UKPT News and Blog

Paruresis and COVID-19

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Paruresis is defined as a form of social anxiety which leads to the inability to pee in the actual or perceived proximity to others. You might therefore think that social distancing measures, introduced to slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus, might make things easier for sufferers since we are all being asked to avoid being around others where po...

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Nursing Times - Paruresis A Secret Phobia - May 2006

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  Download PDF File Here

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GoLoud - Podcast - October 28th 2019

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Interview starts at 1hr 28mins https://www.goloudnow.com/podcasts/lunchtime-live-85/lunchtime-live-october-28th-2019-1200-pm-0200-pm-54508 

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The Telegraph - Too frightened to urinate in public? You're not alone. October 2019

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https://www.telegraph.co.uk/health-fitness/mind/men-secret-toilet-anxiety-common-think/ 

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The Sun - Shy Bladder Syndrome Article July 2019

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Meet the men so terrified of peeing in public they turn down jobs and won't leave their houses. https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/9446655/men-terrified-peeing-public-shy-bladder-syndrome-paruresis-public/

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British Medical Association's (BMA) Patient Information Awards 2019

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UK Paruresis Trust are delighted that their website was recently rated Highly Commended in the British Medical Association's (BMA) Patient Information Awards 2019. The awards were established in 1997 to encourage excellence in the production and design of health information resources for patients. Judges from the BMA assessed how health professiona...

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Going in Front of Strangers or Friends

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Many sufferers of paruresis tell us they often find it harder to go to the toilet when they are out or with people they know than with strangers. The issue suggests we worry a great deal about what our friends, family and acquaintances think of us; perhaps more so than strangers. Paruresis or "shy bladder syndrome" affects sufferers by making it di...

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Has Paruresis Affected Your Choice of Career?

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When you suffer from paruresis (or shy bladder syndrome), the everyday activity of going to the toilet can turn into a minefield. Many sufferers avoid having to use public or shared bathrooms by cutting down on how much they drink or making an extra effort to time bathroom visits carefully so that they are the only ones using it. But paruresis migh...

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T's Story

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Having looked at the forums and known about the UKPT workshops for around five years, I finally built up the courage to attend a beginners workshop last week.So many people seem to say this of the workshops that it seems like a bit of cliche, however, it is true. I do wish I had done this earlier.I have suffered from AP for nearly 20 years. I have ...

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Bernard's Story

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Living With Avoidance Paruresis Avoidance Paruresis is the medical term for a condition known as shy bladder. This condition effects a persons ability to urinate while out socialising in public places or in many instances in the persons own home while others are present.I have lived with this condition since childhood but only recently discovered t...

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Coping with Paruresis as a Student

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​Student life promises many things—and most of them exciting. For many young people, it marks their first venture into the adult world and all that entails, from living away from your family, to shopping for food, doing your own laundry and, hopefully, enjoying an exciting new social life. But if you're a sufferer of paruresis aka shy bladder syndr...

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National Lottery funding

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We're delighted to have received funding of just over £16,000 from National Lottery Awards for All in England and Scotland to fund our outreach activities over the next 12 months. We shall be trying to raise awareness of paruresis and UKPT as early as possible in people's experience of the condition, focusing on reaching students through universiti...

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UKPT Annual Report 2018

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​The UK Paruresis Trust is pleased to provide it's latest annual report, released in June 2018.   Download PDF File Here

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Should have attended a workshop years ago - Andrea's story

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I have just attended the most recent UKPT beginners workshop (2014) for people who experience shy bladder, and thought it might be useful for anyone else considering attending one in the future if I were to share some of my thoughts. I have had paruresis for many years and it has lessened its grip on me over the years so I'm no longer as severely a...

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Effectiveness of UKPT workshops Report

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The UK Paruresis Trust is pleased to launch its report of a survey into the effectiveness of UKPT workshops based on participants' feedback and their subsequent progress in overcoming paruresis.   Download PDF File Here

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Paruresis in the context of school drug testing: Reply from the Department for Education and Skills

 This letter, signed by Stephen Twigg MP, outlines DfES guidelines on school drug testing.

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Paruresis in the context of school drug testing: Letter from UKPA for DfES raising the issues

This letter from the UKPA asks the DfES how they accommodate paruretics in the context of school drug testing. 

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Paruresis in the context of school drug testing: General letter from UKPA to various parties

I'm contacting you as Chairman of the charity the UK Paruresis Association, which supports men and women who find it difficult or impossible to urinate in public. Our concern is not with the drug testing issue, but with the instruction to use urine testing. I don't think the DfEE realises that for a urine test to be effective against deception, it ...

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Who is responsible for school toilet problems? The reply from an LEA (Nottinghamshire County Council)

This letter, from Nottinghamshire LEA, explains their position in relation to the condition and availability of school toilets.​

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Who is responsible for school toilet problems? The reply from the Health and Safety Executive

 This letter, from the Health & Safety Executive explains their role in the availability and condition of school toilets.In summary, they do not have one, as children are not employees.

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Who is responsible for school toilet problems? The reply from the Department for Education and Skills

The scan below explains who the DfES say is responsible (from their point of view) for the management of problems with pupil toilets in state schools.

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Home Office : Catering for paruresis in prisons in general

 This letter, signed by Paul Goggins MP, explains how the prison service caters for paruresis in general.

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Home Office : Paruresis and mandatory drugs testing in prisons

 This letter, signed by Beverley Hughes MP, explains the prison service procedures applicable to dealing with paruresis for mandatory drugs testing.

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2005 Interview by BBC

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Archived BBC interview from 2005 - Please click on the picture to view a clickable link to this interview. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/science/allinthemind_20051206.shtml ​This interview requires Real Player to open and listen to - you can download Real Player for free by following this link: http://www.real.com/uk

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Alison's story

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I am a 65-year old woman, and I have suffered from the condition I now know is called paruresis for most of my life. It started when I was 17. At primary school I trained myself not to use the loos all day because they were disgusting and I couldn't stand the smell. It wasn't a big problem, however. I could use the smelly loos if I had to. At secon...

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Steve's story

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I reckon my road to AP started at the age of around 10. I remember during a school medical the old witch of a School Nurse pulled my underpants down to do a few checks and pokes, and I started to get an erection. She gave such a look of derision to my mother who was also present – that I remember thinking 'well if you don't like it, then don't fidd...

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Jack's story

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Now that I think back, I am aware that I first had a problem using public loos around the age of 10 or 11. I don't remember anything before this. I did have an unpleasant incident when I was about 8 but I don't know if this started it or not. I went to high school for six years and peed about twice in that time. I left the house at 8 in the morning...

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Alex's story

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I vaguely remember the first time I ever had a problem peeing which was when I was about eleven or twelve years old. I have this memory of me standing in front of the toilet and trying to pee but nothing was happening! I told my father, who took me to see his doctor. His doctor diagnosed that the end of my foreskin was closing up and prescribed som...

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Al's story

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 As a child and young adult, I "suffered" greatly from paruresis, believing I was the only one in the world with this affliction. I felt intense shame, even self-loathing because of it and went to great lengths to conceal the problem. I'm sure you all know what this is like! However, about 20 years ago, I discovered that it is actually a very ...

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Going to hospital – a successful example of telling the medics

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From a letter received by the UKPT. A fortnight ago, I was found to have a partially detached retina and told immediate surgery was necessary. I explained to the consultant that this would present enormous problems re the use of hospital toilets and gave him some UKPT literature. He took it very seriously indeed and I was admitted to a room in the ...

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It's getting better all the time

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Posted by Baz on 6/6/2002 As is the very healthy tradition on this website, people give feedback on their progress to offer encouragement and information to other sufferers. And so it's my turn. Here's a list of what's helped me to get to where I'm at now: breaking the silence barrier There's already a post exclusively about this so no need to redo...

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A case study of successful treatment

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psychological treatment for bashfull bladder* Baruch Elitzur, Ph.D. Psychiatric Clinic, Ichilov Hospital, Tel Aviv Medical Center Translated by Judith Barrett, M.A. Judy Barrett, IPA staffer, has translated this article (in the Jewish Journal Harefuah) from the original Hebrew, and we have permission from the author to post it. abstract "Bashful bl...

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Breaking the silence barrier

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My counsellor asked me a few weeks back to state the outcome I was looking for regarding my toilet phobia. I told him that I wanted to be able to urinate freely in any and every situation. Then he asked me if I would be prepared to settle for anything less; for example, would being able to urinate in a cubicle in any situation improve the quality o...

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The Road to SUCCESS…Ian's story

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March 2003 Just thought I would share my story so far…and the steps I have taken to beat my AP. I have suffered for almost 20 odd years, but it has really gotten to me in the last 2, hence my finding the board etc. I could use stalls most of the time but not under pressure and maybe urinals if no one came in. In the last two years I have tried hypn...

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Chris' story

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May 2005 Yes, I did go to the Beginners' Workshop in May (and thank you for all the supportive and encouraging messages in that regard) and I'm really glad I did so - a great thank you to Andrew for organising it. I went feeling pretty negative about myself and the prospects of the workshop helping me. However, over the course of the weekend, it co...

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Mark's Story - learning to be normal

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I've had paruresis for so long that I can't even remember how it started. I have a vague memory of standing in line with some cub scouts when I was about seven and being under some kind of time pressure, which is followed by memories of standing in front of the school trough-urinal and not being able to do anything – much to my own bemusement. From...

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