Poo in shared toilet: do you comment?

[PooInTheLoo]

If you’ve done a poo in a shared toilet (at work, for example), and there’s someone queuing, would you say anything to them before they go into the stall you’ve just left (if there’s an odour)?

Absolutely not! You should make sure you don't leave a mess behind though.

No!!!

Yeah. Best bet is to tell them it wasn't you. Whoever was in before you left it stinking 😁

Not that they'll believe you...

The only time I would comment is if I was backing out of a toilet someone else had left a mess in with the intention of finding another one, in which case I would make an, "it wasn't me!" type remark.

No! Why on earth would you?

I’d never leave a loo a mess, if I do a poo at work (which honestly happens rarely), I make sure to clean the toilet if there’s anything left behind 😳

I was at work recently and queuing for the loo, the person who came out said, “it doesn’t smell very good in there!” sort of apologetically, which surprised me.

No. You pretend it never happened and take it to the grave.

I wouldn’t do anything other than a wee in a shared toilet unless I was absolutely desperate/poorly. I’m mid 40’s now, fit and healthy and have no consequential issues holding waiting until I get home.

I simply don’t feel comfortable as the smell is too much and I would be mortified even though it’s a thing we all do.

I know people who have IBS and other issues and I do feel sorry for them as they can’t hold it in but if there are no issues then you can hold it in. Again I realise people will say it’s not good for you etc but as I say, here I am fit healthy etc and no issues.

Edited because I realise I was responding to the op😁

Our toilets at work clog regularly so there is frequently a "I wouldn't use that one" comment to someone coming in after you and hope the plumber doesn't take too long to fix it.

The smell only lingers if there are fragments of poo left behind. A quick swipe of the brush sorts that out.

VIPoo is actually very effective

Not necessarily. You can still get lingering smells once the toilet is cleaned. It dissipates quickly enough usually but if someone goes in straight afterwards they can get a blast.

When I worked in a pub I would say something like “use the customer toilet mate, you don’t wanna go in there” but if I was working somewhere proper I probably wouldn’t? Unless it was an actual biohazard stench.

if there are no issues then you can hold it in

But why would you? It's like saying healthy people can abstain from food during the work day, or healthy people can carry a 10kg bag of bricks everywhere they go. Toilets are for disposing of bodily waste, therefore there's no reason for people to hold it in just because they technically can.

Surely you know the smell is in the air?

To save the embarrassment some people feel and precisely why there are posts like this…

Just flush it and spray anti perspirant in there.

This is why I work at home.

As someone who has IBS, and doesn’t have much choice about when, and where they use the loo, I’ve found the following things help:

• Use VIPoo spray before you drop (if you have any. I don’t always, but if you’ve got some to hand, make use of it.)
• Put toilet paper in the bottom of the bowl, before you drop.
• Flush the loo, the second it leaves your body. Helps to mask noise, as well as reduce residual smell.
• Once you’ve cleaned yourself up, flush again, check the bowl to ensure no mess, if there is any untoward marks, use the toilet brush, and if you have any, do a little squirt of perfume, or body spray, just incase.

These things help to reduce likelihood of unpleasant smells/mess. It’s saved my backside many a time 👍🏻

I don't understand the "precisely why" bit.

just yell faaaaark me that one broke the mould, and me arse, croikey o 'reilly

Absolutely not 🫣🫣🫣😳

My DH mocks me incessantly for my “pretentious bowels” 😂
It’s almost a physical impossibility for me to poo anywhere but my own toilet in my own house. I will clench for as long as necessary to avoid a public toilet poo 🫣🫣🫠
Late last year, got caught short in a genuine emergency at the airport. We’d had some questionable chicken wings the night before and they came back to haunt me with impressive speed and force.
I was utterly mortified to have to poo in a public loo 🫠🫠😂😂😂

It’s a taboo topic isn’t it, hence the thread to ask for advice about ‘etiquette’. Some people will happily do it no problem and not care what others think - that’s fine, others are more self conscious. It’s like going to the gym or swimming, some people will feel totally fine absolutely naked in front of others and see it as natural and not feel embarrassed, where as others wouldn’t feel as confident.

At work they have spray air freshener. It's polite to squirt some.

Yeah, it's not usual polite conversation. I'm not saying that the subject of toilet smells isn't awkward, only that talking about whether or not the average healthy person can hold their shit till they get home is kind of a strange thing to bring up. There are lots of unpleasant and pointless things most people can do but don't need to. That includes holding in your shit when facilities are provided specifically for the purpose of getting rid of it.

Anyway, I just didn't understand what you meant, sorry about that.