At the moment I only wear (consistently) a small chain with a crucifix and medal around my neck. I take it off before doing exercises like push-ups, before showering, and also before I go to sleep.
When exercising (well, only when prone), I tied the ends of the scapular together loosely so it wouldn't hit the ground. Or I wore a shirt.
But now that you mention it, there's no reason to take it off for a shower. The sleep routine is done out of habit, I think. I seem to vaguely remember thinking (when I was much younger) that going to sleep with something like a scapular around your neck could constrict breathing or something. But that appears baseless now that I think about it.
Sleeping with it has had no problems since I have worn the scapular. I also wear a chain at all times. The first chain was small and I grew into it, so it was impossible to take off for a while, but the motion of the medal on it wore through and it broke. It is very, very smooth and worn. My medal itself has broken many rings as the friction would eventually break the loop or knot (a wire knot, which is used to attach things so they can't be pulled apart).
They do tangle a bit sometimes, but they are easy to untangle. I tie a knot in the scapular cord so I can know where the "front" is, and also to make the loop smaller so it doesn't hang as low.
Ros, I would personally see the way you replace a scapular as unnecessary and a bit superfluous (putting on a new one before taking the old one off). But if there's no superstition then there's obviously nothing wrong with it.
That is just the thing. It is too easy to judge another's actions without knowing their motivation. It usually stems from personal guilt, at feeling they are being judged and they have to cut it off before it is used against them.
The reason why I do it is because I am enrolled in the scapular and I have no reason to take it off and I will not, even if it means brief moments of inconvenience. It is also somewhat a "modesty" question. Sort of like wrapping a towel around one's waste to change pants in front of others. I have worn it so long that I really don't know what it would be like to not wear it. I'm too acclimated it to want to change it.
My cincture is also become quite a part of me. I don't know if this happens to everyone. I'm used to wearing the exact same thing at all times anyway, so maybe I'm just more sensitive.
