07/15/2025
“Bathroom camping” 🛁 is trending and honestly, it makes sense. When life feels too loud, overwhelming, or emotionally heavy, sometimes the only place to just exist for a moment is a locked bathroom stall. No expectations. No pressure. Just a breath. 😮💨
But what if those moments of escape are actually your nervous system trying to communicate something deeper? 👀 You might not be hiding... you might be regulating.
Instead of shaming the instinct to retreat, let’s get curious about what you're really needing in those moments and how you can meet those needs in even healthier, more empowering ways.
Here are 5 things you might actually be craving when you “bathroom camp” — and ways to meet those needs more fully:
🔒 Privacy → Try taking a walk around the block, sitting in your car, or using noise-canceling headphones 🎧 to create a small bubble of peace wherever you are.
🤫 Silence → Try a calming playlist 🎵, a white noise app 🌊, or just a couple minutes with your eyes closed in a quiet space, even a hallway or stairwell can do.
🕶️ No one watching → Try facing a corner, resting behind sunglasses 🕶️, or finding a moment alone in a less isolating space — little acts of invisibility can be grounding.
🌀 Overstimulation → Try cool water on your wrists 💧, a textured fidget item 🪀, or slow breathing with your hands on your chest... your body may be asking for sensory relief.
🌬️ Mental escape → Try repeating a simple mantra like “I am safe to pause” 🧘♀️ or visualizing a place where you feel calm and steady 🌄.
💬🧠 And if you’re feeling stuck in a cycle of burnout, overstimulation, or emotional overload, our therapists at Sanity Center are here to help you make sense of it all and create spaces to reset that don’t require disappearing.
