When you're on a flight and you haven't paid extra to book a seat, finding out that you're sat in the middle can probably be safely considered as drawing the short straw. You don't have the luxury of the view from the window, and you don't have easy access to the aisle, meaning toilet trips are going to disturb somebody - and if they're not an understanding person, it can get a little awkward.
One man was left confused when a woman asked him to 'hold it' after he'd gone to the loo several times, as she wanted to sleep. He explained on Reddit's 'Am I the a**hole' forum that she would 'sigh, groan, roll her eyes, etc' whenever he got up.
He wrote: "Recently I flew home for the holidays. The flight was three hours long. I read that you dehydrate twice as fast on a plane as you do elsewhere, so I packed two 40oz water bottles and planned to drink both of them over the course of the flight (should note I'm a pretty big person and an athlete).
"I booked a middle seat because I’m on a budget and I also don't particularly care about the aisle/window and I used the bathroom four times over the course of the flight. Each time, the person sitting in the aisle got progressively more annoyed.
"She was sleeping and I woke her up each time. She would sigh, groan, roll her eyes, etc whenever I got up. When I used the bathroom for the third time, she asked me if I could try to hold it for the remainder of the flight so she could sleep. (I should mention it was 4pm, and there was no time change involved.)
"I didn't take her request too seriously and continued to drink water. When I got up for the fourth time, she told me I was rude for not following her request. I told her it was either that, dehydrate, or wet myself, and going to the bathroom seemed like the best option.
"She told me no one needs to drink enough to pee four times in less than three hours unless they have a bladder issue. She then asked me if I had a bladder issue and I said no, not that that's your business.
"I asked if she wanted to switch seats so I didn't have to climb over her, but she refused. She kept pressing me and I suggested that we flag down a flight attendant because I didn't feel comfortable resolving this on my own.
"The flight attendant sided with me, but at home, my family had some disagreements.
"Some said I did nothing wrong, and that I have the right to drink water and I’m not breaking rules, but others said it was discourteous to drink that much water during a flight and that I should be able to hold it, especially if the person on the aisle is sleeping. So I'm wondering if the people of Reddit think I’m the a**hole or not?"
People of Reddit thought that the original poster had been unreasonable to drink so much on such a short flight, suggesting he purchase the aisle in the future.
One wrote: "Yeah, I rarely sleep on flights and have done many 14+ hour flights. So I get the aisle seat cos I know I'll be getting up to use the bathroom whilst most of the plane is sleeping.
"Except for one flight. Booked the aisle as usual but due to circumstances didn't get any sleep the night before my flight.
"Ended up passing out for about 6 hours and woke up to my seatmate jumping over me (didn't touch me at all). I apologised so much and said she could have woken me but she said I seemed like I needed that sleep and didn't want to wake me.
"I think the most times I have ever needed to let a single person out was about 4. And that was a 15-hour flight. The original poster was ridiculous for a 3-hour flight and no UTI."
A flight attendant waded in to comment: "As a flight attendant, it is recommended that you drink a cup (or half bottle) of water per hour of your flight."
Another added: "I definitely don't let myself get dehydrated, but I am careful about what I drink/make sure I go before and plan to go after, because I specifically prefer to travel with a window seat and generally only get up if the rest of the row is standing up for some reason."
Do you think he was being unreasonable? Let us know in the comments.
