# Poor Lady...! Woman stuck in bathroom for 20 days \[edited title\] **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 24, 2010, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784 "2010-11-24T16:21:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![JoseB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/joseb/32/1530_2.png) [@JoseB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoseB)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/1 "2010-11-24T16:21:02Z")
> **[Paris woman trapped for 20 days in bathroom](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/11828052)** > > A Paris pensioner has survived for 20 days on warm water after getting stuck in her bathroom, before neighbours realised she was trapped. :eek: I cannot even BEGIN to imagine how it must have been…! ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/2 "2010-11-24T16:34:45Z")
Yikes. It might have helped if she’d banged SOS on the pipes. ---
**Author:** ![Lakai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de0a6/32.png) [@Lakai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lakai)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/3 "2010-11-24T16:37:40Z")
No family or friends to check up on her, huh? Must be one lonely lady. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/4 "2010-11-24T16:45:31Z")
I’d like to think it would have helped to know the SOS code. That’s efficacious in all languages, right? ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/5 "2010-11-24T16:46:54Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > I’d like to think it would have helped to know the SOS code. That’s efficacious in all languages, right? Apparently not eveyone knows what that is. And that’s astonishing to me. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/6 "2010-11-24T17:06:29Z")
Charming friend to me: “She is stupid, she should have tapped SOS.” ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/7 "2010-11-24T17:09:51Z")
Added info to the “Poor lady…!” thread title. General reminder, folks, pls. choose thread titles that indicate what the topic is. Thanks, **twickster** , MPSIMS moderator ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/8 "2010-11-24T17:33:08Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > Charming friend to me: “She is stupid, she should have tapped SOS.” Not stupid, maybe, but insufficiently creative. It’s a second floor apartment, so I’m pretty sure that stopping up one of the drains and running the water until it flooded the apartment below would have gotten some attention in less than 20 days. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/9 "2010-11-24T17:43:59Z")
I have a bigger question. Who in the h\*ll shuts the bathroom door when they live alone??? 😕 😕 Are the mice going to watch you poop? I’m glad she’s ok. But, closing a door in an empty apartment is taking modesty a bit too far. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/10 "2010-11-24T17:54:18Z")
What a pisser. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/11 "2010-11-24T17:57:30Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I have a bigger question. Who in the h\*ll shuts the bathroom door when they live alone??? 😕 😕 > > Are the mice going to watch you poop? > > I’m glad she’s ok. But, closing a door in an empty apartment is taking modesty a bit too far. I shut the bathroom door when I shower so that the warm, humid air stays in there. Makes things physically more comfortable both during and after the shower. Using the toilet? Door stays open. ---
**Author:** ![ramel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/eb8c5e/32.png) [@ramel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ramel)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/12 "2010-11-24T18:05:36Z")
Poor lady =( I hope it has no lasting health effects. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/13 "2010-11-24T18:11:18Z")
> [@ramel](#): > > I hope it has no lasting health effects. It’s a safe bet they won’t be very long lasting. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/14 "2010-11-24T18:19:17Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I have a bigger question. Who in the h\*ll shuts the bathroom door when they live alone??? 😕 😕 > > Are the mice going to watch you poop? > > I’m glad she’s ok. But, closing a door in an empty apartment is taking modesty a bit too far. Both of my bathrooms are visible from an outside window. One of them is right across from a neighbor’s window, the other one is visible from the street. I close the door for anything other then peeing (the way the line of sight to the bathroom works, you wouldn’t be able to see me standing right next to the bowl). Also, as noted above it’s more comfortable to shower with the door closed. And who knows, maybe she just likes having the door shut, maybe she was getting something that was behind it, maybe this, maybe that, there could be a million reasons why the door was shut. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/15 "2010-11-24T18:22:37Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > I shut the bathroom door when I shower so that the warm, humid air stays in there. Makes things physically more comfortable both during and after the shower… If I shower with the door open my smoke detectors go off. On the other hand if I leave the door open I can see my TV from the toilet. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/16 "2010-11-24T18:29:20Z")
Oh dear! What can the matter be Seven old ladies were locked in the lavatory They were there from Monday to Saturday Nobody knew they were there. Anyone? Anyone? Beuller? [_sigh_](http://www.csufresno.edu/folklore/drinkingsongs/html/categorized-by-song/with-music/s/old-ladies-stuck-in-the-lavatory.htm) sometimes I really think I AM alone on my own planet. ---
**Author:** ![Jenaroph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e8c25b/32.png) [@Jenaroph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jenaroph)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/17 "2010-11-24T18:33:24Z")
I don’t see spending 20 days in a bathroom without trying to take the door off in some way. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/18 "2010-11-24T18:48:58Z")
Could have been worse. At least she had access to a toilet and potable water. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/19 "2010-11-24T18:51:19Z")
> [@Jenaroph](#): > > I don’t see spending 20 days in a bathroom without trying to take the door off in some way. Even if the door opened out and hand an unpickable lock. I think my day three or four I’d use the cover of the toilet to bash through the drywall. ---
**Author:** ![JoseB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/joseb/32/1530_2.png) [@JoseB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoseB)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784/20 "2010-11-24T18:56:11Z")
The only explanation I can have for this whole story is that the woman was in some early stages of dementia, and was not thinking clearly enough to try and break out through the door instead of trying to call other people’s attention through the pipes. Either that, or she was too frail (or thought that she was too frail) to break down the door. Oh, and _mea culpa_, twickster! I promise that future thread titles will be more self-explanatory! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-lady-woman-stuck-in-bathroom-for-20-days-edited-title/561784.md?page=2)