While peeing in the shower may be convenient, it also has a potential downside. That’s why one healthcare industry worker is sounding the alarm on this common shower practice.
Kingsley (@kingsley.502) shared her warning to TikTok, and it’s already been viewed 1.5 million times.
Though she doesn’t disclose what medical field she specializes in, she shares a lot of women’s health content from a doctor’s office to her account. She also refers to herself as a women’s health advocate in her bio.
“Hot take but don’t pee standing up in the shower or anywhere for that matter. Ladies you are training your bladder that it’s okay to empty while standing. Don’t do it! This could cause bladder leakage,” Kingsley (@kingsley.502) shared in the video, which she filmed from inside a doctor’s office.
@kingsley.502 Hot take but don’t pee standing up in the shower or anywhere for that matter. Ladies you are training your bladder that it’s okay to empty while standing. Don’t do it! This could cause bladder leakage. #womenshealth #themoreyouknow💫 ♬ Let’s Go Swimming – Palace
A bad habit
Kingsley is not the first TikToker in the healthcare industry to talk about the potential side effects of peeing while standing in the shower.
Dr. Rachel Peck (@drpeckpelvicpt) is a physical therapist who specializes in pelvic health. In her own video that she posted back in 2024, she shares how she, too, is guilty of this. “I’m a peeing in the shower kind of girly. Love it. Love multitasking. Think it saves time, saves water. So convenient,” she says.
However, Dr. Peck says that while “it’s not going to wreck your pelvic floor,” it can create a “trigger.” She explains that you may come to associate the shower with peeing. Therefore, every time you turn on the water to shower or hop in the shower, you may experience a strong sense of urgency to pee—even if you didn’t have to before.
“As a pelvic PT, I know that if I’m starting to get that urgency as sort of a trigger, I probably need to stop doing that,” she says.
How do I get rid of the trigger?
In her video, Dr. Peck dives into what she personally does to get rid of such triggers.
“When I get that urgency, either when I turn the shower on or while I’m in the shower, I stop. I do a couple little pelvic floor contractions; I kind of breathe through it. I wait for that urge to go away,” she says that she waits to get out of the shower to pee if she still has to go then. “And then in a couple weeks, if I feel like I’ve kind of gotten it under control, and I’m no longer getting that urgency, I’ll probably start again. ‘Cause, again, convenient.”
She reiterates that it’s important to be “mindful.”
“You wanna stop with, wait for that urge to settle out a little bit, and then decide, is it really an appropriate time for me to go to the bathroom? If so, go ahead and head slowly there. But we don’t want to necessarily reinforce this trigger by going every single time we feel that urge,” she adds.
@drpeckpelvicpt Do you pee in the shower? 🚿 #physicaltherapy #pelvichealth #pelvicfloor #foryou #bladderproblems ♬ original sound – Dr. Rachel the Pelvic PT
Medical professionals who spoke with CNN about this agree. They say that peeing in the shower doesn’t have an effect on pelvic floor muscles. But it can create a psychological association between the two. And this can exacerbate involuntary urine loss for people who already have an overactive bladder.
Too far gone
Viewers think they are too far gone to heed the warning and are content with their fate.
“That advice is about 45 years too late….” one viewer shared under Kingsley’s video.
“I’ve been doing it since I was a kid,” another wrote.
“At this point I’m conditioned to,” a third wrote.
They simply don’t think the risk of developing an overactive bladder is worth giving up their beloved shower practice. One viewer already has a plan in place for when they start to experience involuntary urine loss.
“Bless your heart. I’ll just wear depends when the leakage starts,” they shared.
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