Co-ed changing rooms: Briefs vs Boxers

[hawkeey]

---

Members do not see this ad.

Here's a dilemma a friend of mine recently encountered:

He is currently taking an anatomy course over the summer. Between lecture and lab he has to change into scrubs. He also happens to prefer briefs (tighty-whities) over boxer shorts. Unfortunately the lockers are located in the hallways and there is not enough room in the bathroom to change in a timely fashion. Recently, a female student in his class accused him of sexual harassment by changing in the hallway while wearing briefs.

I hope my friend doesn't read SDN... 🙂

I think the whole situation is kind of funny, but the female student seems to be quite serious. Is my friend being stupid or offensive by wearing briefs? Is the female student just being immature (she's taking gross anatomy after all)? I don't like briefs personally, but are they really that much more revealing than boxers? Maybe the school should give them a better place to change.

 

[DrMom]

moving to allo

 

[cfdavid]

Well, I'd say the female med student needs to grow up a bit. However, your pal should definitely find another place to change. I'm not sure it would matter which style underwear he prefers. It's just sort of bush-league to change in the hall, regardless of the situation. He could obviously find SOMEPLACE in the men's locker room at least for changing the bottoms....

I can't resist. I have this picture in my head of some dude in speedo-style briefs, perhaps a bit aroused, with this goofy look on his face, whilst staring intensely at the female med student....LOL

 

[ZagDoc]

I have this picture in my head of some dude in speedo-style briefs, perhaps a bit aroused, with this goofy look on his face, whilst staring intensely at the female med student....LOL

 

[45408]

one girl changed right in the hallway while wearing a thong. there were bras and panties as far as the eye could see. every guy I can think of was wearing boxers though. whitey tighties....no thanks.

 

[UnderdogMD]

Maybe the school should give them a better place to change.

I agree. Coed changing rooms would be so antiquated. If a school I went to did that I would try to wear the most outrageous thing just so people would complain and that would force the school to change the situation. This situation calls for The Todd. Banana-hammock-five.

 

[sprinkibrio]

There have been polls about which age groups of guys wear which underwear. At like 28 or something most all guys switch to briefs or boxer briefs, so if I saw someone in those I'd think he was self-confident and a little ahead of the gang. That girl is insane. Truly, honestly, I think boxers p*ssify guys, but I shouldn't have any say with anyone except my bf. 😀

 

[UnderdogMD]

As for boxers vs. briefs. Lets just say some guys need/like support while others don't. Never go into the boxers thing.

 

[StevenRF]

Why not just wear a towel while changing like when you're putting on a wetsuit?

 

[baylormed]

Briefs! *gasp*

I don't see what the big deal is. At one of the clinics where I worked, female doctors did complete physicals on male patients, and that included seeing many of them in their underwear and without it.

 

[njbmd]

Here's a dilemma a friend of mine recently encountered:

He is currently taking an anatomy course over the summer. Between lecture and lab he has to change into scrubs. He also happens to prefer in a timely fashion.

You friend can wear scrubs to class either under a labcoat or scrub pants under his other clothes. He can then change in the hallway by removing his labcoat or outer clothing without displaying his knickers. After lab, he can find a bathroom or male locker room and get rid of the scrubs without being on display. He may need to purchase a couple of sets of scrubs so that he can wash them but it takes less than 30 seconds to remove a lab coat or to remove outer pants and put on a scrub shirt over a T-shirt.

 

[brewmeistervi]

I am going to change in the hallway. And with early morning classes... I plan on attending commando. It's not like those cats haven't seen a hose before.

 

[Meatwad]

I am going to change in the hallway. And with early morning classes... I plan on attending commando. It's not like those cats haven't seen a hose before.

Lmao, a cruder statement, I could not think of myself.👍

 

[owlet]

Um... If she doesn't want to see, maybe she just shouldn't look. Time to grow up. It's pretty insulting to all the people who do suffer sexual harassment to have the "boxers vs. briefs" debate framed that way.

 

[kevinp2]

There have been polls about which age groups of guys wear which underwear. At like 28 or something most all guys switch to briefs or boxer briefs, so if I saw someone in those I'd think he was self-confident and a little ahead of the gang. That girl is insane. Truly, honestly, I think boxers p*ssify guys, but I shouldn't have any say with anyone except my bf. 😀

You'll likely see that age go up. 20 years ago boxers were far less common. It's not that people switch to briefs at a given age but that older guys never switched over...

 

[PreMD86]

Does this image come to anyone's mind?

 

[JRockdown]

I would go with wearing boxer briefs. It is a confident compromise that brings you into a league of gentlemen with these boys...haha, I just wouldn't worry about it. It is a shame any female med student would take the harassment approach. Sigh.

 

[cfdavid]

As for boxers vs. briefs. Lets just say some guys need/like support while others don't. Never go into the boxers thing.

I totally agree. Not sure it's one of orchid size though. But, I've never been able to do boxers.

 

[cfdavid]

I am going to change in the hallway. And with early morning classes... I plan on attending commando. It's not like those cats haven't seen a hose before.

oh, sh..t. i feel so immature with how funny i think this stuff is but, hey....
what are ya gonna do.....

 

[Tiger26]

one girl changed right in the hallway while wearing a thong. there were bras and panties as far as the eye could see. every guy I can think of was wearing boxers though. whitey tighties....no thanks.

yeah, we all changed in the hall to the extent that it became a running joke of sorts. I for one was a brief guy, so wear them loud and proud. Then again, looking fairly good without your shirt on makes it a little easier🙂

 

[Chulito]

yeah, we all changed in the hall to the extent that it became a running joke of sorts. I for one was a brief guy, so wear them loud and proud. Then again, looking fairly good without your shirt on makes it a little easier🙂

Pic?

 

[45408]

Pic?

he ain't lyin'. however, some people who did NOT look good without a shirt had no hesitation at removing it anyways.



yeah, TonytheTiger, you should ask your friend in the security office if they ever trained the cameras to that hallway on M/W/F at ~2pm for the live show.

 

[Ashers]

he ain't lyin'. however, some people who did NOT look good without a shirt had no hesitation at removing it anyways.



yeah, TonytheTiger, you should ask your friend in the security office if they ever trained the cameras to that hallway on M/W/F at ~2pm for the live show.

Did you hear about my M1 year, a female security guard talked to someone in my class about changing in the halls (basically when he was going to the lab in abnormal hours and the only one there).

I tended to change in the bathrooms, or stair wells. I didn't like the fact that my locker faced a bunch of windows and while I was in anatomy, there were lots of construction workers outside.

 

[Tiger26]

Pic?

Sorry no can do--I only take my clothes off for money😉


Yeah, we had to change by the windows too btw.

 

[Law2Doc]

There have been polls about which age groups of guys wear which underwear. At like 28 or something most all guys switch to briefs or boxer briefs, so if I saw someone in those I'd think he was self-confident and a little ahead of the gang.

I'm pretty sure that poll is no longer valid. From the tail end of the baby boomer generation on, boxers pretty handilly have surpassed briefs as what is "in". So post-teen folks in their 40s and under who wear briefs these days are pretty much in the minority. Someone in briefs may be self confident, but is not ahead of the gang. They are a throwback.

As for changing in a hallway in med school being sexual harassment by virtue of being in briefs (if that is all there is to the story), that woman needs to get a grip and realize that in this career she is going to be dealing with disrobing people, and many will be far less modest than someone in briefs.

 

[chanjurban]

I'm pretty sure that poll is no longer valid. From the tail end of the baby boomer generation on, boxers pretty handilly have surpassed briefs as what is "in". So post-teen folks in their 40s and under who wear briefs these days are pretty much in the minority. Someone in briefs may be self confident, but is not ahead of the gang. They are a throwback.

As for changing in a hallway in med school being sexual harassment by virtue of being in briefs (if that is all there is to the story), that woman needs to get a grip and realize that in this career she is going to be dealing with disrobing people, and many will be far less modest than someone in briefs.

You know, I tend to disagree with the general sentiment in this thread... Perhaps sexual harrasment is not what's happening here, but come on. Doesn't anyone here consider the appropriateness of the situation? There are appropriate places to robe and disrobe. I personally would be uncomfortable if one of my classmates chose to do so in a "public" manner in the middle of a hallway. I think it would be appropriate to bring it up to the administration if this is what students have to resort to.

 

[Ashers]

You know, I tend to disagree with the general sentiment in this thread... Perhaps sexual harrasment is not what's happening here, but come on. Doesn't anyone here consider the appropriateness of the situation? There are appropriate places to robe and disrobe. I personally would be uncomfortable if one of my classmates chose to do so in a "public" manner in the middle of a hallway. I think it would be appropriate to bring it up to the administration if this is what students have to resort to.

There are also time considerations. In my hall of lockers of about 50, there'd be about 40 people changing before lab. I was one of the few people kind of weirded out by it. I'd either store my stuff in the bathroom before class or have it with me, and run there immediately after to try to get a stall (with 200 people in the class, there was still a mad rush on the bathroom, even if the majority changed in the halls). If the stairwell was empty, that was another option.

 

[chanjurban]

There are also time considerations. In my hall of lockers there'd be about 50 people 40 people changing before lab. I was one of the few people kind of weirded out by it. I'd either store my stuff in the bathroom before class or have it with me, and run there immediately after to try to get a stall (with 200 people in the class, there was still a mad rush on the bathroom, even if the majority changed in the halls). If the stairwell was empty, that was another option.

In which case, the administration seriously should consider whether or not to provide
A. More time to change into scrubs or
B. More facilities in which to change

I can't be the only person around who would not want to be subjected to this (having to change in front of other classmates of the opposite sex or having to view it). It's a bit dehumanizing.

 

[Hernandez]

Keith, when you do a breast exam, the breasts are healthy or unhealthy, never "bangin' double Ds."

 

[Law2Doc]

There are also time considerations. In my hall of lockers of about 50, there'd be about 40 people changing before lab. I was one of the few people kind of weirded out by it. I'd either store my stuff in the bathroom before class or have it with me, and run there immediately after to try to get a stall (with 200 people in the class, there was still a mad rush on the bathroom, even if the majority changed in the halls). If the stairwell was empty, that was another option.

Agree. This is pretty much the case at most med schools I have seen. Those who are easilly embarrassed find a quiet place to change, the rest just jump out of their street clothes and into scrubs in the hallway (because it's quicker) -- no biggee. Most of your classmates are going to be doing exams on naked strangers daily for the rest of their professional lives. Urogenital exams, digital rectals, bimanual pelvic. So one would hope they could handle the sight of someone briefly in briefs. Comments and actions might make this harrassing, sure. But someone minding their own business and changing is something you simply have to get over if you are going into medicine. There is not the normal modesty in this profession.

 

[Cirrus83]

There have been polls about which age groups of guys wear which underwear. At like 28 or something most all guys switch to briefs or boxer briefs, so if I saw someone in those I'd think he was self-confident and a little ahead of the gang. That girl is insane. Truly, honestly, I think boxers p*ssify guys, but I shouldn't have any say with anyone except my bf. 😀

Err..I switched when I was like 13 and found out that boxers give more breathing room.

Most of the guys I know all wear boxers or boxer briefs...I think I know like ONE person who still wears briefs.

I do both boxers and boxer briefs, just because it's easier to work out in boxer briefs than boxers.

But uhh...you prefer briefs on your man? Why?!


Anyways, in response to the OP, the female med student should stop staring at your friend when he's changing, and also grow the heck up. Seriously, how is she going to give anybody an exam at this rate if some guy in underwear is too much for her. Simultaneously though, your friend should switch to boxers or boxer briefs, just because I don't think briefs are really all that great, lol.

That said...I was at Target the other day and they had...male thong briefs, lol, so he could tell the other student that at least he's not wearing male thongs, ahahahaha.

And seriously, what's so bad about people in underwear? Has this medical student never been to the beach? In a situation where people are all wearing next to nothing there's no real argument for sexual harrassment. Now, if the OP's friend was the ONLY student changing in the hallway or something, then maybe, but if everyone's doing it there's no reason why he can't wear his briefs, even if they're muchos uncool.

Plus, as Law2Doc points out there's also the fact that this is medicine, where we're going to be seeing all kinds of bodies and body parts for the rest of our lives, so the standard social modesties don't even really apply. How much modesty can you have when you have to disimpact someone's bowels?

 

[Meeher]

Can't you simply come to school with cleab scrub pants on? That would help eliminate the problem of changing in the hallway if you don't want to. I don't know if scrubs can be smell-free even if clean though.

 

[Ashers]

Agree. This is pretty much the case at most med schools I have seen. Those who are easilly embarrassed find a quiet place to change, the rest just jump out of their street clothes and into scrubs in the hallway (because it's quicker) -- no biggee. Most of your classmates are going to be doing exams on naked strangers daily for the rest of their professional lives. Urogenital exams, digital rectals, bimanual pelvic. So one would hope they could handle the sight of someone briefly in briefs. Comments and actions might make this harrassing, sure. But someone minding their own business and changing is something you simply have to get over if you are going into medicine. There is not the normal modesty in this profession.

Yep. Or in my case, I was located next to some of the best looking people in my class. I didn't fit in that category -- I wanted to spare them. 😀

I was uncomfortable and almost fainted while having to do a bimanual on a standardized patient, but I was <1 week post op and not feeling well.

 

[Ashers]

Can't you simply come to school with cleab scrub pants on? That would help eliminate the problem of changing in the hallway if you don't want to. I don't know if scrubs can be smell-free even if clean though.

My scrubs never smelled bad, except right after lab (I used 8 pairs from a previous job, rotated them, and washed them after wearing them once). The only time I ever wore scrubs to school outside of lab was when I wore scrub pants after sleeping in them and then went to school before an exam to study, and I didn't want to spend time/engergy in the morning changing.

Most people will tend to wear normal clothes to class and switch before lab. I'm generally a jeans and t-shirt person, and I'd feel funny wearing scrub bottoms when everyone else is wearing normal clothes, especially when I'd want to change into a scrub top before lab.

 

[Tiger26]

You know it's not like your cadavers are wearing scrubs or boxers or briefs or anything at all for that matter. Someone made the comment that seeing people change may be dehumanizing, but medicine requires you to be dehumanized in certain instances because of the procedures you'll be doing and issues you'll be encountering.

One of the most interesting things about anatomy is that we're 99.9999% similar on the inside and outside. It's not like we haven't seen it all before, and if people can be professional about it, then it shouldn't be a big deal.

 

[bretticus]

I love this thread in the way that I love the "how do I urinate in scrubs?" thread. I guess it's just something you don't think about until you're in the situation.

Seriously though, you're going to be a doctor. It's not like the guy was wipping out the frank and beans because he's a raging exhibitionist. Grow up.

 

[peace84]

What do you all think about women wearing thongs changing in front of everyone?

 

[MossPoh]

I get naked wherever and whenever I can.


Personally, this doesn't bother me being on the swim team and having to change for my middle and high school functions in the wide open for other things.........Hell today I dropped my pants in a parking garage and changed to go to the gym. No use carrying stuff in to me. I don't see how the guy is sexually harassing her. If anything she was eyeing what he has got to offer. Flip the tables baby, flip the tables.

 

[Chulito]

I don't understand how anything about this whole scenario could be described as dehumanizing. I understand that some people are less comfortable than others changing in front of strangers, but dehumanizing?

Would those of you who have been through this in med school say that the guys are almost never bothered by it while a certain percentage of the girls are? I ask because I'm used to male etiquette in the locker room, where no penis is too small and no body is too far out of shape to be paraded around in front of the world; but I've heard from more than one person that many women can be quite modest in their locker rooms, preferring to slip underwear on and off under the cover of a wrapped towel, and that some of their facilities even have private showers with curtains. How much more modest would these same women be if there were men around?

I do think that it's unfair to compare undressing in front of a bunch of colleagues that you see every day with the doctor-patient relationship. That's not to say that I agree with the person who has made an issue of public changing at her school; but undressed patients are not the same as undressed colleagues.

 

[Tiger26]

I don't understand how anything about this whole scenario could be described as dehumanizing. I understand that some people are less comfortable than others changing in front of strangers, but dehumanizing?

Would those of you who have been through this in med school say that the guys are almost never bothered by it while a certain percentage of the girls are? I ask because I'm used to male etiquette in the locker room, where no penis is too small and no body is too far out of shape to be paraded around in front of the world; but I've heard from more than one person that many women can be quite modest in their locker rooms, preferring to slip underwear on and off under the cover of a wrapped towel, and that some of their facilities even have private showers with curtains. How much more modest would these same women be if there were men around?

Actually, most of the people in our hallway were ladies. That's the running joke we had, since we could always bring up at the bar that weekend how we had all already changed together that week anyway. If they had a problem with it, I didn't see it.

 

[PeepshowJohnny]

I still think one of my proudest moments in med school was being the pioneer of the "I'm going to change in the hallway, look if you feel like it" style. Most girls and even other guys would duck in classrooms, in bathrooms,down other hallways. Hell, half the time I'd be in boxers by the time I got my locker open.

 

[def jeff]

I still think one of my proudest moments in med school was being the pioneer of the "I'm going to change in the hallway, look if you feel like it" style. Most girls and even other guys would duck in classrooms, in bathrooms,down other hallways. Hell, half the time I'd be in boxers by the time I got my locker open.

Talk about making your momma proud!

 

[ZagDoc]

Talk about making your momma proud!

As Christopher "Ludacris" Bridges aptly put: "Shake what yo momma gave ya"

 

[Darjeeling]

Here's a dilemma a friend of mine recently encountered:
He is currently taking an anatomy course over the summer. Between lecture and lab he has to change into scrubs. He also happens to prefer briefs (tighty-whities) over boxer shorts.

I am probably alone in this, but when I read this post I sat puzzled for quite some time, trying to imagine why anyone would choose to wear a pair of briefs on top of a pair of boxers...

I get it now.😀

 

[alwaysaangel]

Yeah dehumanizing or sexual harasment is a bit too far. Unless of course everyone else is changing in appropriate places and only he is standing in the hall half naked. But thats not what the OP made it sound like - sounds like they're all changing and the woman in question finds his briefs innapropriate.

I think next time she says something he should tell her that he finds her choice of underwear also innapropriate and offensive. For she may find his package offensive in his briefs, but he finds her camel toe far more offensive in hers.

But seriously, grow up. If you're uncomfortable with nudity go change elsewhere. And for everyone else, for expedience and convenience changing in a hall is fine. Its not dehumanizing. I'd really like the person who said that to explain that one. How is changing in front of members of the opposite sex dehumanizing?! No one is looking, they're all just trying to get changed and wondering how much fat scraping there will be today. And even if they did look - almost any underwear covers as much as a bathing suit (breifs cover as much as a speedo if you've ever been to a swimmeet/diving competition and some women wear thongs to the beach). So whats the big deal?

As far as changing in thongs - I don't know where my school changes (not there yet) but I'll be doing that if we change in public. I'm not changing underwear for med school (I mean come on as if it won't control enough of our lives already). You just put your back to a locker and change - unless someone is REALLY focusing on you they shouldn't be able to tell if you're wearing a thong or bikinis anyway. (I used to co-ed change in high school to for band/color guard and we usually had to wear thongs for our costumes. Even back then no one cared or payed attention) And plenty of women today wear thongs that I'm sure lots of girls in med school do the same thing.

 

[samenewme]

Underwear is underwear and I don't think boxers make it all that much better. I changed in the hall if I had a skirt on so no one could possibly tell what kind of underwear I had on. I wore camisoles under my scrubs (which weren't scrubs, anyway, just old clothes from garage sales). I walked into lab one day and announced to my lab teammates that I had just learned that it was acceptable to change in the hallway in a thong if you tried to stick your butt in your locker. They started to head out to the hallway to see and were disappointed when I told them that the show's over.

The problem I had with blatantly changing in the hallway was that our halls were used by researchers and other staff who really didn't sign up to see med students' assets, and I felt it was unprofessional and discourteous to be flashing these people. Our school told us not to change in the hallway but does not provide adequate space for everyone to change in a locker room or bathroom and does not enforce its policy.

 

[EBI831]

would said female classmate have accused him of sexual harassment if they had been at the pool and he chose speedos(think European beach style or Olympic style) over shorts? Also, for some reason when i think boxers i think of the rows of undies at target and in jcrew catalogues with animal prints and golf clubs and stuff patterned all over them and then i automatically think of children and preschoolers. whoever said boxer briefs were key was right. maybe b/c i'm a girl i don't understand the significance and the balls it takes to wear them but what's the difference b/w that and the guys who wear biker shorts in broad daylight in public places as they cycle? it's the same concept isn't it?

 

[hawkeey]

Ok... some updates and clarifications.

Apparently at this school almost everyone is changing in the hallways. Girls are usually wearing sport bras and some kind of shorts if they change in the hallway. There is a bathroom nearby, but it's small (two stalls and one urinal). The girl has no problems with the guys in boxers or even boxer briefs. She claims that she can see 'things' from the side view when guys wear briefs. The briefs are not speedos, but your standard white Hane's or FOTL cotton briefs.

I passed on some of the suggestions. He had a pair of boxer briefs, and she was ok with that. The problem is he doesn't have time to wash them again for tomorrow.

As for what is cool right now, I think that boxers are on their way out and that boxer briefs are now becoming trendy. They're the best of both worlds!

At my medical school, students change in co-ed carrels and there are usually no problems there. People who have problems are usually those that go the restroom. I think the allied health students have to change in the hallway though.

In some ways this is a maturity problem, but the main problem is a systematic one. The administrator at his school who handles thesexual harassment incident thought the same thing and is trying to fix the problem. Apparently the locker rooms are not very close to the anatomy labs, and these lockers are closer.

Does anyone think that this might be sexual harassment in the other direction? The girl is obviously looking at my friend's groin and demanding that he change his underwear to her liking. My friend now feels that the environment has become quite hostile and feels uncomfortable.

 

[alwaysaangel]

Does anyone think that this might be sexual harassment in the other direction? The girl is obviously looking at my friend's groin and demanding that he change his underwear to her liking. My friend now feels that the environment has become quite hostile and feels uncomfortable.

Definitely agree. If changing in the hall is what is expected and accepted then he should be allowed to be comfortable doing so. She has made him uncomfortable. He did nothing to her about commenting on her type of underwear of forcing her to look. I think she should be in more trouble from her comment than him.

If a guy commented on a girls choice of underwear in that situation it would definitely be sexual harassment (legally - I still think its a bit excessive). It shouldn't be any different with different sexes.

 

[Noeljan]

Err..I switched when I was like 13 and found out that boxers give more breathing room.

Most of the guys I know all wear boxers or boxer briefs...I think I know like ONE person who still wears briefs.

I do both boxers and boxer briefs, just because it's easier to work out in boxer briefs than boxers.

But uhh...you prefer briefs on your man? Why?!


Anyways, in response to the OP, the female med student should stop staring at your friend when he's changing, and also grow the heck up. Seriously, how is she going to give anybody an exam at this rate if some guy in underwear is too much for her. Simultaneously though, your friend should switch to boxers or boxer briefs, just because I don't think briefs are really all that great, lol.

That said...I was at Target the other day and they had...male thong briefs, lol, so he could tell the other student that at least he's not wearing male thongs, ahahahaha.

And seriously, what's so bad about people in underwear? Has this medical student never been to the beach? In a situation where people are all wearing next to nothing there's no real argument for sexual harrassment. Now, if the OP's friend was the ONLY student changing in the hallway or something, then maybe, but if everyone's doing it there's no reason why he can't wear his briefs, even if they're muchos uncool.

Plus, as Law2Doc points out there's also the fact that this is medicine, where we're going to be seeing all kinds of bodies and body parts for the rest of our lives, so the standard social modesties don't even really apply. How much modesty can you have when you have to disimpact someone's bowels?

I agree. What the heck that girl is silly. He is just changing, it's not like he is grabbing her. This is a tad different but reminds me of something that gets on my nerves lately. In the locker room of the gym (you know with showers and stuff) I have seen women come in with their sons (probably like 5-8 or so) and have to nerve to give people dirty looks for walking around naked. Hello, it's a locker room. oh and it's a WOMENS locker room at that.