Volunteers Sought for Restroom Research

A German psychologist [1] is touting a cure for paruresis, fear among men of using urinals, and is seeking volunteers for his research to spend time in public restrooms. Philipp Hammelstein, a researcher at the Heinrich Heine University in Dusseldorf, Germany, believes that fear of urinating in public is not necessarily linked to the size of the sufferer's dick. "All healthy men should be capable of using a urinal," Hammelstein told Reuters. Findings, however, show that six percent of men have an irrational fear of urinating next to others. Hammelstein said he had already cured several patients and was seeking 60 volunteers for clinical trials to test his cure. The therapy lasts three months. He encourages patients to drink a lot, as well as to spend more time in public restrooms. Sufferers from this affliction usually first develop symptoms during puberty. "It arises through humiliating experiences to do with masculinity," Hammelstein said.