Obviously more a question for Americans in the southern States. I’m from Northern Europe and about as white as a ghost. I get sunburn in about two minutes. How do you cope with the sun? Do you put on sunscreen everytime you leave the house? Do you just stay in the shadow? Do you wear long cloths (isn’t that hot?) Or do you just not care and get red necks (sorry for the stupid pun)?

45 comments

  2. It’s an age thing. Add a kid/teenager I just got burnt. In my 20’s and 30’s I’d wear sunscreen. Now at 40 I have a wide brimmed hat and I find myself wearing long sleeves more often, especially if I’m on the water.

  3. Sunscreen, hats, long sleeves, linen, and staying inside during the hottest part of the day. But I get it, I once got burned on the back of my neck in about fifteen minutes while I was looking under the hood of my car.

  4. I also get sunburned in about 3 minutes. I spray some sunscreen on whenever I go out if it’s a sunny day and if I’m out playing pokemon go or something I will try to stay in the shade.

  5. I only wear sunblock when I’m doing outdoor activities of an hour or more. Other than that I just get a nice tan.

  6. I wear moisturizer with sunscreen on my face daily. During the summer, I use sunscreen if I’m at the pool or the beach.

  7. I’m a pasty white guy that lives in the southwest and works outside a fair bit. In the summer months I don’t spend much time outside in the sun if I’m not working or playing. You’ll never see me laying outside at the beach or next to a pool. Cover up. I always wear at least a baseball hat or preferably a wide brimmed hat to cover my face, ears and neck. And then I slather sunscreen on any exposed skin if I’m going to be outside for more than about 30 minutes. I never miss an opportunity to stand in the shade when working outside.

  10. If your going to the beach you need sunscreen for sure or else you will get cooked by the sun. If you are not going to the beach wear thin but long sleeves and maybe even long pants as well. I guess apply sunscreen on your face (use a stick sunscreen) in this situation if you want as well (it would only help).

  11. I’m pretty pale and spent a decade living in Las Vegas.

    I wore sunscreen daily year round. Put it on every morning, just a routine part of getting ready for the day. If I was going to be spending much time outdoors, I’d reapply.

    The more time I was spending outdoors, the more likely I’d cover up from the sun, even in summer. I own a bunch of lightweight clothes advertised to specifically block the sun. It was so dry that it didn’t make a big difference to my sweat evaporating and my ability to cool off, but the sun protection difference is insanely big. And unlike sunscreen, clothes don’t rub off and have to be reapplied after a few hours.

    I was more careful about sun than most people, but one of my uncles lost half his nose to melanoma. And even at that, he’s lucky it wasn’t worse. So I’m careful.

  13. Unless I’m doing extended yard work, I don’t take any special precautions.

    Just what I normally wear: Jeans, under-shirt, over-shirt.

    When it comes to yard work, the special precautions are: Boonie hat, neck gaiter, sun screen on my upper arms, rear neck and shoulder blades if I am wearing a tank top that exposes those areas.

  15. I live in the South and am of northwestern European descent. I avoid direct sunlight during peak hours. I use SPF 30 or higher and reapply as recommended. Broad brimmed hats are an excellent idea. I will also wear rashguards for sun protection; they’re long-sleeved but breathable and lightweight.

  16. East Texas here. Wear sunblock, wear a wide brimmed hat. Find a long sleeve shirt that you won’t heat stroke in. I legitimately do yard work in a sombrero and long sleeves. Not the giant ones you see at parties but just a decently wide brimmed one. Keeps my neck and ears from frying. I figure if it’s what field workers wear, it’ll work for me. Also. If you know your gonna be outside for several hours, take breaks and avoid working during the hottest part of the day. The temp regularly swings 20-25 degrees Fahrenheit throughout the day so what feels ok at 7am will give you heat stroke at 2pm.

  18. People in cold climates get burnt too! Snow reflects sunlight. And you can get super sunburnt when it’s freezing cold!

    I’m a ginger and I wear sunscreen everyday. Every. Single. Day. When I was in Hawaii I wore leggings and a turtle neck on the beach lmao. I’m not getting burnt.

    I wear long sleeves and a hat. Re apply sunscreen very liberally. I work outside and I go through so much sunscreen.

  19. If I’m going to be out in the sun for an extended period of time, I use sunscreen. But I do not put it on every day.

  24. I used to sunburn a bit as a kid if I didn’t put sunscreen on, but nowadays it’s super rare and usually only happens if I like fall asleep on the beach or on a boat or something. I need to be motionless in the sun for hours.

    So I mostly just don’t pay any attention to the sun and enjoy the nice year round tan I get since I’ve apparently become borderline immune to sunburns.

  25. Me? Protect myself from the sun?

    *Scoffs*

    No no. The sun needs to protect itself from me.

  26. Native American blood with a side of 100 spf sunscreen while roaming the Sonoran desert.

  27. I have Mexican powers so I usually tan instead of burn. I only put on sunscreen if I’m going to be in the hot sun for hours without a baseball cap or something.

  28. I get burnt indoors if I’m near a window. I wear sunscreen daily and avoid direct sunlight as much as possible. I’ve had melanoma more than once, so I’m pretty strict on it.

  29. Reporting from Georgia, US. I’m very pale (descended from Celts and Vikings so I basically have negative melanin) and sunburn easily. Mostly just try to stay inside during the hottest parts of the day in the summer. If I’m going to be outside for a long time between about 11 am and 3 pm, I will 100% be burned to the point of scarring if I don’t protect myself in some way. I never, ever go to the pool before about 4 pm if I can help it.

    Stay in the shade, let my long hair down to protect my neck, wear shirts that cover collar bones and upper arms, and wear pants are basically what I do every day. I use sunscreen and wear a hat to protect my scalp if I’ll be outside during the dangerous hours. I usually don’t wear shorts because of sun damage to my legs. It’s just easier to wear pants and closed toe shoes than deal with severe burns.

    Lightweight, breathable clothes are what you want to not be hot. Cotton, khaki, and so on. The humidity alone will get you with heavy clothes in the South. But you still need to be covered for sun.

    I actually feel when I start to burn, so I just up and head back inside when it happens. I tend to prefer indoor activities anyway, but there is definitely prevention needed for outdoor activities if you burn easily.

  31. I’m pretty pale. Fair skin/hair/eyes. Entirely Northern European ancestry. Spent a lot of my youth in the CA desert and have worked outside a great portion of my adult life. When I was younger I’d get pretty golden colored but now I just burn and freckle. It’s like my toner cartridge is running low.

    50+spf “sweat proof” sunscreen every morning. Reapply to face, neck, ears, hands, etc. Hat, glasses, long sleeves and pants if I can swing it. UPF clothing works pretty well, but mostly I try to stay out of the direct sunlight. I’ve been sunburned in the car with the windows rolled up and I have the darkest tint I can legally have.

    I didn’t wear sunglasses for way too long because the weight irritates my sinuses. My eyes and crows feet have paid the price.

  32. I just don’t care tbh, baseball caps help some, I also tend to primarily wear jeans in the summer so that leaves my neck, nose, face and arms. I’ve always felt after 2 or 3 good burnings you’ll be good for the summer

  33. When I’m doing gardening or yard work I go with long sleeves and long pants. With a large sun hat that I’m okay with getting dirty and sweaty.

    Athletic wear does okay. There’s specific SPF hot weather clothing that is light weight.

  34. I’m Floridian live on approximately the same latitude as Cairo, Egypt. As someone who enjoys playing with makeup I frequently struggle to find neutral shades pale enough for my ghostly ass. I’m very much an introvert and don’t like going outside unless I have to. It’s way too hot and way too goddamn human. As someone with very wavy hair I can spend hours ironing it to be pin straight and the moment I step outside it’s like I’ve stuck a fork in a power socket. It’s not much better if I try to embrace the curls. And the *sweat*, oh dear god the sweat. I’m a larger lady which makes it even worse. I can be freshly showered, completely dry, with a freshly washed/dry outfit on, and within ten minutes of walking around outside everything is moist. There’s this MiraDry thing people get on their armpits to stop the sweating there hut I really wish it was approved for the face because I just drip the stuff.

    I can see some areas on my body with random spots I think may be a result of the sun as there’s no pattern to them like freckles. I try to remember to apply SPF before going anywhere outside further than to my car and continue to wear cool t-shirts because I refuse to cover myself in layers of fabric to the point of nearly passing out just to protect my skin a little bit more. I apply a strong SPF moisturizer to my face and decolletage (not enough women remember that area with our low cut tops) with another moisturizer on top. I recently figured out on an outreach trip for my internship that I can handle approximately an hour and a half of unprotected sun exposure before I’ll significantly burn the next day. After that incident I started looking for a SPF friendly parasol to keep in my car for surprise outings. If it’s noteworthy my family did those DNA tests and I’m predominantly Irish with the second highest group being mid France. My dad hoarded all the Mediterranean genes because the rest of us are pale as paper.

    I think you’re on the nose with red necks. We get a lot more sun exposure down here in the American South than many European nations and add the fact that through most of their history American Southerners have been field workers, they’d get burns on the backs of their necks the hats didn’t cover. SPF as we know it wasn’t popularized until the mid 1970s. Rednecks also tend to be people that spend more time outside either for work or recreationally. I dated a girl from a redneck family for a few years. Interesting experience. Once she drank straight from a dirty mud puddle in front of me to “prove it was safe to drink in disaster situations” when we were a fifteen minute walk from our car…

    But yeah long story short a lot of southerners prioritize being cool over protecting their skin from sun damage and it shows with the older crowds. Younger generations like younger millennials and gen Z are getting super into skincare as a self care statement, so that may change.

  35. You have to build up a tan slowly. I’m a ginger; if I can tan, ANYONE can, short of an albino. I start with 10 minutes per side, three times a week, as soon as it’s warm enough (which is usually late March). Add 2-3 minutes per side, per week, until I’m up to 30-40 minutes per side (this is a practical limit, I am usually not home when there’s a full hour of sunlight left above the trees but you can do front one day and back the next).

    That’s enough to make me resistant to any incidental exposure. And then, when I go to the beach or am going to be out in the sun for a long time, I slather on sunscreen. I’ll use the cheap stuff if I’m just outside, but oxybenzone and such are bad for ocean life, so I use Blue Lizard brand there (it’s made with zinc oxide and titanium dioxide, so no risk to the fish or the reefs).

    The SPF-rated clothes are pretty good. I also own a lot of linen clothing. Linen doesn’t have the best sun protection, but it’s way better than nothing and much cooler than cotton.

  36. Sunscreen and light-weight breathable clothes that cover skin. I also have very short hair so it’s very important to remember to wear a hat when I’m gonna be outside for an extended period of time. When I first moved down here I got one the worst sunburns of my life after going boating for a few hours. Giant blisters on my arms and scalp with leathery peeling skin. I was miserable for quite awhile after that. Could barely move my arms for days. I won’t make that mistake gain.

    The funny thing is, I am one of those guys that rarely burns. I am pasty white when I have no tan, but I tan really fast and get super dark, usually with very minimal burning. It was a surprise when I realized just how much more intense the sun is down here, especially in the summer. It can do so much damage in a short amount of time. I can’t imagine being someone like my red haired cousin who never tans at all, just burns like hell. Someone like that would have to be really careful in place like this.

  37. When I lived in FL id put sunscreen on my face anytime i was doing outdoor activities during the day

  38. I didn’t.

    I played fast and loose with that whole “protection from the sun” thing.

    Until I moved north I only used sunblock if i was at the beach, and basically ran around the whole summer in a sleeveless shirt or a wifebeater. Rarely hats, even though I had buzzed hair.

    After a while you don’t really get sunburn anymore.

    One time i went to the beach and I didnt have to use sunscreen at all because I was already so dark.

    At that, boys and girls, is why u/Fappy_as_a_Clam keeps a close eye on potential skin cancers.

  40. If I know I’m going to be outdoors for 20 minutes or more I wear sunscreen. Otherwise it’s not an issue.

  42. Sunscreen and hats. Long sleeves and pants in colder weather.

    Yeah, I apply sunscreen if I’m going to be outside longer than like 30-60 minutes in the sun. I reapply if I sweat a lot in the sun or go swimming.

    My family has a history of melanoma on both sides so I don’t agree around with it.

  43. Lotion with sunscreen in it. Other types of moisturizers. Sun doesn’t bother me at all, feels good. But then again I’m black sooo…

    My mom will get sun burned though if she’s out for a long time or something, it’s not bad or anything but she’s literally the only one who does in my family! 😂

  44. Overalls, no shirt, no sunscreen. 🙈 When I wear longer layers, it’s to protect myself from the mosquitoes rather than the sun.

  45. A lot of us aren’t as pale. I have to be outside under the blazing sun for hours before I get even a minor sunburn. Sunscreen protects me fine and I don’t need any in my day to day life

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