It’s literally her No. 1 rule.
Houston-based OBGYN Emma Qureshey took to TikTok on Wednesday to share the three things she would never do in the interest of gynecological health — pee in the shower, treat a vaginal infection with garlic cloves or yogurt and ignore bothersome symptoms.
She imparts, “The first thing I would never do is pee in the shower, or more importantly, pee standing up.”
Qureshey says that people promote the practice as better for the environment, claiming it saves upwards of 5,000 gallons of water a year — but she finds that those benefits are not worth the downsides.
“It is one, not very hygienic, but more important than that, it will destroy your pelvic floor, and also it might create mental associations where you hear water running and all of a sudden you need to run to the bathroom,” Qureshey explained.
Qureshey’s reasoning is echoed by physical therapist Dr. Alicia Jeffrey-Thomas, who previously shared the cons of taking a tinkle in the shower in a viral TikTok.
“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 shower is running, you’re creating an association in the brain between the sound of running water and having to pee,” she said.
This association could possibly cause “leak issues” when you hear running water, said Jeffrey-Thomas, adding that the position is also not conducive to pelvic floor relaxation.
“Your pelvic floor isn’t going to relax appropriately, which means that you aren’t really going to be emptying your bladder super well,” Jeffrey-Thomas said.
Relative to empty bladders, fellow TikTokker and physical therapist Sabrina Baxter argues you should only go when you really have to go, “When you’re about to leave the house, and you’re like, ‘I don’t have to pee, but I may have to pee so I’m gonna go pee’ … if you do this often, your bladder is never filling up properly.”
She continued, “It’s not filling to full capacity. You’re peeing when it’s halfway full. So you may have the urge to pee more frequently because it’s only filling halfway… You’re essentially sensitizing your body to work at lower volumes than needed.”
Later in her video, Qureshey advised folks to avoid home remedies and suppositories like garlic and yogurt, “Those things are not gonna treat whatever infection you’re dealing with, and they might make things worse.”
She pleads with patients, “Before you go shoving things up places, talk to your doctor, please.”
Qureshey also urged her followers not to allow embarrassment or fear stop them from seeking medical treatment.
She assured viewers that she and her fellow practitioners have “seen it all, heard it all, smelled it all. … We’re not judging. Talk to your doctor.”