Bed Wetting Problem...

I also have heard there is a medication for this and have actually been given the name of it, but lost it with the short term memory I have! I am going to need it for my seven year old, who has taken a relapse since we moved here, so let us know if you find it before me! ;o)

Here are just a few things that helped me with night training my son who is now 4.5.

* no liquid after 5pm- remember things like ice-cream, applesauce etc are liquid.
* Have your child go potty a couple of times before bed. Once before a story and again after for example.
*Take your child to the bathroom once or twice before you go to bed. Make them wake up and walk to the potty and back to bed.
* If your child does wet the bed, make them help change the sheets and change their own pajamas. They should also put the soiled sheets and pjs into the wash.

These things seem harsh but in the long run it helps. They will learn to wake up and walk to the bathroom before you know it.

*Just to be clear- I DON"T SHAME MY CHILD FOR BEDWETTING!!

Just one suggestion-- I have a hard time keeping my kids from drinking the bathwater. Could she be drinking it when you're not looking-- maybe she's having more liquids before bed than you realize. My daughter's diapers are soaked the morning after baths, and my four year-old son has more trouble those nights than others.

My father wet the bed until he was 13. He told me that his parents used to shame him endlessly about it (made him sleep in the tub, etc.), but it was something that he could not control. I would not suggest you make your child change the sheets, etc. like the other poster said to do. That is just cruel. Anyway, my dad said that one day when he was 13, the bedwetting just stopped. He never did it again.

My son is almost 4, and I'm in the process of getting him nighttime potty-trained. He has been trained for almost a year, but still sometimes wets at night. Because of what my father went through, I am very gentle with my son, in regards to his nighttime wetting. My overall philosophy is that no one wets the bed FOREVER.

M.-
Could it be something is acting as an irritant in the bathwater? Sometimes certain chemicals in the bath can actually cause urinary tract infections. Maybe try a non-irritating bath soap (like unscented California Baby). Just a thought.
-Karen C.

I agree with the one mom who suggested your daughter could be drinking the bathwater. If she's not wetting the bed any other time, it could be that she's drinking it. That was my first thought too. Otherwise, I'd check with the pediatrician. Allergies or a UTI could be another potential cause. Also, sometimes stress can be a trigger to cause a bedwetting incident (I had problems with this as a child myself), so you might want to look at what's different about your routine on bath nights that could be a stress trigger. That's all I can think of. Good luck!

I know how this is. I have a bedwetter too and she is 8. When she was 6 we started using goodnights on her. She would do it every night for a while and then sometimes she would go 3 or 4 without wetting. Even if she has nothing to drink a couple hours before bed, and goes to the bathroom she still will wet. I wet my bed till I was 11. There is an alarm you can get for this and some meds too. I hope this helps. I know it can be frusterating.

S. Bailey CLD
Aurora
www.tendermomentsdoula.com

I would suggest not letting your daughter have any liquids for at least a couple hours before bed time. The 30 minutes you are allowing doesn't seem to be enough. Good luck!

Check out Chiropractic and Acupunture. They can help your daughter AND you. Check out www.icpa4kids.org.

M.:

this is clearly not my area of expertese but I would look at allergies.. is there something in the bath water/ssoap that could be an allergen?

P., RLC, IBCLC
Pres. Lactation Support Group, Inc
www.lactationsupportgroup.com

We had great success with a little alarm divice that you put in their underwear. As soon as a drop of liquid hits the pad, it signals an alarm (clipped to their pillow) that wakes them up to go. We had nightly trouble for years with one of my children, even trying special medication, and this worked in less than a month. Unfortunately, I don't remember what it is called, but I'm sure you could find it if you did a Google search for bedwetting alarm...

My 6yo actually has had (and still has) a problem with day-wetting (rarely night), with frequent SPRINTS to the bathroom, often too late. There were no other symptoms, but the doctor noted and tested for a UTI - came back positive. I stress that there were no other symptoms, because we usually look for child complaining about pain during urination, and it wasn't there.

Have the doctor do a urine culture to be sure - the longer it's left untreated, the worse it becomes, traveling up and damaging the bladder and kidneys.

BTW: recent press about an herbal supplement that's been shown to help prevent recurrence of UTIs, when used in conjunction with antibiotics, called "Forskolin". Not sure how good, but the press release out of Duke University earlier this week looked good.

when i was going through that with my kid i would make sure he didnt get anything to drink about 1 or 2 hours before bed time. and then i would make him go pee before going to bed and then i would wake him up before i went to bed. good luck

I have a 12 year old boy with the same problem. My doctor told me not to have him bath/shower 1 hour before bed, because this relaxes you and that is when he would wet also. Also, drinking liquids before bed won't stop you from wetting the bed either. You would have to not drink anything 3-4 days for you not to wet the bed, got this from his doctor also. We just started giving him Desmopressin Acetate Nasal Solution, a nose spray which is suppose to be very good. Unfortunately, it can take up to 10 days to take effect. Since we just started it 2 days ago, I can't tell you if it works. But, since he has used it, we have had no accidents. And he was wetting the bed just about every night. Talk to your doctor about this med and see if it will work for your daughter. We also tried the alarm and that didn't work, but for the alarm to 'ring' the child has already wet. They are kind of expensive also.

Good luck and Blessings to you
D.