<Ashamed> to avoid using hand towels in other people's bathrooms?

[JesusInTheCabbageVan]

It occurred to me that I always do this - just let them drip dry instead, because I never know how recently the towel was changed. Anyone else have any ridiculous hygiene obsessions? (Oh, I also use my little finger to open doors when out and about, rather than sacrifice my whole hand to The Germs)

My niece aged 7 won't dry her hands. She says she doesn't like the feel of towels. She dries them on the wallpaper on my stairs and bannister. Her mother thinks it's no problem

I too use toilet roll to dry my hands. I have massive OCD issues with germs and bacteria though. So please don't take my actions as reflecting 'normal'. They are normal to me and what it takes to get me out in pubic but I suspect the average person is possibly a bit more relaxed than me.

No it really isn’t, if you’ve washed them properly, there are no germs, so how can it be “disgusting” to not dry clean hands?
This is why:

www.bbc.com/future/story/20170519-does-it-matter-how-you-wash-and-dry-your-hands

I change the hand towel in our bathroom every day.

Changing the towel daily is environmentally irresponsible imo. Ours is changed weekly but there are only two of us. With more in the house I might do it twice a week, at most.
Our guest towels are all the same but I assume our guests happily work out that I wash them between uses rather than it just being the same, unwashed towel from their last visit

In public toilets: Piece of toilet paper to touch flush. Wash hands but feel weird about touching tap to turn it off, so piece of toilet paper.
Would definitely not touch a towel, if no electric dryer, dry on my own clothes.
Piece of toilet paper to open door.
Another thing, I always wash my hands before going in the fridge. In a house share, I have thrown a full block of cheese away that someone "borrowed" as I knew they wouldn't have washed their hands.
Had to move out of house share when boy moved in, definitely never washed his hands. Minging! Don't want his cheesey dick hands getting milk out of the fridge.

Mumsnet can be like a parallel universe - it makes me so grateful that so many of the things that tie posters into anxious knots I have honestly never even given a second thought to. Anxiety must be hell to live with.

I havent had a stomach bug for as long as I can remember.

I change towels frequently, put clean ones out for visitors and run an antibac wipe along the pull cord regularly too. I have no problem in using towels in other bathrooms, or in touching handles in public bathrooms.

Mumsnet can be like a parallel universe - it makes me so grateful that so many of the things that tie posters into anxious knots I have honestly never even given a second thought to. Anxiety must be hell to live with

Agreed

As a retired HCA I wash my hands very thoroughly with soap and water. I don’t like drying them on damp or manky looking towels. If A towel looks a bit unsanitary I use tissues or loo roll. At friends houses I use hand towels (unless it’s damp and/or manky looking )

I have to be stringent about about hygiene because of my job (food preparation) - the vast majority of people I know outside of work are not so and do not get ill. Just wash your hands properly, use loo roll to dry them if the towels look manky and carry hand sanitiser if you really feel the need (though it is not as effective as soap and hot water). You absolutely cannot avoid touching things that other people will have touched with their unwashed hands. You will be doing it all the time. Unless you have a compromised immune system, take your lack of regular D&V as a sign that you can touch things that other people have touched with unwashed hands and your body will cope with it just fine.

Well I always change the towel in the toilet visitors use, before people come over, and whenever else I remember. I hate using towels I suspect are old.

ItsYule that list is bonkers. Stop stressing about nothing.

Anxiety must be hell to live with

Yes it is, it’s exhausting too. No one does these things for fun.

Yes it is, it’s exhausting too. No one does these things for fun

Yes, I am sure. As I say, Mumsnet gives me a tiny peephole into a world I am lucky enough to have never experienced, it does sound utterly exhausting.

I've often idly wondered how people don't permanently have norovirus if its everywhere and highly infectious. Genuine question, how come we don't catch it pretty much every day?

Genuine question, how come we don't catch it pretty much every day?

Because we have very effective immune systems!

Meh! Anyone using my guest towels is ether a good friend or a relative. I can;r get worked up abut it.

Our downstairs loo hand towels are all identical and hung over the radiator. Actually find it quite funny if people think it’s always the same one never washed.

I’m also conscious of germs.. but what’s the point in not touching a supermarket trolley if you then eat n a restaurant and have no guarantees of whether or not the chef washed his hands after..er..nevermin!

Chienrouge Haha, yes, I absolutely do believe the germs stay politely on my little finger And I'm the first to admit it's completely irrational. But at this moment, I can sit here content in the knowledge that the only foreign germs on my hands are above the second knuckle of my little fingers.

Jesus Christ

I couldn't care less where I dry my hands, unless the towel is very obviously dirty.

The last time I had an upset tummy was about ten years ago, and that was in Turkey after eating overripe figs.

I'm just glad don't suffer from OCD.

Same here. Unless it's a good friends clean house I generally avoid other people's hand towels. And I pull high up in the light switch.

I put out fresh, crisp hand towels when I have guests.

I have a bit of a fear of getting ill as it's hard to function as a LP. Stomach upsets can wreck my IBS so I go out of my way to avoid potentially catching one.

I use my own clothes or tissues to dry hands when out - also use toilet roll to flush chain and open lock of door - been to some very dirty toilets over the years !

I always put a clean towel out for guests and tell them which one it is. Towels are washed at 90 degrees. I'm sure it's not necessary as such, but it's much more pleasant to be given your own towel rather than have to use somebody else's.

Do any of you realise you do have an immune system? It would be very unusual to get d&v from a loo latch.

But I do wash my hands after going to the loo, and am a bit iffy about drying my hands on a grubby roller towel!