Highlights of This Episode

1. Why Is Pooping at Work So Awkward?

Societal norms and childhood potty training create a stigma around natural bodily functions.

Office culture amplifies the discomfort with shared bathrooms and the fear of appearing unproductive.

“Stealth pooping” and unspoken bathroom etiquette emerge as survival tactics.

2. The Four-Day Poopocalypse

Meet the sales legend: a former MLB star turned office icon, who faced a very human struggle.

How constipation leveled his usual swagger and transformed him into a cautionary tale of gut health.

The tension, the shoes under the stall door, and the triumphant (yet humbling) conclusion.

3. The Science Behind Constipation

Fewer than three bowel movements a week qualify as constipation, impacting over 2.5 million people annually.

How stress and societal pressures contribute to bathroom woes at work.

Did you know someone once went 45 days without pooping? The aftermath was… monumental.

4. Shy Bowel (Parcopresis) & Shy Bladder (Paruresis)

Learn about these common forms of social anxiety and their physical and emotional toll.

Tips for overcoming these conditions and why laughing at life’s awkward moments is okay.

5. Ground Zero: The Bathroom Showdown

A tale of courage, echoes, and custom shoes peeking under the stall door.

Why workplace bathroom acoustics are an unintentional source of humiliation.

6. Takeaways

Even the most confident among us have humbling bathroom moments.

Humor helps us embrace the awkwardness and destigmatize conversations about our human experiences.Resources

Cleveland Clinic: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/4059-constipation

BBC Science Focus: https://www.sciencefocus.com/the-human-body/whats-the-longest-time-that-somebody-has-been-constipatedLatest thinking on paruresis and parcopresis: https://www1.racgp.org.au/ajgp/2019/april/latest-thinking-on-paruresis-and-parcopresis

Get full access to Gotta Go (All Things Poop) at anthropoopologist.substack.com/subscribe