I’m not sure precisely how to put this, but among some of the more interesting thanksgiving dinner conversations it came to light that several members of my family report that upon entering a department store they feel the urge to move their bowels. They claim it’s a common phenomenon. I’ve never heard of it (or experienced it) and it sounds pretty bizarre. Anyone know anything about this? Is it real, and if so why?
Some of my family members report this, too. I think it is a manifestation of low-grade anxiety, generally present in the personality. “Oh no! So many things to look at! Oh no! Pressure of making a choice!”
These same people grind their teeth, moan in their sleep, and have chronic acid reflux.
It’s probably the perfume you have to walk through to get in. It might remind them of something or someone.
On the other hand, it might just be becuase of how they make it so difficult to find the department you really want to go to. Finally you give up, and decide that you might as well use the restroom while you’re there.
This happens to me at Costco.
And yes, Sattua, I grind my teeth and have chronic acid reflux.
Hmm. I find this strange, because Costco seems so logical to me. It’s big, but you can instinctively find the section you want immediately. Macy’s, on the other hand, is rife with shopper traps.
I used to have the problem at a specific used book store … after a while we determined that it was because it shared a building with a dry cleaning facility and the really low subsonic rumbles of the equipment was doing it. Although for some reason, I also get the same issue at a price club [sort of like a cost co] so maybe it is the ventillation system rumbling that is doing it?
Happens to me in libraries.
It probably will come as no surprise that David Sedaris is keenly aware of a related behavior, a practice he has labeled “chain-store defecation.” He commented on this phenomenon for Ira Glass’s “This American Life” (original air date, 2 December 2005).
You can listen to it at
(A direct link is here. The segment takes place at about the 51:00 mark.)
– Tammi Terrell
Me, too. Did I mention I’m a librarian?
More seriously, when I worked at the mall for several years, just walking in would make my eyes water and turn red. Either it was cleaning products, or I got seriously allergic to retail.
I think it happens to you when you go into any store that excites you. Love books and reading? Bookstores and libraries make you all poopie. Love video games? Watch out in EB. Music lover? Better go before you enter the CD outlet. Movies your passion? They don’t like you using the bathrooms at Blockbuster or Hollywood Video.
With me, I always have to go if I enter any store that doesn’t have a public bathroom.
I get this sometimes, and determined it was certain stores, like a bookstore, which have a relaxed, serene atmosphere, not a lot of noise, that feel “cozy”. I never experinece it at big loud stores like Wal-Mart or Kroger.
Never happens to me. I have the most well-trained set of bowels and bladder on the planet. I never go to a public bathroom unless it’s a real emergency. (I’m shy-- I don’t like to eliminate if others can hear.)
Yep, libraries & bookstores do it for me.
Subliminal reaction to the thought: “I can’t believe they’re selling this shit!”
It used to happen to me in one specific library. My university had built a huge new main library, and whenever I went in, I would promptly have to go. I’m not sure it can be put down to excitement, since I had really loved the old stacks and wasn’t too fond of the new building. It’s never happened to me in any other library, and I’m a librarian and visit libraries wherever I go. I’ve usually chalked it up to the newness of all the materials in the place–maybe some low-grade chemical fumes or something?
And I thought it was just me!
I’ve heard several people claiming that this happens to them in bookshops. Maybe people who read on the toilet unconsciously associate books with defecating?
It used to happen to me in libraries, but not recently. And I’ve never been a bathroom reader.
I used to be a bathroom reader, but I can’t say it’s happened to me.
I’d say we’ve got some pretty strong anecdotal evidence to confirm this is real. So the question is why does it happen? I’m getting a hunch it has more to do with confirmation bias than anything else. I’m sure you walk into a store a hundred times without feeling anything, but the few times you do feel the urge to go you assume the two things are connected.