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There are times when we really can't go to the toilets, e.g. clinical urine tests requiring the first morning urine. so we must hold that first pee from the time of waking up until reaching the lab, which might take several hours.

Are there any effective hacks out there to help with holding the pee inside, preferably such that won't make it obvious what's going on? I've seen several suggestions like "keep yourself warm", but honestly not sure it will help in real time of need. (literally)

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    Only pee a little bit, and save some for the lab later? That works when you can pee, but not for long car rides. My dad wears some type of adult diaper, and so do senators when they filibuster.
    – Chloe
    Commented Nov 25, 2018 at 18:07
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    From having participated in an experiment measuring urine flow, when you think your bladder is full, you can still fit the same amount in it again. So “just hold it“. (Not a nice feeling, but it's certainly possible). Other than that, input = output.
    – DonQuiKong
    Commented Nov 25, 2018 at 21:20
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    @Chloe The point of such a test is probably to catch the bacteria that has gathered in the opening of the urinal tract during the night. Peeing washes those bacteria away. On a side note, this is also why you should pee after sex.
    – Kapten-N
    Commented Nov 26, 2018 at 11:17
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    @ShadowWizard Okay. In that case I guess it doesn't matter. But one should always ask their doctor first, so that the result isn't compromised by taking such an initiative on your own. It would be bad if people who are actually being tested for those bacteria took that advice without knowing better.
    – Kapten-N
    Commented Nov 26, 2018 at 11:29
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    @Captain not obvious this time, guess you meant it as anesthetic, however looks like its main usage when used on that organ is somewhat different. (Luckily I don't need that, yet. ;))
    – Shadow Wizard
    Commented Dec 19, 2021 at 11:02

8 Answers 8

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A few crazy ideas:

  1. Get a sterile container beforehand, pee in that at your normal time and bring that to the lab instead of peeing there.
  2. Stop drinking fluid now, pee right before you go to bed, lay out your clothes on the floor in the order you put them on on the way to the door, get dressed while you walk to the door and drive to the lab straight away.
  3. If you really can't hold it, try having half a pee in the morning, then drive to the lab where you leave the other half while ensuring you don't eat nor drink anything until afterwards.
  4. Just go the the toilet at home and drink lots of water while driving to the lab (That one might skew the results so only do this one after everything else fails)

Also avoid from this point forward any natural diuretica:

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    +1 At least for the tests I had to do, simply doing a "half-pee" still provided sufficient concentration without invalidating the tests. Super-useful when you know you have to wait an hour or more.
    – phyrfox
    Commented Nov 25, 2018 at 21:08
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    Why is idea 1 crazy? That's how I was doing all my life. Probably better to keep it in a cool container if the lab is some distance away. I'd assume that peeing in the lab is necessary only if you have to prove that it is your own urine, e.g. for drug tests. But I don't think these types of tests require first morning urine.
    – IMil
    Commented Nov 26, 2018 at 2:05
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    @IMil Because it's a bunch of ideas so they're all crazy and OP has to choose the least crazy for them. Also 1 is the least crazy and 5 the most in my opinion but OP will need to decide themselves... ;-)
    – Fabby
    Commented Nov 26, 2018 at 2:09
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    Number 3 and 4 are bad options. The point of the test is probably to catch bacteria that has entered the urinal tract during the night. If you pee then you wash those bacteria away. If the doctors say they need your very first morning pee then you mustn't pee at all before the test! Not even a little bit. On a side note, washing bacteria away is also why you should pee after sex.
    – Kapten-N
    Commented Nov 26, 2018 at 11:21
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    @TylerH If you do it slowly it's not and actually what OP ended up doing...
    – Fabby
    Commented Nov 27, 2018 at 19:17
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First, ask the lab. It's often important to get blood work when you haven't eaten for a certain amount of time, which for convenience is done early in the morning. That's rarely relevant for urine tests. So ask either the doctor or the lab how important it is that you show up without having had a morning pee.

Second, reduce that "several hours" however you can. Ask if you can have the test done at a lab closer to your home, or on a weekend, or in some other way remove the constraint that is requiring you to hold it for so long. Shower the night before. Get someone else to take over your morning duties so you can go straight to the lab, deliver your sample, then return to have a normal day.

Third, if you really must travel for hours to reach the lab and they really insist you cannot pee after midnight the night before or some such thing, then reduce fluids the night before, do not have morning coffee or any caffeinated drink (it's both extra liquid and a diuretic) before you get to the lab, and wear the loosest clothes you can wear in public. Stand rather than sitting to reduce bladder pressure, and when you feel you cannot resist the pressure, focus on breathing in and out to get you through it minute by minute. The urge will generally pass after a few minutes, and not come back for a while.

Fourth, assuming you're not a woman trying to become pregnant, count your lucky stars: this is the group that gets the most "we need the first pee of the day" as well as "please show up with a full bladder" appointments. If you are, well, all I can say is by the time you've been a parent for 5 years, you'll look back fondly on having to hold your pee for a few hours in the morning before a lab appointment :-).

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Get on a bicycle. No matter how much I have to pee, once I'm riding a bicycle, I don't feel any need to pee, and it lasts for long rides. I have no idea what aspects of it work --the body angle, the hard seat between the legs, moving the legs, exercise-- but it works for me. YMMV

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    I don't have bicycle anymore (not since I was 18 or so), but thanks for the advice, can be useful for others. :)
    – Shadow Wizard
    Commented Nov 26, 2018 at 15:17
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    I'd say that any physical activity should delay the urge. When your body is working hard (as if you were hunting or evading a predator), certain urges go away temporarily.
    – JPhi1618
    Commented Nov 26, 2018 at 15:33
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Here are some tips, compiled from this source.

  • Change your body position. Different positions can relieve some of the pressure on your bladder and make it easy to hold in urine.
  • If you have a gas then pass it. It may help to hold urine.
  • To hold urine if you stay warm then it will help you.
  • Avoid thinking of water, waterfalls, or rain.
  • Minimize drinking anything while you need to pee.
  • Don't laugh loudly or think about anything funny.
  • Don't go for a swim and don't think about water.
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    If you tell me not to think of a pink elephant, the first thing I do is think of a pink elephant... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
    – Fabby
    Commented Nov 25, 2018 at 16:46
  • Yes you are right but from this i try to avoid thinking from this
    – Chawlish Boy
    Commented Nov 25, 2018 at 16:47
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    @Fabby Good point: "Don't think of a pink elephant" might be perfect advice to someone who doesn't want to pee =D
    – Cort Ammon
    Commented Nov 26, 2018 at 5:49
  • @CortAmmon :D ;-) :D
    – Fabby
    Commented Nov 26, 2018 at 15:02
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Plan, if you know you have the appointment in the morning.

I had an ultrasound scan a few years ago, which required a full bladder at the time of the scan.

The instructions I received were to drink no fluid from 12 noon the previous day. This ensured I was pretty much on 'empty' by the morning. I was then to drink 1.5 litres of fluid an hour before going to the clinic.

This made its way into my bladder fairly swiftly, and I was bustin' as I sat in the waiting room, but it didn't get any worse, and I was confident I could hold it, because it was a fairly well defined volume.

You could do the same thing, though perhaps less than 1.5 litres first thing would be more comfortable.

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As a general rule - prevention is better than cure; and doing this repeatedly I understand can cause longer term damage to the muscles - resulting in problems later in life.[1]

As such, if you know that you're going to have this problem in the morning; don't drink 10 gallons of water just before you go to bed.

Alternatively, if you know you're going to need this test done, ask for the container in advance and then find out where to deliver it.

[1]http://uk.businessinsider.com/what-happens-when-hold-in-your-pee-too-long-2018-6?r=US&IR=T

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If you are a guy it may be possible to prolong the urge to pee by stimulating yourself for a different physiological urge that uses the same body part. However it may be embarrassing to maintain the practice in public.

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    you are right but some time there may create such a situation that we must delay our pee like in meeting are a ceremony.
    – Chawlish Boy
    Commented Dec 1, 2018 at 7:26
  • Forgot to update, I gave it a try a while ago and sadly it doesn't really work. The urge to pee was still strong. :/
    – Shadow Wizard
    Commented Sep 11, 2022 at 10:07
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Set an alarm for a couple hours into your sleep cycle and use the bathroom then. That should effectively delay your regular morning bathroom break while maintaining the concentration for your tests.

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