Bed Wetting at Age 6?? - Sylvania,GA

Have you tried waking him up around 12pm (only suggestion on the time) and taking him to the bathroom Also you can put lights in the walls so if he wakes up he could see his way and not be sacred of the dark

I have a cousin who I adore who had this problem up until he was 10. I don't have any miracle suggestions on getting it to stop but I did want to tell you this. Make sure he knows he is still normal and that it's okay to need a little extra practice with this! Maybe tell him together you guys will find a solution so that way he knows your trying to help him. (My cousin was very embarrassed and confused by his bed wetting and it led to other problems!)

Hi, have you talked to his ped. yet?
My sister has two boys and both of wet the bed late. One was 8 before he stopped but she had to use those underwear that have ringing that sets off if you wet them. He struggled. It made him very insecure. She has her other boy who is now 6 he still pee's in the bed and I find her not encouraging him to use the potty so the oldest feels more mature. ITs really sad but talk to his ped. and talk about it to him. Once my sister talked to her oldest (which she was scared to do in fear he would feel worse) he told her he would do anything to stop.
There are medications and all sorts of alarm pads or underwear. Try doing some research online and with his dr.
Goodluck. ITs a rough one to deal with and I felt so much for my sister.

Don't compare these children. They are different. I have a granddaughter who is now 11 and has finally become totally dry overnight. They do sleep so soundly they just don't wake up. Get some of the hospital bed pads for the bed and you could also use some of the adult incontinence diapers that will probably hold more urine. Cut down on the liquid he drinks with his dinner meal and no more than 1/4 cup of water in the last 2 hours before bedtime. As his bladder enlarges as he grows he will outgrow this. Just don't make him feel inferior for something he cannot help. I know I would occasionally wet the bed until about 7 years old and we did not have any incontinence products at that time. V.

This is a lot more common than most people realize, and is completely normal. In fact, there are a lot of previous posts about this that you may want to read. Bedwetting has to do with neurological development in the brain. There is nothing you can do to hurry the process along, and it varies from person to person. It can be hereditary and is usually more pronounced in boys. It is not uncommon for boys to have issues up to age 10 or so. Try the Good Nights. They tend to be larger than pull-ups. There is nothing your son can do about it, so please be gentle with his feelings and self esteem. It's best not to make an issue of it and to be as discreet as possible. My 11 year old gradually outgrew it over the past couple of years. My 9 year old still has issues, although his younger sisters (ages 7 and 5) never had issues with this. Your son will outgrow it. Give him plenty of time.

Have you discussed this with your ped? It seems that I read before that if your child was not dry during the night (or wake himself up to go) by age 5 or 6 (can not remember) that maybe there is some medical problem. Not a serious one...just one where they need some medical help to be able to control. Or, they do have those "potty alarms" that you hook up to your child that wakes them up when they feel it start to get wet. It doesn't prevent them from doing it but I think it trains them to know when they have to go- like a Pavlov's dog type of thing (not to compare your child to a dog by any means!!!).
Good luck!

Hi M.!
I am a Chiropractor and I must say I have to disagree that this is 'normal' by any means. Especailly if it is happening every night... I have seen this a lot and it is from abnormal pressure being put on his neurological system. This leads to spinal misalignment, which simlpy put... Chiropractic would help him! It is VERY common and normal for this type of misalignment to happen in children of any age and in adults. However, if left un treated, it could lead to his bladder muscles/control being weaken over time. The pelvis region contains a host of nerves (along with his lower back) that control his bladder and reproductive system. Chiropractic is very gentle, safe and painless for childern. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. You have nothing to lose in getting him checked. Best of luck to you guys:)

The book _Dry All Night_ was a big help for us.

We used to take care of foster boys and found that many wet the bed at night. Their problem was that they had a lot of fear of punishment. Helping them see that there was no punishment for bed wetting, just an increase in responsibility (washing sheets, making bed, etc.) helped them get over it.

With our own child, the problem was very sound sleeping, but the book really helped.

D. S, (mom to 5 and now a granny)

Sometimes it just happens that way. There is a part of the brain that is slower to develop in boys than girls (and I can't think of what it's called right now) that says "wake up!" when the bladder is full -- it sometimes just doesn't fully develop for a while. There are prescriptions your son can take. I would suggest talking to his pediatrician. I'm sure your son is aware that he is old for bed-wetting and probably embarrassed. I would just get a waterproof mattress pad (I'm sure you have), and the rx for him. Perhaps those overnight pullups I've seen advertised on tv... Though this is not average, this is normal.

Also:

http://www.healthscout.com/ency/1/ImagePages/19294.html

http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/facts_for_families/bedwetting

My only suggestion is to not stress about it and not make him feel bad about it. If you've discussed the issue with his ped. and there is nothing physically 'wrong', then just wait it out.

I hated spending money on GoodNites for years but believe me, it's easier than worrying about it. My son finally outgrew it when he was almost 11. Literally he wet the bed every night until one week he only wet the bed 2 or 3 times and then the next week it was once and then nothing after that and he's never had another accident. We tried the meds (talk about making him a zombie), we tried the waking up in the middle of the night 3 times, the no drinking after 7pm, etc. None of it works for a child who really has a bedwetting issue.

I would suggest going to www.goodnites.com and reading over the material there. And then show the site to your son; there's a link on the top right corner just for kids. He will be embarrassed about this issue but if you let him know that it's not his fault and devise ways for him to still do everything any other kid would (spending the night away for example), it won't be such a big deal.

I too wet my bed for years. Up into my teens. My mom would hold my liquid intake after a certain time. Wake me in the middle of the night. Try different tactics to help alert me that I wetting. None of those worked. My mom took me for lots of tests and they found out that I had a quite smaller kidney then the other one. Which made my bladder realease earlier than need be. I then knew I had to skip sleepovers and overnighters with friends or groups. It was a toll I had to pay for not getting embarresed by my friends and keep my self esteem. I wish I had an easy solution for you. Unfortanately he will just have to outgrow it himself. Unless there is a new technology or medicine that is proven to work. Just make sure he is not being judged or critized for something he can not control. Good Luck

I finally quit wetting the bed completely by the time I was 13. I had a brother and a sister, and they never had this problem. My mom did the stop liquids, waking up in the middle of the night, even medication (which worked most of the time). The doctor told me that I was just a heavy sleeper (I still am).

You should talk to your ped, though. Sometimes bed wetting is an early sign of juvinile diabetes. Another thing he might want to keep in the back of his mind is that they are thinking that kids who do still wet the bed up until 10 or so, may become diabetic in their older years.

Wow your situation sounds just like mine, only my kids are girls. My oldest is about to turn 7, and her younger sister (now 5) has been dry at night since 23 months! We have taken her to the potty late at night before we got to bed, and that sometimes helps, but I am convinced that she's just such a heavy sleeper, she doesn't wake up to go. I was interested in the responses too. It looks like we just have to wait it out...good luck

I have the same problem with my 7 (almost 8) year old. I have talked to several pediatricians and they all said most kids have to outgrow it on their own. They also said don't wake them at night because that just teaches poor sleep habits and doesn't solve anything. Absolutely under no circumstances should you use the nasal spray!! It has been linked to seizures and death and the American Academy of Pediatrics has cautioned against its use. You can go to the FDA website and look up Desmopressin nasal spray.

Also, were either you or you husband a bdwetter? If so that makes your child 50% more likely to wet the bed and they should outgrow it about the same age as you did.

Good luck! I hpe this helps.

M.,

I have a 9 year old that still wets the bed at night too. Unfortunately, there is no quick fix. They just have to grow out of it. (or grow into their bladders) Our doctor says that typically boys have more immature bladders and take longer to mature than girls. My son may have an accident once or twice a month at this point. They will get less frequent the older they get and I imagine one day they will just come to a stop.

Hang in there. It gets better.

D.

My oldest son turned 6 in October and up until 17 days ago, wet a pullup 5 out of 7 days in a week, sometimes wetting thru it too. I tried waking him up when I went to bed to go, bribes, no drinks after dinner etc...Nothing worked. He is a very sound sleeper, a siren could be next to his ear and he wouldn't budge. Also, it never bothered him that he wore a pullup or wet the bed sometimes. It bothered me more, thinking something was wrong. Not that you do, but, I would suggest not making a big deal of it and really, if he is such a sound sleeper like my son, there is not much you can do until he is ready and feels the sign to get up and go. My son has been dry and wearing underwear for 17 days. We let him wear underwear after 5 days of being dry. Who knows what clicked but something did. Don't worry, he will get it soon. If it doesn't bother him yet, don't worry to much. He is not the only one. Hope this helps.

Both my daughters were bed-wetters and so was I and so was my husband's brother. It is an inherited trait I was told and they will outgrow it. I did the same thing by cutting off drinking, etc but to no avail. Unfortunately I never found a remedy and they did outgrow it by the time they were 12 (one about 8 yr. old). It was bad with girls because of all the sleepovers but I told the other parents and we also had the absorbant pads they use at the hospital and put that inside the sleeping bags to help hide the embarrassement. I also found comfort after sharing that some of their friends shared the same problem and so there was no teasing at school.

Hi M.,
Please know that there are many children even older than yours that are still wetting the bed. Our pediatrician said it usually runs in the family so if you or your husband had a problem with it, your children have an increased chance of it. My son's actually seemed to get worse instead of better so we went to the pediatrician to discuss it and she made several suggestions and we researched all of them and decided on the nasal spray that she prescribed. It has worked wonderfully. He squirts one spray in each nostril before going to bed (after using the bathroom one last time) and he has NEVER had an accident since he started a few months ago. He was really begining to feel embarrassed and didn't want to go to sleep overs, so it's really helped his self image. It made it worse that his three year old brother never has accidents and he (at 9) was doing it nightly. Your first step should be to talk to the pediatrician to see what they suggest. I'm sure they will mention the nose spray.
Good luck!

My brother had the same problem... he even has a pad under him that sounded an alarm at the first drop of liquid that he SLEPT through. He finally out grew it. Sorry, but after all they did, that was the thing that finally cured him. Age. So... if your getting him up in the middle of the night doesn't satisfy everyone, stay sleeping. This too shall pass.
(did you happen to ask your DH or MIL whether your DH had the problem when he was younger? Or anyone else in the family)

I have an eight year old daughter who still wears Goodnites every night. I have tried everything short of alarms and meds myself. Our doctor says not to worry about it because she takes after her dad who wet the bed until he was nine and she should outgrow it. My two younger daughters have worn panties to bed since they were three and have had no problems. All that said, I wouldn't be worried about it right now. He should outgrow it. Have you been to the Goodnites website? You should check it out if you haven't. Along with good advice you can print coupons for Goodnites every month. Good luck!

I'm surprised more people haven't responded about the alarm. I'm 34 now, but I was still wetting the bed at your son's age. There was a company that came to the house to set up the alarm. When I would start to wet the bed at night the alarm would sound very loudly and I would jolt awake. My mom would come in and help me. I had to go to the bathroom and splash cold water on my face to wake me up completely. Then, with my mom's help, I had to change my own sheets. Then I could go back to bed. It worked! I stopped wetting the bed. I could finally go to sleepovers and be with my friends. I asked my mom recently how long it took to work. She said very quickly. She couldn't remember exactly, but said less than a month. I know they sell alarms online, and I don't know the difference in those and what I had, but the concept works! I highly recommend it. Mine was a pad that went under the fitted sheet. Anyway...good luck!

M.- I have SO many friends with this same problem..did you or your husband wet the bed> or one of your sisters or brothers? I've heard that your child will outgrow it whenever you did (or nearest relative did) there is nothing you can do about it...I know it must be so hard- especially getting to the age where they want to have sleepovers and things- but don't make him feel guilty - they really can't control it. You could talk to your pediatrician about ways to stop- I do know a friend whose pediatrician put her son on some medication (dont' know the name of it) and he was on it for about 6 or 8 months then - he didn't have to take it anymore and stopped wetting the bed- so maybe you could ask about that???
Good Luck