Women peeing 'like a cowboy' could empty an additional half cup of urine
There's nothing more frustrating than having to go to the bathroom shortly after leaving it. For those that drink a lot of water, becoming more familiar with bathroom decor isn't uncommon. But even for those frequent potty flyers, there's a trick that might cut down your trips–peeing like a cowboy.
Don't worry, you don't have to get out your spurs and chaps to learn how to get every drop of urine out of your bladder. Because going pee is a bodily function that every human being is required to do, there are all kinds of thoughts on going properly. In some countries boys and men sit to pee while in others it's viewed as strange. In some cultures squatting over a hole in the tile floor is the standard way to pee while for others sitting on a toilet is the way to go.
Rustic outhouse adorned with festive lights in a snowy farm setting.Photo credit: Canva
No cultural way is wrong but everyone who sits to potty might want to take a few extra minutes in the bathroom. Most girls in America learn to use commode in a seated position, typically in a fashion that still allows them to look dainty. Knees close together, hand in their lap waiting for the stream to stop so they can promptly wipe and get off the pot. Turns out, this prim and proper way of using the bathroom may be the reason some women find themselves feeling like they have to go again less than an hour later.
Dr. Teresa Irwin president of the Caring Center for Women in Central Texas and a female pelvic medicine and reconstructive surgeon demonstrates this method in a video. She calls it "peeing like a cowboy" because it's essentially the opposite of how many American girls were taught to use the bathroom. Irwin says to spread your knees apart wide and rest your elbows on them like a cowboy, though you've likely seen this style of sitting in a baseball dugout as well.
Potty training time with a good book and a supportive friend.Photo credit: Canva
The idea is to wait for your perineum to relax more to allow for more urine to release. Irwin says a third of the body's urine remains trapped in your bladder if you pee sitting up. If there's no medical cause for frequent urination such as a UTI or other medical issue, staying on the toilet an extra 20-30 seconds may help. The process is called double voiding which is the act of emptying your bladder staying seated a few seconds longer and leaning forward to ensure your bladder is empty.
Medical News Today writes, "This technique is especially effective for people who feel like their bladder is not empty, or who return quickly to the restroom after voiding.
The steps to double voiding are as follows:
- sitting comfortably on the toilet and leaning slightly forward
- resting the hands on the knees or thighs, which optimizes the position of the bladder for voiding
- urinating as normal, focusing on emptying the bladder as much as possible
- remaining on the toilet, waiting anywhere from 20 to 30 seconds
- leaning slightly further forward and urinating again
People may also benefit from rocking side to side as this can result in better bladder emptying. However, a person should not rock side to side if they cannot safely position themselves on the toilet."
Multitasking: Phone time during bathroom break.Photo credit: Canva
According to Cambridge University Hospitals, "If your bladder fails to empty and goes into retention, the bladder muscle can become overstretched and can be damaged. An overstretched bladder struggles to contract and empty the bladder effectively. When the bladder is not functioning properly, it may cause complications like urinary tract infection and kidney stones, or it could be connected to bowel dysfunction. Bowel and bladder health go together. It is very important to regulate bowel movement as it could also help to maintain bladder function."
If you're constantly peeing or experiencing urgency with only a small amount of urine being expelled from the bladder, checking in with your doctor to rule out medical conditions is best. But if everything checks out and you're told you're kidneys and bladder are all functioning properly, you may just need to start peeing like a cowboy to save you a trip to the loo.
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- A guy went viral for tracking the taste of his own urine. Doctors used to do it all the time. - Upworthy ›
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An Irish woman went to the doctor for a routine eye exam. She left with bright neon green eyes.
It's not easy seeing green.
Did she get superpowers?
Going to the eye doctor can be a hassle and a pain. It's not just the routine issues and inconveniences that come along when making a doctor appointment, but sometimes the various devices being used to check your eyes' health feel invasive and uncomfortable. But at least at the end of the appointment, most of us don't look like we're turning into The Incredible Hulk. That wasn't the case for one Irish woman.
Photographer Margerita B. Wargola was just going in for a routine eye exam at the hospital but ended up leaving with her eyes a shocking, bright neon green.
At the doctor's office, the nurse practitioner was prepping Wargola for a test with a machine that Wargola had experienced before. Before the test started, Wargola presumed the nurse had dropped some saline into her eyes, as they were feeling dry. After she blinked, everything went yellow.
Wargola and the nurse initially panicked. Neither knew what was going on as Wargola suddenly had yellow vision and radioactive-looking green eyes. After the initial shock, both realized the issue: the nurse forgot to ask Wargola to remove her contact lenses before putting contrast drops in her eyes for the exam. Wargola and the nurse quickly removed the lenses from her eyes and washed them thoroughly with saline. Fortunately, Wargola's eyes were unharmed. Unfortunately, her contacts were permanently stained and she didn't bring a spare pair.
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Since she has poor vision, Wargola was forced to drive herself home after the eye exam wearing the neon-green contact lenses that make her look like a member of the Green Lantern Corps. She couldn't help but laugh at her predicament and recorded a video explaining it all on social media. Since then, her video has sparked a couple Reddit threads and collected a bunch of comments on Instagram:
“But the REAL question is: do you now have X-Ray vision?”
“You can just say you're a superhero.”
“I would make a few stops on the way home just to freak some people out!”
“I would have lived it up! Grab a coffee, do grocery shopping, walk around a shopping center.”
“This one would pair well with that girl who ate something with turmeric with her invisalign on and walked around Paris smiling at people with seemingly BRIGHT YELLOW TEETH.”
“I would save those for fancy special occasions! WOW!”
“Every time I'd stop I'd turn slowly and stare at the person in the car next to me.”
“Keep them. Tell people what to do. They’ll do your bidding.”
In a follow-up Instagram video, Wargola showed her followers that she was safe at home with normal eyes, showing that the damaged contact lenses were so stained that they turned the saline solution in her contacts case into a bright Gatorade yellow. She wasn't mad at the nurse and, in fact, plans on keeping the lenses to wear on St. Patrick's Day or some other special occasion.
While no harm was done and a good laugh was had, it's still best for doctors, nurses, and patients alike to double-check and ask or tell if contact lenses are being worn before each eye test. If not, there might be more than ultra-green eyes to worry about.