Is there any 9-to-5 indignity greater than using the bathroom at work? Out of necessity, office workers have learned survival mechanisms such as pre-flushing (to mask any embarrassing noises), avoiding the post-lunch rush, and using that closely held-secret bathroom on the 8th floor.
The anxieties that surround using the restroom at work are well documented, and the most common complaints involve privacy. When Oprah Winfrey served on a jury, for example, she couldn't use the bathroom unless her fellow jurors sang songs to drown out any noise. If it's not the acoustics, it's unease around the gap between the door and the partition, also known in restroom parlance as the pilaster. Maybe it's the fear that someone might recognize your shoes under the stall door. The fact that we're stuck relieving ourselves among colleagues and bosses just ups the stakes.