Woman Perplexed When Her Toilet Seat Turned Purple. What It Indicated Shocked Her Even More

In early 2020, as the world went into lockdown, one New York City bathroom became the surprising star of a viral TikTok. Naginah Gogolli noticed her white toilet seat mysteriously turning purple, revealing something even a pregnancy test hadn’t confirmed yet.

“At the beginning of 2020, my husband and I decided to stop using birth control. We weren’t actively trying — if it happens, it happens, it’s in God’s hands,” Gogolli tells PEOPLE. Life was already uncertain with her office going remote and the stress of the pandemic, but she never expected her toilet seat to be sending her clues.

Her first thought was simple and practical. “I thought that either me or my husband were wearing low-quality clothing,” she says, laughing as she remembers scrubbing the bathroom over and over.

Convinced fabric dye was the cause, Gogolli tried every cleaning method she could find. “We cleaned it several times a day…we were nonstop cleaning it,” she says.

The mystery got stranger when her family visited. “Just like in the video, my family started hinting that I was pregnant,” Gogolli shares. Her sister didn’t hold back. “She said, ‘You’re pregnant,’ and I was like, ‘No, I’m not,’” she recalls.

At the time, she hadn’t even missed a period. “I definitely wasn’t pregnant yet…there’s no way they’re right,” she laughs. But once she confirmed her pregnancy, she couldn’t wait to tell them they were right.

Her small apartment bathroom offered more clues. “My bathroom is tiny. Right next to the toilet, my thigh touches the sink — which is also white — and that part turned bright purple too,” she explains.

That caught her husband’s attention. “That same day he Googled it,” Gogolli remembers. The search results ranged from fabric dye to rare skin conditions. “The first results were normal color transfer from clothes, then skin disorders, and then some women reported this during pregnancy,” she says.

Even then, Gogolli wasn’t convinced. “My husband said, ‘You’re pregnant,’ and I said, ‘No, you’re all wrong,’” she laughs. But her body had other plans. “After dinner, I had a very strong stomach… and immediately ran to the purple toilet seat and started vomiting,” she recalls.

Her husband found it funny. “He was hysterically laughing: ‘No, you’re definitely pregnant. The purple toilet seat, now you’re throwing up — you’re pregnant,’” she says.

The next day brought confirmation. “Sure enough, I took a pregnancy test a day later… and I was pregnant,” Gogolli shares. It marked the start of an unforgettable journey. “I was shocked at how many other women had the same experience,” she says.

Her TikTok about the purple toilet seat went viral. “I was blown away by comments from people saying, ‘Yeah, me too,’” Gogolli says. Validation from strangers mattered more than she expected. “Seeing the feedback was really validating for me,” she adds.

Medical experts, however, hadn’t heard of it. “At my first appointment, I told my doctor, and she said, ‘Huh, I’ve never heard of that,’” Gogolli remembers.

While no medical research confirms that a purple toilet seat indicates pregnancy, Healthline notes that the color change could result from hormones or Chromhidrosis. Women have also shared similar stories on Reddit. One woman wrote, “Suddenly, I turned my toilet seat purple… I wasn’t wearing new clothes. Super weird.”

Despite the unknowns, the timing felt right to Gogolli. “It was a blessing in disguise… I was home, happy, even though awful things were happening outside,” she says. The extra time allowed her to enjoy the early days. “Finding out I was pregnant and being home in peace with my husband couldn’t have gone any better,” she adds.

Her pregnancy came with challenges. “My son has a rare heart defect… there was just a 1% chance of him having it,” she says. “He was diagnosed at 20 weeks with complete congenital heart block.”

Still, she saw signs of hope. “I think the purple toilet seat was a spiritual sign for me,” she says. “Every milestone felt miraculous. The fact he’s alive is such a blessing.”

Today, her son is thriving. “He will eventually need a pacemaker… but he’s such a little miracle,” she says. Doctors once doubted he’d survive, but he came home from the NICU healthy. “He’s almost 5 now, and I feel so lucky,” Gogolli shares.

Her story continues to connect with others. “Some people commented that their toilet seats turned purple too… and then they found out they were pregnant,” she says. That unexpected bond with strangers left her touched.

The experience also shaped how she trusts her body. “Ever since this pregnancy, I listen to my intuition and my body,” she says. “Many women are told not to trust their bodies, but your body is always giving you signals,” she explains.