bathroom obsessive

[caroline jane mercer]

ive had this toilet obsession for years which is what brings on the panic esp if im with a stranger im ok with the people that i know but having to explain yourself i cannot do like my friends will say theres always somewhere you can go wether it be a pub and u have to buy a drink i now have markers and think where im going and where i can go to loo on the way etc this helps

[Luci-loo]

I have an all out irrational phobia of wetting myself as well and it's been making me miserable for years. A lot of people really don't get it they just think it's a case of just going when you need but when I feel like I need to go I need to be sitting on a toilet within minutes or all hell breaks loose. I used to try and sort it by just not drinking but all that happened was that I made myself ill (headaches etc). It got to the point where I wasn't even able to leave the house. Trying to work through it at the moment and almost getting somewhere but I still feel physically ill when I need to go. At the moment I've even too scared to take the full amount of trazodone in case the sedative makes me wet the bed.

[Roxy72]

This is a very interesting post, thanks for bringing this issue up.

Although I don't consider myself to have a bathroom obsession, I have a very real fear that when I am in one of the situations where I might panic, or indeed when I am panicking I actually believe I will... (err how do I say this nicely??).... soil my trousers!! I think that is where the term "sh**ting yourself" comes from. The fear is always there when I panic, and the need to keep running to the loo before I go places is just beyond belief. I hate it, it is embarrassing to talk about never mind to experience. I really loathe this symptom of anxiety and panic.

In the past I have had to rush out of places because I have thought I needed the loo, to find that I don't when I get there. I am totally unable to relax my bum incase I have an accident, and sometimes I only have to smell car exhaust fumes (you know the eggy ones) and believe I have ... err...had an accident in the bowel dept. Sorry too much info but it is real, it is horrible.

I really do sympathise with you all.

Freaky

Hello Freaky,

I also get a fear of soiling my trousers. I even bought adult diapers, in case I need to wear them for long trips where a bathroom is inaccessible. I keep plastic trash bags and toilet paper in my car, as well, in case I have an emergency and need to go...well...in my backseat or on the side of the road. This has never happened of course, but it's my emergency plan.

Sometimes I find that getting anxiety further provokes stomach-aches and can cause diarrhea. Someone else mentioned that they don't like to travel on highways because you don't know where bathrooms are located at (or they are too far away). I have also began to avoid the highways and instead take the back-route into work every day.

It's interesting that we all share the same anxieties about the bathroom. Does anyone else have a stomach or intestinal disease? I was recently diagnosed with IBS-D (Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Diarrhea-prone) which only furthers my anxiety. Now I need to worry about diarrhea in addition to my normal anxieties. This is very tiring, all this mental worry is taking a toll on me.

P.S. I also use the bathroom multiple times before leaving the house...sometimes I don't need to go but just get comfort out of visiting the bathroom and know it's available.