Wait a minute.  Wait a minute.  I promise that I am not sending you mixed messages.  I meant what I said – When Ya Gotta Go, Ya Gotta Go.  Do not be particular about where you go to the bathroom, because it is not healthy.  Use whatever bathroom is available to you and go when you need to go.  Do not hold it.

Good rule of thumb: Do not go it alone when it comes to a public restroom.  This rule is there to help prevent yourself, a child, etc from being in a vulnerable situation and avoiding possible assault.

Public restrooms are often used as places to clean-up or shower, for homeless people.  A lot of illegal drug selling and consumption happens in public restrooms.  And robberies, assaults, and sexual assaults can also be committed in public bathrooms.  This means that you could potentially walk in on someone naked, sponge-bathing, someone sticking a needle in their arm, or someone with a gun looking to grab your purse or more.

This is not only the creepy public bathroom at the park in a major metropolitan area.  These are the bathrooms at the kids’ park in town, the ones in your local box store, the fast food joints, the family restaurants, the mall, etc.

Do yourself a favor.  Bring a buddy.  They don’t have to come into the stall with you.  But have them in the bathroom, too.  Or waiting right outside the door.  Or, at the very least, tell someone who’s listening that you are headed to the restroom and to check on you if you aren’t out in 2 minutes.

But is there are multiple stalls in a public restroom, I wouldn’t even risk this.  As creeped out as you would be to walk the street of a sketchy neighborhood at 2 in the morning is how creeped out you should be about going alone in a public bathroom.

Not to scare you, just to make you aware.  Very aware.