You might hold in your wee quite regularly on the job, either because of the scenario above, the deep shame of leaving your desk for two minutes when the capitalist need for production marches on or because your job requires you to remain in one room or place without immediate access to a toilet for long periods of time.
Yes, it’s uncomfortable and inconvenient, but you put up with an hour of feeling like you could wet yourself so you get the incredible release of unleashing your fluids at the end of the day. It feels harmless, but it’s not. Holding back when you feel the urge to urinate can cause all kinds of damage. So, let’s talk about peeing. ‘The normal adult bladder should be able to hold around 500ml on average before you feel the strong desire to pass urine,’ explains Sachin Malde, an urological surgeon. ‘During this time, the urinary sphincter muscle is closed, preventing urine leaking out. ‘Once the bladder is full, nerve messages pass from your bladder to your brain telling it that you need to pass urine. When socially convenient, the brain passes messages back to allow your sphincter muscle to open and your bladder to squeeze the urine out.’
First off, the dreaded UTI. ‘Whether you are male or female, if you continually hold the urine in for long periods of time throughout the day it can lead to a number of longer-term problems,’ explains Sachin Malde. ‘Firstly, it allows bacteria within the bladder to multiply and therefore increases the chances of developing a urinary tract infection which can cause pain and bleeding.’ UTIs are more common in women, as a woman’s urethra tends to be shorter, allowing bacteria faster access to the bladder. Left unreleased and untreated, that bacteria can build and make its way to the kidneys, which can then require hospital treatment.
If you’re holding in your pee because you feel you can’t leave your desk, a urinary tract infection is the last thing you want, as you’ll feel the need to wee almost constantly. Holding in your pee can further damage your body because you’re squeezing your sphincter muscle shut, which it’s not designed to do for long periods of time.