Why do we ‘dance’ when we need to pee?

Your urge to dance is a result of a conflict in desires but the resultant behaviour, from humming to hopping, may actually be counterintuitive.


Asked by: James Stevenson, Paisley

A full bladder is uncomfortable and creates a sense of urgency in our mind. The conflict between the desire to take action to relieve the stress and the fact that circumstances don’t currently permit us to, gets translated into various rhythmic displacement behaviours. These include humming to ourselves, clenching and unclenching muscles or hopping from foot to foot, despite the fact that remaining still and calm actually allows you to last for longer.

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