There’s this thing called a toilet – who knew?
A doctor has warned people against peeing in the shower as it may wreak havoc on your brain while weakening your bladder control.
Taking to TikTok for her public service announcement, Urogynaecologist Dr Teresa Irwin, who specialises in pelvic health and incontinence, told her followers that peeing in the shower trains our brains to associate peeing with the sound of running water.
“You don’t want to do it all the time because what happens is every time you hear the sound of water your bladder is going to want to pee – because it’s used to hearing the sound of the water in the shower,” she explained. “So whenever you’re washing your hands, washing the dishes, your bladder is going to be salivating, so to speak, because it wants to go and pee.”
This isn’t necessarily brand new news, as experts have warned against the act before. Last year, Dr Alicia Jeffrey-Thomas shared similar thoughts on TikTok where she said there could be “huge consequences” down the line.
“If you pee in the shower or turn on the faucet or turn on the shower and then sit on the toilet to pee while the water is running, you’re creating an association in your brain between the sound of running water and having to pee,” she echoed.
“Combo that with pelvic floor dysfunction, either now or down the line and that’s gonna potentially lead to some leak issues when you hear running water outside of the shower.
“Unfortunately, those of us that were assigned female at birth and have that anatomy, we’re not designed to pee standing up… your pelvic floor isn’t going to be relaxing properly meaning that we’re not going to be emptying our bladder super well,” she added.
To combat the issue, Jeffrey-Thomas suggests trying to pee before you turn on the shower and “if you get the urge while you’re in the shower, try to ignore it.”
That’s easier said than done, doctor. That’s easier said than done.
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