"Hey LT., I've gotta take a leak"

[e53NSB]

It seems that on any run after midnight, on any type of call, whether it be an EMS, alarm sounding, structure fire, etc., I hear the dreaded saying. "Hey Lou, I gotta take a leak bad". I'm not talking about one time a night, I'm talking multiple times a night. Leaving them isn't the answer, we're only running 3 man engines, and no we don't have any procedures regarding enroute time. Is this common with others?

[bfd1071]

We have the same thing up this way, you should see the line. Worse then a Red Sox game.

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** The opionions are mine and mine alone, they are not that of my dept or the local**

[nomad1085]

It's Murphy's Law. The chance of having an extremely long call increases exponentially to the amount of time since you last used the bathroom.

Matt

[lumpy649]

I have my rules about being on duty... eat when you can, sleep when you can, and hit the head when you can... you never know when your next chance may come!

[FP&LS Guy]

Have you tried getting them Depends?

[Michelle Latham]

I was told by my ol' salt EMT instructor: "Make sure you stay peed and watered." But sometimes you REALLY have to go.
Every now and then one of us Probies has to dash off and use the head and our officers tolerate it - just as long as no one makes a habit out of it. We only ask when we are in agony. How do we get to that point? Usually we just returned from another run or a task that kept us far away from a bathroom. But I've learned to stay "Peed and watered" so my post-tone out bathroom dashes have become very minimal. I still need to answer nature on about 99% of my calls but I'm able to tolerate it. Thank God for the advice of my EMT instructor!
I guess you gather more bladder tolerance as you move up in the ranks or something because I've never seen an officer have to pee so bad he/she needs us to wait.
My advice to your guys: as SOON as you feel nature calling, GO. You never know when you'll get toned out. Also, avoid drinking lots of coffee and just sip water - don't drink huge amounts in a short period of time. You'll stay watered but you wont be stuck doing the bursting bladder dance when the tones do go off.

[bfd1071]

"Have you tried getting them Depends?"

Your joking right? When you gotta go you gotta go.

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** The opionions are mine and mine alone, they are not that of my dept or the local**

[HHoffman]

Most of the older guys in my department are up 3 or 4 time over night to take a leak. That means that when we get a call there is less of a chance they have to go. The OLD WEAK BLADDER!! LOL

I say if you have to go you have to go. Each person knows if they can hold it or not.
:rooleyes:

[larry cook]

how about in the middle of a big fire when your at the nozzil with water going full blast and and there is a crowd of people and the news media watching. The more you hear that water flowing, the more you have to go.

hurt hurt hurt.

Lc

[firefighter15_wv]

It could be worse...it could be number 2, if you know what I mean.

[KGM]

As a woman in the fire service I have learned, use the bathroom every chance you get!

As a rookie on one late night call I decided to "hold it" because I didn't want to catch grief. The other rookie on the truck took forever to get there. After the run I asked him what took so long, his reply: "I had to use the restroom" (well, maybe not exactly those words, the term racehorse was used)

Well, at least they couldn't blame the late response time on the woman!

By the way, what kind of steam burns would you get from wet depends?

I don't want to know.