By Ashley Thompson

4 pairs of survivalists and two fans who took on a 14 day challenge give us their insider info on their experiences.

Although their first meetings are awkward, Paolo and Kristin (the fans), had the most awkward introduction. Turns out, they weren't looking forward to working together and wouldn't have picked each other as partners if they had a choice. AK and Jason had the second most awkward because he recognized her from tapping out before. After intros it's time for shelter, and you better get along with your partner because as soon as you have differing opinions you find out who the other person is real quick. But sometimes you get a great partner who comes to search for you when you get lost.

Locating a water source immediately is vital for the survivalists. Brandon in Cayo Venado found the hike to the beach to their water source (which was disgustingly yellow) treacherous but the taste of the water even worse. His partner tried to make the water more bearable by making it into tea but turns out it's a natural laxative. Pooping oneself... awkward! Other pairs used coconuts or bamboo to boil water. To keep it from spilling and putting out their fire, they would boil the water using hot rocks. Brilliant.

One thing Naked and Afraid does was bring the survivalists back to their primal nature. Unfortunately it's horrible on their feet. Log shoes, driftwood floors and bamboo mats helped them get around so they are able to hunt and forage. As far as nutrition, whatever is available is fair game. Things such as crabs (and crab babies), 50 lb stingrays, and plenty of bugs. Speaking of bugs... it may look like paradise but the bugs will make you think it's more like hell. Do you think you could sleep with a tarantula the size of your hand? How about frogs? How about monkeys that throw poop and pee on your head?

After a few days the survivalists begin to worry about hygiene. The women seemed more concerned with it than the men, doing everything from river scrubs to charcoal teeth cleaning and making hairbrushes. Other ways they keep busy was sleeping, "cleaning", face painting, infomercials (looking at you, Bo and Debbie), and even shelter improvements. No matter how bored or busy they were, they always miss home. The hardest challenge seems to be being away from family. These raw emotions usually lead to butting heads with their partner. For instance, AK and Jason went at each other at night over body heat vs body rash... which means no producers to bare witness.

One thing every survivalist agrees on is the oneness with nature by the end of the journey.

Photo credit: Discovery Channel