Action point

Men of all ages find themselves standing in a public toilet with a full bladder, only to realise they’re unable to urinate. This is known as a "bashful bladder".

You have a few options.

• Clenching and unclenching your pelvic floor muscles may help trigger the urine flow.
• Ty teaching yourself to pee around other people by degrees. Start by standing in a cubicle with the door closed, progress to keeping the door open, then to standing at the urinal furthest from anyone else, and eventually to peeing happily while singing “Old Man River”.
• Do some mental calculations, which apparently stimulates the cortex of the brain, interrupting the stream of messages it’s sending to your nether regions.

Read more about incontinence in men.