Last Updated on April 28, 2024 by Christine Kaaloa
Traveling a country, where there’s non-western toilets? Going hiking in the woods, where the toilet is the great wide open? Here’s a helpful aide for squeamish squatters… Ever heard of a female urinary device?
In this post I’m sharing The Freshette Review and my first experience using a female urinary device.
A Feminine Urinary Device or F.U.D. is a urinary aid for women. I learned about these toilet aids, when I began traveling countries, where I’d be subject to squat toilets.
This post contains affiliate links. I always buy travel insurance to cover my trips. Here’s a trip insurance finder tool to find a plan that matches your budget. I use World Nomads to cover travel theft and my adventure activities.
My First Time Learning to Pee Standing Up
Table of Contents: The Freshette Review | My First Time Using a Feminine Urinary Device + Best Options
I used to be terrified of Asian squat toilets. Traveling Asia and Southeast Asia (thank God for the bum gun!) literally remedied me of my squat toilet fears by continually forcing me to confront my fear everywhere I traveled: Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, India, Korea, Japan, China (they have a community toilet *shudders*), Laos, etc..
If you love trekking or doing homestays in Southeast Asia, be prepared to face the squat toilet.
I was preparing for my first trip to India and researching Indian trains with my girlfriend, when she dropped the bomb on me. There would be “Asian toilets” on the train and she was prepared to bring out her power-squatter legs for the ride.
” Asian toilets, what’s that?” I asked innocently.
“It’s when you have to squat over a hole to pee“, she replied.
I froze in horror. I’d never done that before. I wasn’t even sure if I’d be capable.
I’d been raised princess-like on a throne. The idea of squatting in the bushes, a hole in the ground or in a porcelain bowl grossed me out.
Besides that, who knew what scary things could leap out at me in the dark, with my pants down and my ass hanging low to the earth? Did I want my pants to mop up the remains of others before me? What if I missed my mark?
Watch my video on my scary rural Chinese toilet….
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My Freshette Review: My first pee-nis
On my first trip to India, I freaked out knowing that I would be encountering the squat toilet on Indian trains. My girlfriend emailed me a picture and wrote, ” It’s called The Freshette“
If you were stuck between fear or shame and mortification, which would you choose?Without thinking twice, I clicked on ‘Buy‘.
The Freshette is a made with a slim, firm hard plastic of good quality and comes with a removable funnel, which fits perfectly in the cup hole. You can easily collapse the funnel into the cup for easy packing. The cup is also wide enough for coverage so that urinating into it is easy and you’re not urinating on your hand.
I didn’t have to deal with the discomforts of a dirty or smelly toilet (read my experiences here) and it was loads easier and cleaner than peeing into a doctor’s cup!
After doing my business, I would clean it down with baby wipes, hand sanitizer or soap and water. (Yes, you have to touch your own pee, but it’s your pee. ) Then, I’d stick it back in it’s plastic zip bag.
What I love about The Freshette is that it is compact. The spout retracts into itself. Apparently, if you get good at it, you don”t even need to take off your pants to use it.
What is it like to pee standing up if you’re a lady?
I won’t say my experience was good nor will I say it was bad. It was “different”.
Like a man, you have to adjust yourself to hit the mark, but it’s relatively simple and not messy at all. It felt strange. It was a huge mental switch. But peeing like a man was easy, just as women think. It certainly made my trip less stressful.
Read: Do you need a female urinary device?
This urinary aid for women is the perfect alternative to learning how to squat.
What I love about using a female urinary device was that it gave me time to get used to the Asian toilet idea. If there was ever a highly unpleasant situation that I didn’t want to surrender to, I always knew I had a backup “friend.”
8 Best Feminine Urinary Device Options for Female Travelers
There’s a handful of wonderful female urinary device options from collapsable, biodegradable, stylish or no style. They all do the same thing.
Urinelle (7-Pack of disposables)
Women’s Lady J (check out the male version)
Travel John Portable Bathroom (Disposable 3 Pack)
Want to Learn How to Use a Squat Toilet?
If you want to learn how to use a squat toilet, check out my step-by-step guide!
Here’s other blogger guides on how to use an Asian toilet:
- Migrationology (a step-by-step guide)
- Girl Unstoppable (a female experience),
- GoBackpacking (a good breakdown).
I only used my female urinary device “friend” a few times during my trip to India. Knowing it was my desire to travel more Asian countries, I knew I eventually had to break my power squatting legs in.
But for women, who are as terrified about the ordeal as much as I was, I’d recommend a F.U.D. until you gain more comfort with using a squat toilet.
Trip planning for India ? Start here.
Planning your first trip to India? Start here. What to Pack for India Backpacking? Check here. Read about how to Get an Indian SIM , getting an Indian Tourist Visa for U.S. Citizens
Learn the India trip essentials from India scams, dress etiquette, itineraries, accommodations, food insights, how to take the bus, dealing with sexual harassment and indian trains, and staying at ashrams.
What do you think of the Freshette review? Have you ever tried a female urinary device?
