Do public restrooms make you anxious? You are not alone!
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Steven Soifer |
TEDxUniversityofMississippi
• March 2019
It is probable that 500 million, or at least 7% of the world’s population have trouble using, or have issues with, public restrooms. Many of us never think about, much less share with others, our concerns or fears about public toilets. Yet these issues can prevent people from doing their jobs well, or even at all; hinder or prevent people from travelling almost anywhere; and even interfere with or prevent people from having friendships or intimate relationships. The primary reasons are shy bladder (medically known as paruresis); shy bowel (medically known as parcopresis), incontinence (the need to urinate very frequently, or bowel diseases of one sort of another (e.g. colostomy bag) often with little or no control over the process. Moreover, restroom design, or lack thereof, can also be a major hindrance to people with bathroom issues. My goal is to raise public awareness about these issues, and to bring the U.S. into the 21st century regarding toilet issues (Asia and much of Europe are already there).