier, more sustainable lifestyle at CrunchyMamaBox.com.