We’ve all done it. You head to the bathroom, sit down, and scroll through your FYP or start playing a game of Candy Crush. Before you know it, your legs are tingling and 20 minutes have vanished. But according to researchers and medical case studies, that casual habit could be doing some serious damage.

Doctors have linked long bathroom breaks to everything from hemorrhoids to fainting. One study found a 46% spike in hemorrhoid risk for people who use their phones while they go. Others have documented nerve damage, pressure sores, prolapse, and cases where people passed out on the toilet and never woke up. It feels like harmless downtime, but there’s actually a lot of pressure happening—and that’s not good.

Here are the things your body might be going through behind that locked bathroom

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