women peeing outdoors

colin stace wrote:can't believe no one knows about this; http://www.amazon.com/Go-Girl-Female-Urination-Lavender/dp/B003BEDUS6

Called a She-wee in the late 60's and early 70's. Took some practice to get used to using it and you had to rinse it off after use. This one has a better inner rim bit than the old ones, but you would get a pack of a few of them with the She-wee and one had translucent plastic with glitter spangles embedded. Classy.

Wow this thread has certainly been eyeopening!

I'm a convenience peer. If I'm close to the house I go inside and if I'm "out" I cop a squat. I've had the unfortunate experience of being stung as well as getting a bit too close to some nettles I didn't see(I was in a hurry) so I'm not ever excited or feel liberated to go outside. It's a natural bodily function I put very little thought into. I learned long ago that all ladies bits are not created equally and mine do not air dry or "aim" well so I am of the habit to carry around tp in a sealing bag.

It's the same with trying to figure out what will be the best toilet for me to use when I build my house. The less I have to deal with it the better. I won't dump buckets into a compost bin, nor deal with the compost bin itself, but I don't mind dealing with finished compost. So far the best method I like is the turd cremators but I don't like that they take 2 hours to burn one down, sometimes I have to go again an hour later and I don't like the idea of going with an active fire down below. I like the idea of composting toilets but I drink a lot of water and there are times I'm literally to busy to even think straight, or on days when my ptsd is bad I may not be able to dump tank or bucket. I dislike the idea nor can I afford a septic system.

Maybe 2 turd burners and a composting toilet that fans outside for the pee?

Oh and jeans and undies never did me wrong. I have to wear absorbent pads a lot and I just don't like skirts.

Hello all, after many a summer.

I used to be a regular on this forum but haven't been around for a while.

I came back because Paul started sending emails, and also I've given up my job and am doing loads of veg gardening in our beautiful Spring, so my thoughts turn permie-wards.

This thread has occasionally come into my mind and I was pleased to see it appearing currently. I immediately rushed outside, took a few planks out of the side of the compost heap, spread everything as instructed above and... Wheeeeeee!

I feel liberated. There was a bit of dribble on the front of the bin but everything else hit the spot. I shall practise often. I used my hand to wipe, in order to see what was left - practically nothing, especially compared with usual outdoor squat-peeing, which I do by a big pond and dabble my hand in afterwards.

Here is a pic of the aftermath - main aim area to the right of the green stuff.

I feel I've returned with a splash.

Well, what a fun topic, I can't read all 8 pages, but it seems like there's plenty of fun info. For pee, I just lean on one bent leg, and stretch the other one as far away as I can so i have somewhere to aim without too much splash on the legs. The issue is, where is it going to run once it hits the ground...try to avoid it running under the foot of the leg you're leaning on. Hold the clothes to the front. No panties usually, they just stop air flow and breed germs. and when you're done, give the outside a little shake from the front/top, but don't touch the wet parts with your dirty hands. Stay away from that area. don't bother with leaves either unless you needed to go #2. That's a different story. If you're too tired to squat, for 1 or 2, find a nice small diameter tree and grab on with both hands, lean back as far as you can and give it a go.

If you can't do your business outside properly (LNT!) and relatively comfortably, your whole life revolves around a toilet. In my opinion, it would be hard to consider such a person an adult, let alone self actualized. There is no "away" to flush your sh!t to. As an outdoor educator and NP ranger I had to teach these skills tactfully to many people of all ages and the key is to make it funny and have established a safe environment for communication and questions if necessary. But ultimately it is something we all have the ability and need to do and have no reason to make a big deal about.

I belong to group A people. Its so awkward to pee outside.

A lifetime of going out doors when possible here. Spent many years going in a thunder can (chamber pot?) and dumping it in the corner of the garden area that was being rested... Grew up using an outhouse situated amongst some grapefruit trees... Sweetest g-fruits ive ever tasted. Now my left knee hurts when bent to 90* and more...  In the middle of the night me an some of the dogs (i have a puppy)go out an water the yard and look at the stars... Some of these dogs have incredible bladders... Me... Not so much! I sleep in a long shirt and can stand an pee. Off the porch. Of course... Im in Florida so snow is never an issue. When I have to use my water waster throne I let the pee hang out till there's a load... Yellow can mellow, but brown must go down... Dreaming of an indoor bucket arrangement...

jacque greenleaf wrote:I think there are many things to love about peeing outside. But privacy is an issue, and so is snow. I don't mind squatting, but then I don't have knee issues.

For me, the biggest problem is lack of washing facilities near my favorite bushes. Unfortunately, for women, drip drying is just not a great option, as you eventually start to smell like a substandard nursing home. I refuse to leave bits of toilet paper lying around, even buried. And I really don't want to carry used toilet paper back to a collecting receptacle, where it can develop a fine, nasty aroma before said receptacle is emptied. I am thinking of carrying a jar of water with me as I depart for the thickets, but haven't actually tried it out yet. Should work...

A mug of water does the trick! But even that can leave you feeling a bit damp unless you shake a little  

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it looks like it will work, but she hasn t done extensive field-testings yet.

I built a spot with a cross bar in the trees for my Bride to use when we camp out at our mountain dirt. Makes it a whole lot easier for her, although that thing Tobias picked up for his might be interesting.

I don't think I would have been able to answer this honestly a month ago, but my husband and I just went through 16 days of no working shower, toilet or drains in our house, which is located in a small town, and "things" got really real.

I like pee-ing outside, but when I got in my later 20's, I had some changes to my physical anatomy due to an autoimmune disease.  This caused the "stream" to suddenly pull to one side.  So if squatting to pee, suddenly it would go down my leg into my shoe!  There is no way to change angle and make it work consistently - I've tried over and over and over. This autoimmune condition rare in young women, but affects a good proportion of women over 40, and can reshape (the term I prefer to "deform") the genitalia a bit.  Causing odd effects like angled pee-streams.  Later, I got sick in my adulthood, and for many years couldn't hold a crouch, but that's another issue, really.

In the meantime, my husband and I also did a little bit of road trip traveling over the past 7 years.  I also have chemical sensitivities (MCS), and going into horribly smelly bathrooms would give me a migraine.  So, going outside was a necessity for many of these trips.

I found the simplest solution - a plastic drink cup, no crouching required.  Placed between legs, collect liquid, then toss wherever you need.  And you can sort of lightly scrape off any drippage with the edge of the cup, into the cup, pretty much eliminating the need for TP unless you are on your period.

We just bought a house that had unknown drain problems.  After living in it a few days, the problems came to a head.  Turned out the entire main drain line to the septic needed to be dug up (from under concrete) and replaced.  That plus all the time spent trying to fix it with snaking and other means are why were we just without toilets so long.  It was like camping in one's house.  The cup method came in VERY handy the past couple weeks.  Our outdoor plants are now well-nitrogenated.

There is also one other issue, being a shy-pee-er.  I'm sure someone has mentioned this already.  But if my husband or anything else surprises me, it feels like the urine stream retracts back into my bladder and won't come out for a long time.  Rather uncomfortable.  Then you have to pee but can't.  Blek.

So, I've been in both camp A & B, though I do prefer going outside (rather than being exposed to smells in bathrooms, perfume or not).  The cup method has made it really convenient now, as long as I can find a smidgen of privacy.  And I like being able to direct the urine into the compost, rather than toss it down the septic.

Oh, I notice there are a lot of comments from ladies who don't need panties in this thread.  I think it should be noted, everyone is different, and some ladies do need panties.  

A cheap automotive funnel works just fine. Of course it cannot be folded up and stored in a purse, but it does the job just fine. Our local lady firefighters use them because they can't undress when they need relief. And the rigid funnel is easier to use than a soft collapsing one.

If your ancestors couldn't do it, you would not be here. You were born for this. I believe in you!

Well, this is an old topic.  But I have to say, urine/pee is sterile and nothing gross about it.  Nature intended even our feces/poo to be incorporated into the ground as a fertilizer.  But I digress...
I have always enjoyed peeing outdoors.  It gives such a sense of freedom.  These days I travel a lot, and mostly on country roads where there are no facilities.  I sit at the edge of my car's door opening, and pee to my heart's content.  The tp goes in the car's trash bag.  It is unhealthy to stress your bladder and kidneys by holding it in, till the next filthy gas station comes along.
On my property I just squat where I am.  There are no neighbors in sight.
I am against being lady-like.  Women have agreed to be these symbols of delicate, weak, needy existence, so that men can be the strong, rough guys.  Oops, I digress again!

This is an old thread but I am a convert to Group B in recent years and I didn't see some of my ideas listed.  

It may gross some out but my husband doesn't seem to care so maybe y'all won't either.  I personally cannot "shake and let it dry", so I use a pee-rag.  I have a folded washcloth that I wipe with and then fold it back over.  [TP just doesn't break down that quickly - I tried it initially but didn't like finding the paper weeks later.]  If I'm travelling or hiking, I can keep this pee-rag in a ziploc or pocket.  When I'm home I have a small dish where I keep this in winter (so it's warm when I head out to the snow) or in summer I hang it on a hook outside and I appreciate being dry when I pull up the undies.  I converted to this outdoor peeing when I visited Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage and realized how ridiculous it is that we pee and poop in potable water in most of the US.  I hope to capture the golden stuff for use in the garden next year, now that I realize the amazing NPK content many just flush away.
 
When it's bitter cold, I pee in a bucket inside and dump it outside later.  No running water yet at our place and I am firmly now in Group B.  And I do feel a bit proud for being less wasteful of water... though we do make an effort to poop when we go to town so I'm not all that righteous!  Just hate filling up the bucket at home - it means you have to dump it sooner.

Oh, and since Kelda opened the gate, I also use the cup for menstruation and find that it is not too bad to use with outdoor peeing.  I simply pee in the cup to rinse it after dumping it (and yes, you want to find a well-off path place for these dumps) and then re-insert.  I've had people tell me urine isn't sterile and I could cause issues but I've been doing this for some time without any apparent health issues.  I tried recently to do the cup dump indoors with the bucket system but I lack that needed third arm for this set-up.  I do find now that I'm older, that dumping into the humi-bucket is easier since the re-insertion is more easily done while sitting than squatting.  But then I have terrible knees.  You young lasses can maybe still do it in full squat.

Oh, I have to add as someone mentioned something about snow being a problem.  I have a pair of my husband's snow boots, with liners removed, that we both use to go out in the snow for peeing.  It's really great to keep your warm slippers inside while you jump into the boots for a quick wee.

I am loving reading this Permies stuff.  So much to learn... but I have a few things I can share too!

When we first moved into our place, we had a party and invited lots of people. Guys of course had to pee outside and didn't have a problem with it. When the females finally asked to pee, I pointed to the treeline and let them know that there was toilet paper over there if they needed it. We had a fire going too so I just told them to throw the tp in the fire when they were done. Some were okay with it and some weren't. Those who weren't then, are now. As soon as they come over, they just pop a squat and handle business so now it's the norm. They just ask where I want them to pee this time haha...normally I say EVERYWHERE! Sometimes I specify though.

One time my partner was peeing outside near a garden. Near that garden were potted plants. Mid stream I run over by him and squat over the closest potted plant and went to town! It shocked him a little bit, but then we laughed about it and uhm well I'll leave that next part out, but it's definitely great when you can share lifestyles with someone who cares and accepts similarly.

Gotta leave something when you go! Why not leave FREE accumulated fertilizer and healthy plants?! Woop Woop! Wahooo!!!

Rose Dallal wrote:Well, this is an old topic.  But I have to say, urine/pee is sterile and nothing gross about it.  

Pee isn't always sterile. I double checked my recollection on this and typhoid can spread via urine (although feces is more likely) as can Ebola (per the CDC). The more obvious example of urine not being sterile is people with urinary tract infections. What I don't know is the risk, which may be rather small, but would probably increase with population density. Urine may be less likely than other bodily fluids to be a problem, but it still needs to be handled appropriately. Don't get me wrong; I'm not saying "Oh my gosh, don't EVER use it, it's GROSS!" I'm just saying that it's not completely black or white. Disease and drugs (mostly thinking prescription drugs) can pull it a bit into the gray, although drugs wouldn't affect whether it's sterile but instead whether it's toxic.

Back on track, I'm an A type. Not that I wouldn't go outside at need, but even inside things tend to get messy when I pee. Also, I'm one of the ones with knee problems. However, I'm pretty flexible so the "bending over" variation might work where squatting won't. I'm not particularly shy, but I am aware of legal repercussions of getting caught and live in an urban area.

I have always been a fan of peeing outside, we have a septic system and I never did feel good about it just going into the drainage field so i started peeing out in the garden.. or anywhere that could use the extra nutrients. I think it has helped a few of the struggling plants out. at least I would like to think so. I had a hard time convincing my wife to do this though. She was not a fan of the squat also not as discrete for her and we do live by a fairly busy road so I dont blame her. we set up a five gallon bucket with a toilet seat lid mounted for her to pee into we dilute it with water and use in to fertilize.

When we moved out to the woods and lived in a tent for the summer I did not like peeing outside.  Out of necessity I learned to like it very quickly.  Alternatives were driving to town to pee or squat.  We did quickly get an outhouse with a bucket and a commode frame (with a view too) and it was better.  But it was still a walk if you had to pee in the middle of the night.  It's not bad once you get used to it.  And I have awesome squat muscles.

I have been peeing outside all my life whenever it is appropriate. I love being a part of the circle of nature, offering my nitrogen and excess minerals through the sterile blood filtrate of my urine. Urine is not waste but liquid gold for the garden as most of you know. I feel a bit guilty when I use the toilet instead of putting it on plants or in the compost pile.

I have an outdoor potty, which is simply a large plastic child's sand pail. It is perfect because you can actually squat/sit on it and it is much easier than free squatting for me.  Sometimes I use tp, but if I am in a hurry I just pull up the pants. I have one behind the back fence gate for privacy and the other in the garage, so there is never a need to go into the house. Pee goes into the compost scraps outdoor bucket along with spent coffee grounds and a few times a week the guano from my parrots. What a beautiful nutrient and microbiological brew!

LMAO the things we get excited about!  

Still anointing bales here. Having to rethink things quickly as we are about to go into having lots of people visit because of the truck garden and where can the pee-bale and enclosure get moved to? It really is nice not to have to run all the way back to the house and the rotted down bale turns into lovely compost... I made sure to make signs that say NO BATHROOM as I have enough of a time cleaning ours that only we use. I recently had a trip and toured a lot of public restrooms and spaces and remember why I'm not going to have public bathrooms.

Hi, for me indoor or outdoor is not a problem. I use disposable funnels like the ones at www.sanigirl.com

sanigirl

small, discrete and 100% recyclable

I am all about peeing outdoors. I mean, why not?(read: i have no shame). However, like others have stated, the law is an issue. Still waiting on not being broke so that i can move outta the city and pee outside like a normal mammal... for those with issues kneeling: what about leaning(on a fence post or tree)?

Remember chamber pots?
I'm born of, and living in, Appalachia. Some folks were so poor "they didn't have a pot to pee in." It's a good thing that today, we have cheap buckets to collect urine in for use in the garden or compost heap!
I'll pee outside if I'm hiking (usually out gathering medicinals or edibles) with a squat, shake, and dry for a few seconds. I've had four children. I learned how to navigate the sideways spray with the way I squat and position my legs. I used to carry a small oil funnel (never used for a car obviously) in my bag for minimizing splash or spray until I figured out how to position my squat.
I'll pee indoors if I'm indoors obviously, but I prefer to collect the urine in a bucket and spread it around the garden edge or put it directly on the compost. Can't do that in a public potty, but at home it's feasible.

What I hate most about peeing outside is mosquito bites on the arse!

Only an outdoors pee-er out of necessity, but on our land it is a necessity (until there is a commode).  I have learned to place two rocks closely, squat over them and aim between them so it doesn't splash me.  Bury your tp, or burn it when there's a fire going.  

For my next trip, I have already described to my partner my plans to build a "pee-pi" (a moveable 3-pole tipi that you pee inside of and then move to a new spot, for privacy).  We camp in a fairly open area surrounded by rocks, and the lads will go anywhere but I need a bit more of a secluded squat.  I'm afraid to go very far at night (wolves, coyotes, bears and mountain lions, but no people) so I might build something more substantial at some point.  Just not a priority right now.  

If you're going to be anywhere for more than a few days, it's necessary to lay some ground rules about where and how, or risk stepping in something unpleasant a noob left lying around.

Norma Guy wrote:What I hate most about peeing outside is mosquito bites on the arse!

I learned a lesson the hard way.
I have lived in the desert almost all of my life, just moved to Missouri. When we were property shopping and I was walking properties, looking at the terrain and soil and deciding if it was good permaculture land, I'd often take a quick pee break, because we had been driving all day from place to place. You know what is in MO that ain't in the desert? Chiggers! I learned the hard way that wise women here don't pee in the deep grass. And for weird reasons, I didn't realize that was what was going on, and it just got worse and worse. A couple hundred chigger bites on your girl parts is an incredibly painful experience. Cheap aloe vera gel with lidocaine (you get it by the sunscreen at drugstores) helps a lot with the pain until it all heals. Oh my. I'm much more careful now!!

A good way to boost N in the soil?

Old thread, but the story is still current (pun intended).

I didn't read through all 300 replies, so forgive me if this has already been posted.

https://www.guldkannan.se/en-GB

Add water, and it's ready for the garden. Sturdy enough to sit on, too. What else... lived in a hippie commune in Colorado, and peeing outside/standing up was talked about pretty openly there.

In women, the urethra extends outside the body, not as far as a man's, of course, but actually enough for direction, if you chose to direct it manually pre-peeing.
Since you've got labia down there too, and they tend to extend earthward as you age, you want to make sure to free your urethra so you can pee forward and not aside the leg or on your shoes.
I know several women who can pee standing, though they've not to my knowledge tried it while wearing pants... seems kind of weird in a way that young boys are taught to pee outside, and young girls aren't to the same extent.
As for peeing in my garden, I have comfrey (Bocking 4 and Bocking 14: sterile sorts that won't spread by seed) growing in lots of different places. It's never far to go to use one as some makeshift tp, it's soft and kind of absorbent, and you can let it mulch down right there. Otherwise, shaking works quite well!

I'm in camp A.

As far as the man/ woman comparison goes the issue is that women have to drop their pants. Men just "poke out" and stand there - a bystander my not even know what's going on.

For me the pants are all kinds of in the way.
1. Pants dictate squat position, instead of how I would naturally squat. Maybe. Honestly, I used to pee on my pants while squating as a child when camping, so now I'm always ultra-careful about that and it messes with me a little.
2. Cuffs get pee on them from splash, run-off, or the occasional, unintentional side-aimed stream. And yes, splash is an issue even out here with no pavement for miles around. Splash is always an issue in squating body proximity - if you're not wearing shoes you will feel all the teeny-tiny dropplets you can't see.
3. While keeping focus on positioning of clothing more than anything else, I have toppled before - which sucks. This has only happened when I'm layered up for winter with extra pants and padding to mess with, but it sure made me feel foolish.

I do pee outside, but for comfort I will use a toilet first if it's nearby.
And yeah, I could wear a skirt, but I don't want to. And yeah, I can pee standing up, but pants are still in the way.

As a frequent put door peeing lady I have no real issues with the squat except the occasional splash. Recently tried the cup method for all of my peeing for several days and boy was I surprised! Eliminated splash but oh my...
The cup was nearly a pint and as it turns out I can pee 2 pints in a go!?!?!
Very informative but I think id need a massive cup to use this method on the regular

I first ran into this issue on a visit to Eastwind commune in Missouri, where they were experimenting with humanure and didn't want us peeing in the future fertilizer.
I really had trouble with this.

Issue #1 As an anthropologist, I believe that women evolved hiding to pee, because the combo of the position of squatting and the action of urinating leave us vulnerable to predators. I never found a place to pee that felt safe. When one's pants are around one's ankles, it's impossible to move quickly. You guys will have a better understanding of this if you poop outdoors. The position, the vulnerability, all that goes along with your pooping, we deal with every single time we urinate. I think the fear of being caught whilst copping a squat is probably ingrained so deeply in us that it may be hardwired in our limbic system.

Issue#2 the paper! Air drying might be okay if one has skinny thighs and wears no underwear or pants, otherwise, we need TP. Carrying used TP in one's pocket is disgusting, and burying it isn't always easy

Issue#3 Women, in general, when going to the bathroom, do not necessarily differentiate the signals for bowel movements out separately from urination. While urinating, we may start to poop and that's just grand if you are on a toilet and have TP. One can train oneself to differentiate the biological urges (after all, men can do it) but there is a learning curve!

I know this is an old thread. I hope you don't mind my two cents. Thanks for your consideration.

Maybe it's the squatting position while urinating that initiates the I uncomfortable safety instinct. I now pee standing up, so I no longer have that feeling of a need to "hide" in order to urinate.

Like some women, initially I found it impossible to separate urination from defecation. It took some training on my part. Even so, there are sometimes difficulties but not very often. I find it best to urinate first, getting that over with, then defecate. So all in all, I have little problem anymore. Perhaps it is the standing position that makes it easy to separate the two functions, but once squatting, my body takes the signal to do both.

At home on the farm I use a funnel to pee into a gallon jug. And a strip of rag to dry off. The rags go in with the routine laundry for washing and re-use. Standing to urinate seems very normal to me now, but it did take training. The truth of the matter, I prefer to stand. It's easier on my body now that I'm almost 70.

Back in the victorian era, women wore hoop skirts and crotchless bloomers. It was polite to stand with your feet together,  because a wide stance, indicated only by the feet, indicated that one was "having a slash". So women could pee anywhere pretty discreetly back then, because of their clothing.