There is always much discussion about bathroom wait time and the distribution of toilets/urinals in each of the gender’s facilities.
In the time required to pee (#1) we all know that men + urinal wins hands down over women + toilet
When we need to poo (#2), I think we assume basically the same amount of time, though perhaps women spend a bit more time due to hygiene concerns.
But I never hear about #3, period issues, a totally different and unrelated to the other need to use the restrooms. How does this effect the need for women to use the restrooms, the urgency of needing them N-O-W and the extra time required. And is #3 ever considered when deciding how many stalls and floor space is needed for each gender?
I take issue with all of your assumptions, actually.
I have beaten a guy out of the bathroom when we walk into our respective bathrooms at the same time and both only have to pee. Depends on who’s wearing what and how much/how badly you have to pee.
I spend far less time pooping than any man I’ve ever lived with. I swear to dog guys have no pelvic floor muscles and apparently, they have to just sit there and wait for gravity to work. For me and I suspect most women, pooping takes about as much time as peeing, because our bodies are designed to push things out of that neighborhood. I could never understand why men I’ve lived with had to spend 20-30 minutes in there. What, do you have no pelvic floor muscle tone at all? I’m in there 2-3 minutes, wash hands, and I’m out. What the hell are you guys doing in there? (Rhetorical question. Please do not answer that.)
As for number 3: period concerns. Depends on what you’re wearing, where you are in the period (beginning, middle, end), and what type of sanitary supplies you use. One can change out a pad or panty liner in seconds… usually while doing #1 and/or #2. Rip old one off the panties, discard appropriately, place new one. Maybe there’s an extra wipe or two in there, but not really that big a time eater. Changing out a tampon is just about as quick. Give the string a yank, dispose of used tampon properly, void everything, wipe yourself clean, jam a new plug up there (takes 2 seconds).
It was stemmed from this thread, but it is not a whoosh, but thought on the common situation as to the reason for the line to the women’s room when the men’s room is basically without a line.
Now that thread touches on the subject of shortages/hoarding mentality - which produces longer lines, we see this when there is a question about gasoline supply issues, everyone wants to fill their tank and causes a line when if everyone just filled up as normal there would be no line. This would work in reverse, emptying instead of filling, but a simmular line forming effect, and perhaps this is the reason for the women’s room line. In some settings also the easy and acceptable ability for men to pee in the bushes also would alleviate the anxiety of finding a place to go - while women are certainly capable of this, many do not like to in my experience and many avoid it. While this would not really work too well in a city or mall setting, it does in some rural settings, including roadside pitstops.
But it does seem to at least look at other reasons for the woman’s room line that I see very often, including a 3rd need to use the restrooms that men don’t have.
Okay, no. I take exception to your assumptions that A) men can always pee faster, B) men and women poop with the same speed and C) somehow managing one’s period takes women an inordinate amount of extra time in the bathroom.
Given that:
A) There are an equal number of available stalls or urinals, and
B) A woman is wearing clothing as simple as a man’s (say, hike up your skirt, pull panties down – no pantyhose, no buttons, zippers, Spanx or shapewear, etc.),
It should take the same amount of time.
What takes so long for women is due to:
• While there’s an equal amount of space dedicated to men’s vs. women’s restrooms, urinals take up less space, so there will be more spaces available for men to use for peeing than stalls available for women. Also, some men will pee in the sink. Ew.
•Women’s clothing is often unnecessarily complicated, and the clothing issue is further complicated in cold or inclement weather where multiple layers of clothing might be involved.
•We do have to find some place to put our coat, our purse, dig out a fresh tampon, either clean the seat, place a paper cover on the ring or use the hover method…
In general, we can’t just whip it out and pee. But it’s not a rule set in stone that all men will always finish the peeing process faster than all women. Nor will all pooping take an equal amount of time. Nor will changing out period supplies add all that much additional time.