the curious nature of the feeling of needing to wee

[clop]

I hope someone knows the answer to my question.

When I really feel the need to wee I go to the toilet. Sometimes I wee a lot, sometimes I wee a medium amount, sometimes I wee relatively little. What exactly is it that creates the feeling of needing to wee? Clearly it can't be bladder fill-volume because there are times when you can hold in a massive amount without really feeling desperate and there are times when you feel like you really need to go and there's almost nothing there. Is it a function of hydration? Kidney flow (rate of urine production)? Some hormone level? Anyone know?

clop

[BigDon]

Hey Clop. One of the things you have to realize is you bladder is not a jar. Its a muscular sac. So its empty volume is not constant. Sometimes for various reasons the muscles making up your bladder contract down on the contents giving you that urge to go.

I'm in and out of the hospital a lot and have to lay in bed hooked to IV lines. Those make you go alot and when really full my bladder has a volume of 1.3 liters. Have to ask the nurse for two urinals to finish my business. (They only hold a liter.) Plus your bladder will die and become necrotic if you don't empty it at least every 24 hours but that usually only happens to folks in comas and the elderly.

[clop]

Hey Clop. One of the things you have to realize is you bladder is not a jar. Its a muscular sac. So its empty volume is not constant. Sometimes for various reasons the muscles making up your bladder contract down on the contents giving you that urge to go.

I'm in and out of the hospital a lot and have to lay in bed hooked to IV lines. Those make you go alot and when really full my bladder has a volume of 1.3 liters. Have to ask the nurse for two urinals to finish my business. (They only hold a liter.) Plus your bladder will die and become necrotic if you don't empty it at least every 24 hours but that usually only happens to folks in comas and the elderly.

Thanks BigDon but that doesn't seem to explain it completely. I know that on a Sunday when I drink a few cups of tea during the day I tend to go for a wee much more frequently than usual, with the typical sense of needing to go, but with a lower than normal volume each time. And sometimes, if I know that I will not have access to a toilet for several hours, I can switch off the feeling of needing to wee almost indefinitely, but if there is the anticipation of soon using a toilet, I'm instantly desperate. Even if I know I can last for another hour, as soon as I'm within sight of the toilet I have to hurry.

clop

[Tog]

I have noticed what you mention, but I don't really have an answer for it. I used to try and go by time. Could I fit a bio brak in during a commercial break. As it turns out the average for me is a bit over 1 minute, though one time I did have a Legue of Their Own moment.

The one I've noticed more often and wondered about is the Movie Theater Experience. I make it a point to visit the bathroom right before seating at a movie. I rarely get anything bigger than a 32 oz drink, even though it's only a quarter to get the Bladder Buster 9000 that comes with it's own Sherpa to get it to your seat, but by the time I've sat there for 2.5 hours, I'm in a crisis. It doesn't happen on car trips when I sit for much longer and consume more fluids.

[Frog march]

I heard a roofing carpenter say that when he did roofs(many years ago) he could drink lots all day(on a hot day) and didn't need to go to the toilet, he just sweated it all off.

[BigDon]

Frog, I'm a furniture mover in California. I can vouch for your friends claim. I do the exact same thing in theatres, Tog. It must be the airconditioning keeping you from sweating so our kidneys have to do all the work. Just a guess.

[Tog]

Frog, I'm a furniture mover in California. I can vouch for your friends claim. I do the exact same thing in theatres, Tog. It must be the airconditioning keeping you from sweating so our kidneys have to do all the work. Just a guess.

Frog, one night on the fright crew (grocery store stocking) we had a big load and were down a guy. I sweated a lot that night and drank a full 1/2 gallon of orange juice on the way home. I didn't need to use the bathroom for 14 more hours.

My theory on the movie was that you don't actually sweat, but the movie still causes your heart to beat faster due to 'putting yourself in the action' so everything that comes with being active happens except the sweat and getting in shape. That theory was utterly destroyed by End of the Affair, Becasue I still had to go after sitting through all 437 percieved hours of it.

It had Stephen Rea in it, so the GF made me go.

Edit to add, one slice of watermelon OR a sunburn will make go nearly every hour for at least a day.

[grant hutchison]

Couple of things in action here, I think.
One is that your bladder feeds back to your brain not just the current volume of urine, but also the rate of filling: so you get the urge to empty at lower volumes if your bladder's filling fast.
The other is that, of course, there's descending inhibition from your brain to your bladder, and that's influenced by your conscious mind to a large extent. So you actually modulate the amount of bladder sensation that gets through to consciousness, depending on the availability of opportunities to empty: if you're far from a toilet, or really busy, the signal drops into the background unless things get really urgent. But if you find yourself in a situation in which you can empty your bladder, the signal comes back. Hence the feeling of sudden urgency when you reach the bathroom door.
Another thing I find interesting is how the sound of running water can trigger the urge to empty. Is that an evolutionary thing? Perhaps urinating in a place where there's running water was a good way to avoid contaminating your sleeping or living area. It's not just water ... the sound of a petrol tank filling will do it for me, too.

Grant Hutchison

[pghnative]

...and then there's the old "hand in warm water" trick, best used on the sleeping.

[Sp1ke]

I know that on a Sunday when I drink a few cups of tea during the day I tend to go for a wee much more frequently than usual

This could be because tea, coffee and alcohol are diuretics i.e. they make you go to the toilet more often. I presume that means you'll go sooner, with a smaller amount, although the net result is to make you more dehydrated.

[Argos]

This could be because tea, coffee and alcohol are diuretics i.e. they make you go to the toilet more often. I presume that means you'll go sooner, with a smaller amount, although the net result is to make you more dehydrated.

A good indicator of the hydration level is the color of the urine. Generally a clear urine indicates an adequate hydration [my doc just told me that]. It´s an important info for those who´re living dog days.

[ToSeek]

A good indicator of the hydration level is the color of the urine. Generally a clear urine indicates an adequate hydration [my doc just told me that]. It´s an important info for those who´re living dog days.

I had several kidney stones about ten years ago, and as a result I'm nuts about staying hydrated. Whenever my urine turns yellow, I start chugging water like mad.

[grant hutchison]

...and then there's the old "hand in warm water" trick, best used on the sleeping.

Yeah, it does seem to work. I'm not sure if anyone has a clue why that should be.

Another problem reported by divers is the process of getting into a wetsuit, getting into the ocean, and having a full bladder half an hour later. That one turns out not to be all in the head: there's real physiology involved. When you get into the water, the pressure compresses your limbs and moves blood from where it usually hangs about in the peripheral veins, into your chest and abdomen. Your body interprets this as a sudden mysterious fluid overload, and industriously sets about getting rid of fluid through your kidneys.

Grant Hutchison

[Swift]

Frog, I'm a furniture mover in California. I can vouch for your friends claim. I do the exact same thing in theatres, Tog. It must be the airconditioning keeping you from sweating so our kidneys have to do all the work. Just a guess.

I wonder if it the sitting. I've noticed that sitting in a meeting I seem to need to go more frequently than if I'm running around the plant, no matter what the temperature and the amount of sweating. Maybe various positions puts more pressure on the bladder, sort of like the diver stuff Grant mentioned. Or maybe it is the opposite of what Grant mentioned in his earlier post - not the opportunity to go, but the lack of opportunity. Whenever you are stuck someplace, like in a meeting, it always seems worse.

[Gillianren]

The ren faire rule is that, if you lose all your moisture through sweat and don't need to pee, you're not intaking enough fluids. We take dehydration very seriously, especially given how many of the patrons don't. We'd like to have as few paramedics on duty on site as possible.

[Luckmeister]

Is it a function of hydration? Kidney flow (rate of urine production)? Some hormone level? Anyone know?

clop

Hi Clop,

If this is concerning you on a personal level, I'd make an appointment with your doctor and have it checked out. If a urologist had answered your post, I'm sure that's what he/she would have told you.

Luckmeister

[SolusLupus]

The ren faire rule is that, if you lose all your moisture through sweat and don't need to pee, you're not intaking enough fluids. We take dehydration very seriously, especially given how many of the patrons don't. We'd like to have as few paramedics on duty on site as possible.

Same with the SCA. The have Water Bearers and Chirurgeons (basically, our version of paramedics).

[Gillianren]

Same with the SCA. The have Water Bearers and Chirurgeons (basically, our version of paramedics).

Indeed. Around here, it's basically the same bunch of people at faire and at SCA events.

[grant hutchison]

Or maybe it is the opposite of what Grant mentioned in his earlier post - not the opportunity to go, but the lack of opportunity. Whenever you are stuck someplace, like in a meeting, it always seems worse.

Yeah, I think it's the attentional thing in reverse. If you're busy and distracted and the opportunity isn't there, you down-modulate the bladder signal. If you're bored and you think about it, you're doomed.

Grant Hutchison

[SolusLupus]

Indeed. Around here, it's basically the same bunch of people at faire and at SCA events.

Speaking of which, I took a waterbearing and chirurgeon class, both 101, for the SCA.

Apparently, alcohol and peroxide are bad for treating wounds; use soap and water. Alcohol and peroxide might disinfect, but they also prevent the clotting of blood. There are various other things, too, but I found it interesting that some people out there are entirely allergic to Citrus, in a deathly way; we have one such person in our Kingdom. So we have to be extra careful to cut the pickles and the oranges seperately for waterbearing.

[clop]

Hi Clop,

If this is concerning you on a personal level, I'd make an appointment with your doctor and have it checked out. If a urologist had answered your post, I'm sure that's what he/she would have told you.

Luckmeister

Heh heh thanks for the concern but I'm not that old yet! Everything is still in working order for the time being.

clop

[grant hutchison]

Around here, it's basically the same bunch of people at faire and at SCA events.

OK, I've got to ask.
What are "ren faire" and "SCA"?

Grant Hutchison

Edit: I think I just got the "SCA", from wondering about "waterbearers and chirurgeons". Society for Creative Anachronism, or something like that. (Vague memories from a Poul Anderson essay, though I was never sure if he was writing about a real organization or not )

[Gillianren]

OK, I've got to ask.
What are "ren faire" and "SCA"?

Grant Hutchison

Edit: I think I just got the "SCA", from wondering about "waterbearers and chirurgeons". Society for Creative Anachronism, or something like that. (Vague memories from a Poul Anderson essay, though I was never sure if he was writing about a real organization or not )

Oh, it's real. "Society for Creative Anachronisms" it is, though apparently our FBI file used to read "Society for Creative Anarchism," which is different.

"Ren faire" is short for "Renaissance faire," which takes longer to say and is harder to spell. Much like an SCA event, but more for profit than for fun, at least to participants. Mind, it still is fun, at least in my opinion, but it's put on for the general public, not for us.

[grant hutchison]

Oh, it's real.

Thanks for the clarification.

Renaissance faire

The French speaker in me wonders "Rebirth to make ... what?" But I now deduce it's a creatively anachronistic spelling of "fair".

Grant Hutchison

[Gillianren]

Yes. We like to be all "olde timey."

[ToSeek]

There are usually "shoppes" at the Renaissance Faires, too.

[Gillianren]

At ours, it's the same booths that are at the SCA events. There's a lot of shopping at both, but the public ones are the ones that pretty much keep the merchants alive through the winter.

[Ara Pacis]

I was reading up on the SCA b/c of this thread. Sounds like fun. I wonder how many people in BAUT are ino SCA or similar groups.

[Swift]

Though I was not a member, I had several friends who were quite active in SCA back in the 80s and went to some of their events.

[Tog]

I was reading up on the SCA b/c of this thread. Sounds like fun. I wonder how many people in BAUT are ino SCA or similar groups.

I worked witha guy that did it, orsomethig similar. One night he brought in a bunch of the swords, which were PVC wrapped in thick foam and duct tape and we had a few duels. I've had some martial arts training, and some skill with a katana, but he had some pretty good attack combos that just tore me up.

Then I switched to a 4 foot legth of rope with one end in each hand and did MUCH better. It amazes me that when people have a weapon in hand, and that weapon ets pinned to...say their back by a bit of rope that was pressed over their head at just the right time. that they will not let go of the weapon even as knee after knee is slamming into thei midsection (controlled of course).

I knew another guy that did something similar to that but it was RPG based. He played a thief adn could use 2 small wepons. As luck would have it, he was also pretty good with escrima sticks. He said he always did well until the 'wizards' hit him with spells (sandwich bags full of flour).

It does sound like a good time.