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Everyone has those moments where they just need to get away. Not everyone has the option to buy a plane ticket and go party in Ibiza for the weekend. Sometimes, your only respite from the world is the porcelain throne.
Whether it be at home or work, I think we’ve all been guilty of hiding in the bathroom for a few minutes at some point in our lives. I was just watching the episode of NBC’s The Office last night where Jim started clocking Dwight with a stopwatch to prove that he uses company time for personal use.
A recent study found that men, on average, spend a lot of time in the bathroom each year hiding from the world.
They use the example of hiding from ‘nagging kids’ but that obviously doesn’t apply to everyone. I don’t have kids. I’m not in the bathroom hiding from my screeching children. But I definitely still linger in the bathroom from time to time for whatever reason.
This isn’t about getting stuck in the bathroom after a lunch at Taco Bell or Chipotle, this study was about men spending hours each year hiding in the bathroom to get away from all of the world’s bullshit and frankly I’d be shocked if these numbers aren’t low. They must’ve peaked during the election year and have been going down ever since.
Researchers who polled 1,000 men found they spend a total of seven hours a year in the bathroom – just for brief respite.
In addition to getting some quiet time, they also escape to the toilet when their other half is ‘nagging’ them – or to avoid the kids.
Chore avoidance and the chance to look at their mobile phone undisturbed are also key reasons for nipping off to the bathroom
Commissioned by bathroom experts, Pebble Grey, the research also found one in 10 visits to the bathroom are interrupted on average – that’s 171 during the course of a typical year.
A spokesman said: “We all need a little bit of time to ourselves – to take stock or switch off completely.
“And the bathroom appears to be the go-to place for those moments – it’s very much a sanctuary, somewhere we can cut ourselves off from the outside world, albeit just temporarily. (via Mirror UK)
As for those 1-in-10 visits to the porcelain throne that get interrupted, the research found it was men’s partners who were most often interrupting them and not children. I suppose this could be an issue for apartment and condo dwellers but I don’t really see how this is an issue for families living in homes.
When you’ve got four bathrooms littered throughout the house the only reason someone should ever bother you in your own bathroom is if they’re actively trying to be an asshole.
What do you think, do you spend 7 hours in the bathroom each year? More? Less? Get loud in the comments down below.