Write an article based on this "Try psychotherapy. Talk to your doctor about graduated exposure therapy. Work with a close friend or family member during graduated exposure therapy. Join the International Paruresis Association."
If you are starting to experience other health issues due to your "bashful bladder" or paruresis, such as constipation and abdominal pain, you may want to talk to a professional therapist about your disorder. Look for a therapist who is aware of paruresis and has worked with individuals suffering from paruresis before. Your family doctor may be able to give your a recommendation for a therapist who treats individuals with paruresis. You will likely have to attend weekly one on one therapy sessions or group therapy sessions, where you may talk about your anxiety and fears associated with using public washrooms. You may also learn techniques to cope with your disorder. Remember that holding in your urine for too long can cause medical problems like urinary tract infections. It is a good idea to get help before serious problems arise. Graduated exposure therapy is a step-by-step program that has participants try to pee more and more in difficult, public places. Around eight out of 10 people with paruresis are successfully treated with graduated exposure therapy. You can get a referral for a behavioral specialist who does graduated exposure therapy through a psychologist and a therapist. To do graduated exposure therapy, you will make a list ranking peeing locations that are the easiest for you to use to the most difficult for you to use. For example, your bathroom at home may be easiest and a public washroom at work may be more difficult. You will then start by trying to use the washroom in the easiest locations and work your way to the more difficult locations. You should do graduated exposure therapy three to four times a week for the best results and drink lots of fluids before each session. Participants usually notice results after 12 weeks. As part of the process of graduated exposure therapy, you will need to enlist a "pee partner", who will support you and stand close to you so you feel comfortable peeing or going to the bathroom. This could be a close friend or a family member. Your "pee partner" will stand close to you as you pee for a few seconds and then stop. He may then move a little closer as you go to the toilet again, pee for a few seconds and then stop. The idea is to keep practicing peeing with your pee partner as he gets closer and closer to the toilet. You may then gradually start to make noise while peeing to try to get more comfortable using the bathroom, such as splashes. Once you are fine peeing at home, you and your pee partner may move to a quiet public restroom. Your "pee partner" may stand outside the toilet door or behind you at the urinal while you pee. You will work with your "pee partner" to go down your list of locations until you can successfully go to the bathroom in a loud and crowded washroom. The IPA is a non-profit organization that helps to educate the public about paruresis and shares information about effective treatments for paruresis. The IPA holds weekend workshops for individuals struggling with paruresis. You can also get a referral to a cognitive-behavioral therapist who can assist you with treating your paruresis. You can access the sign up form for IPA on their website.