It’s all over the media. Drinking water is incredibly important, and with the boom of “VSCO girls” and Hydroflasks, people are actually taking the advice.

The ideal amount of water intake is eight glasses every day, and more for those who are active. 

So how often should we pee?

Physicians suggest that the average healthy adult pees anywhere between six and eight times in a 24-hour span. However, many teachers have restrictions on the times that students are allowed to use the restroom.

A survey of Central Hardin teachers shows the various policies regarding restroom breaks. These range from a complete lack of policy, to a complete restriction from bathroom breaks during their class.

There are reasonable worries associated with students leaving class to use the restroom. 

Teachers say students asking every day, missing work, and partaking in actions against school policy are factors that make them hesitant to allow students to use the restroom.

“If we are actively taking notes or participating in an activity, I worry that students will miss important information while (s)he is out of the room,” says teacher Mackenzie Heuer. “I additionally am concerned about students who may choose to escape to the bathroom and engage in prohibited activities (i.e., vaping, peer solicitation, etc.).”

A poll of 60 students shares their perspective.

Over half of the students polled say only a couple of their teachers give a limited number of bathroom breaks per trimester, and 51.9 percent say that this limited number has caused a problem for them.

Senior Brandon Atcher expresses his frustration. 

“I understand some kids use this privilege of going to the bathroom only to meet up with someone,” Atcher says. “This one bad apple causes the others to lose their privilege (because of) someone who doesn’t use a bathroom break for a valid purpose.”

Junior Jacob Upton agrees. “I feel as though you shouldn’t be able to limit the amount of times students can go to the bathroom,” he says. “If you have to pee, you have to pee.”

There are also special situations regarding bathroom usage that can place students into awkward situations.

Some illnesses and diseases would require students to need extra access to the restroom. Females also, of course, would need access to the restroom during their menstrual cycles in order to be sanitary.

Among students polled, 35 percent say that they would not feel comfortable speaking about an illness or disorder that would cause them to need to use the restroom to a teacher. 48.3 percent say that it would depend on how well they know the teacher.

Only 17.5 percent of females polled say that they would feel comfortable telling a teacher that they were on their period. A quarter of the sample size say they would only feel comfortable if the teacher was also a female, and another quarter say that it would depend on how well they know the teacher.

There is an obvious understanding by many students that bathroom policies are only there to ensure that they are behaving as they should be, but many feel restricted by them. 

Differing class policies and uncomfortable situations leave us with a simple question: To pee or not to pee?