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I have had some success by distracting my mind from the problem by doing a mental arithmetic calculation. For example 9 x 9, then times 9 again and if still waiting for flow x 9 again !!
It works as it diverts my anxiety thoughts when in a fairly quiet urinal but is not enough of a distraction to be able to pee standing alongside mates or in a crowded football stadium at half time.
Re: Mental arithmetic
Posted by Geoff P on 7/7/2009, 11:35 am, in reply to "Mental arithmetic"
Hi Ken,
Good to hear from you. I've found trying to distract my mind can be a real help too. In fact, I think a lot of us do, as there have been several messages posted that have suggested just that.
Dealing with the anxiety is everything. Have you been on a workshop? I went on the London one just a couple of weekends ago and it changed my life. Being able to desense with another guy was a tremendous help and not at all scary, as it may sound.
The first day of the workshop, I needed to go for a pee, so I left the room and walked down the coridor in the hotel to the toilets. I used a cubicle but was unable to go simply because the other guys knew where I had gone and in my mind, that put me under pressure.
By the third day, I was standing almost next to a complete stranger (one urinal gap) and going as if I'd been doing it all my life.
Don't worry if that sounds far too much to cope with. You won't be put under any sort of pressure at all or asked to do anything you don't feel completely comfortable with.