Bed Wetting - Spencer, NY

My 5.25 year old son only recently stopped wearing goodnites. He still wets his bed about once every two weeks (about the same frequency as his 2 1/2 year old sister).

He uses the bathroom right before bed and we limit drinks after 7 (bedtime 8:30pm) - though it does not always make a difference.

He is a very deep sleeper and it has taken time. We have also been told that taller/bigger boys seem to wet their beds until later ages.

The "chucks" idea with the double sheet is great! Thanks.

Have you checked with his doctor? Sometimes it takes longer for the bladder to mature to the point of staying dry everynite. Or even he could be upset about a new daddy in his life. Suggestion get pull ups for nite time and check with doctor. My brother was 15 before he completely stopped wetting because of bladder not reaching right size till then.. good luck

What worked for my son is limiting drinks after 8 pm (he has a bedtime of 9 pm) and waking up 2 hours after 8 and take him to the bathroom. It took a while but it has worked; he's doing really well.

Both my sons had difficulties with bedwetting. The Dr recommended the alarm system at age 6 with #1 son after we had exhausted all the usual tricks - nothing with caffeine, no soda of any kind, no drinks after 6:30, waking him at 11 pm to pee.
the alarm with the probe for wetness worked in a week and there was never a bedwetting incident again with him. Not so with #2. We are all very heavy sleepers and the alarm never even woke him. We would set our alarm for 2 pm for another bathroom trip. Still did not help. We found on a cross-country trip that he had to go every hour all day. That explained alot. Urologist said he had an area of the uretheter (sp?) that needed widening. Had surgery. Problem of hourly wetting was relieved but not of bedwetting. We told son it was fine. Lots of little boys have the same problem but they don't tell their friends so they won't be teased. That made sense to him and made him feel much better. He continued to wet nightly until he was 10. Thank God for washers. Then he did it less frequently but at least once a week until almost 13. That was it . It just stopped - his bladder caught up to the rest of him. The most important thing is that we treated it as normal and no big deal. Sleepovers? Sure . Just bring your own sleeping bag (because you want to and you like to) and roll it up and bring it home to Mom the next morning. Daily morning shower is the routine, even at a friend's house. None of his friends or their moms ever knew a thing. And he is a well-adjusted, happy adult today.

B.,
this may sound crazy but talk to your ped. about having your son see a chiropractor to be adjusted. I knowthis sounds crazy but the bed wetting can having something to do with your sons spine being out of line and the adjustments help this and in turn help stop the bed wetting. I have not had to do this for bedwetting but I did have my almost 6 year old adjusted weekly when she was around a 1 for multiply ear infections, due to the adjustments we were able to avoid having tubes put in her ears. I have a friend who has used the adjustments for bed wetting, it was successful.

Good luck

Hi B.. The Malem Ultimate 1S bedwetting alarm saved me many sleepless nights. I got it on Amazon.com. It's a little expensive, about $90, but it worked in one week. I tried everything from about age 4-5 years old, nothing worked until I tried this alarm. This is how it works: you clip the sensor to the outside of your child's underwear and pin the alarm box to his pajama top. When your child begins to pee, the alarm goes off. Your child wakes up and you take him to the bathroom to pee. My son only wore the alarm for one week and he stopped wetting. Now he gets up at night to go to the bathroom. In the last six months, he's only had two isolated bedwetting episodes. He hasn't had to use the alarm since that first week. I hope this tip helps you.

My parents had the same trouble with my brother. They started taking him to the bathroom late at night (11pm - 12am) just before they went to bed and he usually made it through the night. I know its late but if your a late to bed you might try it!
Also I have heard and read articles that say t is not uncommon. The bladder can grow at a different rate than the rest of the body causing the problem. It's not a lack of wanting to get up but and inability to hold it. A.

Hi B.,

My oldest is 7 1/2 and he still has to wear Goodnights at night because the same thing happens. It is hit or miss whether making him go to the bathroom before bed and limiting drinks helps or not. One thing that has helped sometimes (again, not 100% though) has been to wake him up in the middle of the night to go again. I'm going to start trying that again once school is out. My MIL said my BIL was the same way.

My son's best friend is 7 and he goes through the same thing. It think it's more common than people realize and I think it's a "boy thing". My nephew was the same way.

I wish you the best and you can mention it to the doctor but just think about what he says. I am always hesitant to take that route because I automatically assume he is going to want to test and do medicine. :(

Hugs,
L.

My son is 5 going to be 6 in October and he has just now gone a month without wetting the bed!! He has nothing to drink past 6:30/7:00 since he goes to bed at 8, I won't even allow him to have a snack that is really juicy (such as fruit). He goes to the bathroom right before getting in his bed. So I understand your frustration but Boys are generally a bit behind in the bladder control than girls. My daughter is almost two and is potty training where he was almost three when done.

Good luck and if you are really concerned talk to his doctor.
Oh and on a side note my husband is in the Army and is currently deployed right now.

M.

Hi B.,
Boys will be boys! They just bedwet longer then girls especially if there is any stress in there lives--good or bad. Just get a pack of "chucks" (liners that they use in hospitals or for the elderly--ask in the pharmacy), make his bed with mattress pad, then sheet, then liner then another sheet. If he wets the bed you just pull off the sheet and liner, put on a new PJ--he goes back to sleep. You chuck the liner in the garbage, roll up the wet sheet with wet PJ's and you go back to sleep. It minimizes the middle of the night bedmaking.
Eventually they stop bedwetting, and the less you stress it the faster it happens with the least stigma.
A.

I had the same problem with both of my girls and my doc reccomended trying a bedwetting alarm. We went online to the bedwetting store and ordered the Malem ultimate enuresis alarm. It's hard work for both the parents and the child but it worked for both of my girls. They have to want to stay dry though, if they don't it won't work. My oldest daughter is a heavy sleeper so I was a bit concerned but it worked for her. It took her like 6 weeks and then she was accident free every night. My younger daughter was dry every night after 4 weeks!!