Potty Training at Night - Bothell, WA

hi N. i have been a nanny for 14 yrs and have potty trained a few and had some bed weters. i have alway limited there drinking later at night and i used to get then up at around midnight to go to the bathroom it worked most of the time some times they have to have help for a mounth or so till they get the body gets it some times it a medical thing i would try helping him first and then the doc hope this helps if you have ever thught about working from home call me 1-###-###-#### S.

i have had 2 boys and i must say the easiest to train by far . I was told by my first sons dr. to put the potty chair in his room next to his bed and wake him up to 2 times in the middle of the night to sit him on potty n after a couple weeks he would do so on his own . With my oldest it took him 4 days and he was potty trained and with my second it took waking him one night and he was doing it on his own . i hope this helps you

N.-
Honestly your son should have nighttime bladder controll by now, I have a 6 1/2 year old who has been potty trained since 2 1/2 nighttime included, I would talk to his peditrition about it.
Good luck
S.- Mother of 1 and 1 one the way

It is not uncommon for boys to wet their beds until they are 11 or 12. Discouraging but normal. It has to do with their bladders not being able to keep up with their growth.

My nephew just turned 11, and still wets the bed at times. He uses goodnights still, too. My brother-in-law is an attorney and spent all sorts of money taking him to doctors, and they all said that he will eventually grow out of it. One thing they've done that does help is they cut off liquids about an hour before bedtime, and make sure he goes to the bathroom right before bed. It seems to help a little. I don't think there's any sure fire way to stop it...just support him.

N.,

I have 2 boys ages 5 and 3 1/2. My 3/12 year old has a mind of his own and will only go potty if properly motivated, while my 5 year old has been going potty from age 3 1/2 after seeing his older cousin doing it, however like your son, he still wets at night and wears "Good Nights" to bed. I do find that if he uses the potty right before going to bed he tends to wake up dry, which he's very proud of. I guess I don't have any real advice other than to let you know that you're not alone, and I wouldn't really worry about it too much.

Hi N.,

I feel sorry for your boy. I was a bed wetter too, until I was 12 years old!! My oldest brother was 14 years old! My two younger brothers didn't have a problem. My Mother and her mother both wet the bed until they were about 12 years old also. One of my daughters also had problems, my other two children did not. It could be a heriditary factor.

A few years ago, I read up on it. I can't remember much but that it is a sleeping disorder.

I would consult a doctor if you are real concerned. Please, don't punish the boy or allow any teasing. He feels bad enough I am sure. Believe me, it is no fun waking up in a soaked bed! I was afraid that I'd be an adult & still do it...I was afraid I'd pee in bed with my future husband. That's never happened except one time when I was a young adult & real sick.

My Mom wouldn't allow us anything to drink after dinner...only monitored sips of water. She would also get us up a couple times a night. I don't think it helped any, it just made more work for her.

Good luck.

I have some advice to give. I just would like to know if you could give me any advice when you get some to help my son out. He's almost 10 and still wets every other day. He's a happy, well adjusted young man. The Dr. thinks it might be an underdeveloped bladder. I'm going to have that checked out. That's one thing that you could have checked. I know that they have moisture monitors that you put on their beds that sound off an alarm that wakes the child when they have had an accident. You might try that also. I have also tried a medication when my son was younger. I don't recall the name but it did help some and I am going to ask the Dr. to put my son back on it. It had no side affects and was very mild. I hope that you can get this under control for your son. It's so much harder on them when they want to have sleep overs and they have to worry about using night pants at someones house. God Bless you and I pray you get the help you need. I saw Dr. Roger Olsson at Edmonds Family Medicine, the ph# there is ###-###-####. My e-mail address is ____@____.com. Thank you, H. L. Kain

I read some where that doctors aren't worried about it until the child is over 5 years. Since your son is 6 I would talk to the doctor.

My son is 6 as well and cannot hold it at night. His DR said not to worry it was very common and about age 10 99 % would be night trained. If it is a problem for him there are things you could try such as no more water 2 hours before bed and having him go before bed, then waking him to go again before you go to bed. I guess it has a lot to do with their sleep patterns and as they get older they spend far less time in REM sleep. Good luck to you!!

If you get any good ideas- email me @ ____@____.com. I'm going thru this with my 3 year old. He'll go weeks without wetting the bed & then wet the bed a few times. He NEVER wakes up in the middle of the night to go so it's tough!

I feel your pain. My son is 9, almost 10, and he still has issues. He wakes up wet more often than he does dry. I've taken him to the doctor several times and every time the doc says not to worry. He'll eventually grow out of it. It is hard to deal with when he wants to have a sleep over so badly, but won't because he doesn't want anyone to know he wears good nights. Our doctor said he doesn't like to put kids on the medication because it doesn't help in the long run. He only uses it when kids are going to be sleeping away from home, like at summer camp.

While I agree that you could talk to the doctor (which you already did) I think its important for you to know that bedwetting is not something that your son can control. You know how bad he feels about it and how it effects his social life and you probubly know he would stop tomorrow if he could. Rewards, and alarm pads didnt work for my brothers. It is a underdevelopment. My husband and brothers all wet the bed, some into their teen years. You can have sleep overs and stuff as long as he changes in the bathroom and doesnt advertise it, no one will know he has to wear goodnights as my brothers even went to scout camps with them. It is an inconvinience but nothing to be pushed and is so commen he probubly has friends with the same problem and just doesnt know it. My own thought is, it might be connected to ADD/ADHD as it runs in my family along with the bedwetting and ADD is thought to be caused by a spot in the brain not developing as fast as "normal". Jen

Hi N.,

Ugh, this can be so frustrating,my first son was not able to be reliably dry every night until he was 8 or so.........I don't think doctors even worry about physical problems until they are at least 10. The way it was explained to me is that until "something" (sorry I can't remember the name now)anyway a part of their urinary tract system matures to a certain point, they are simply unable to do it until they can do it,no matter what you try to hurry them along. In fact it can cause a lot of stress for them trying to control something they have no control over.
I've also been told genetics plays a part, and sure enough my brother was approx that age and so was my hubby when they were able to be reliably dry. I'm sorry I can't be of more help, but really all you can do is get a good rubber sheet,some bed linen that will stand up to lots of washing and help him to not develop a sense that something is "wrong" with him until it passes.
Been there, done that and I feel your pain!

Hi, I have 5 kids and I want to reassure you the your son is normal! My oldest wet until he was almost 5 years old and our oldest daughter who is now 6 years old just stops a few months ago. In the same topic our youngest daughter never wet the bed once! Each child is different and he is still in the normal range. I actually know a Mom with an 8 year old who still wets the bed so don't be discouraged, it will pass!

I have heard that it is really hard for boys to learn to go potty at night. I also heard that males of all age tend to have a higher chance of wetting the bed and that it could even be linked to their rem sleep that they are actually dreaming about being at the toilet. I personally have a daughter and she doesn't pee while she is sleeping and hasn't since before she was potty trained however I have a friend who has two boys and she says that she use to wake them at 2:30 every morning to go potty and they now do it on their own. you could try this and some goodnights for a while and if he is still having trouble ask his ped. but I just wouldn't worry too much yet good luck.