Bedwetting Solutions Help !

I have a 13 year old son that from the age of 7 until about 2 months ago wet the bed. We did the doctor thing also...same type deal. Unfortunately, it appears that some kids just do this and eventually grow out of it. My son seems to have finally out grown this very embarassing situation. However, one of the things we had him doing is to take his wet bed sheets and wet pajamas to the area where we keep the dirty clothes plus he had to tell us so that we could wash the items first thing in the morning. Once he got older, we showed him how to wash the items himself. We also got him the bedwetting pants, at least for as long as he fit in them. We also got a plastic mattress cover, so that the mattress didn't get ruined. I am sorry you are going through this, it is aggrivating, but it is a fact of life for some children. I am a mother to 3 and step-mother to 2 and know the embarassing problem for the child as well as trying to take care of the odor in that childs room. Good luck on this situation!

My brother had a bed wetting problem until he was like 10 or 11. One day he just grew out of it. If his doctor said everything looked normal then it probably is. You can get a second opinion. My parents were always supportive of him...we as siblings were not allowed to tease him or talk about it. And he eventually ended up doing it less and then none at all.

Deb,

You are doing a great job in not ragging on him when he wets his bed. Just make sure that when that happens, he needs to wash his sheets the next morning.

My son had the same problem and we called Pacific International. Their phone # is 800 477 2233. They are great!!!! and guarrantee their services for life.

Good luck!

I'm so with the person that said DDAVP. My twin sister and I had the same problem and my parents put us on that stuff and it honestly worked wonders. We were about your sons age or maybe even older. We didn't have any side effects either. Its a simple nasal spray and you wonder how in the world it would make you stop wetting the bed, but it does and I can't tell you what kind of self esteem it gave us. Bed wetting is hard to understand because it is frustrating and it just seems like laziness, but there is honestly no control and its ever bit as frustrating to your son as it is to you.....trust me. I can tell you that he wishes everynight that he will just wake up dry in the morning and 'be normal' Honestly good luck with that. I have a feeling I already have one on my hands. My 5 yr old daughter doesn't have the problem and that was such a relief, but I'm pretty sure my 2 yr old son will once he is potty trained. He wets through his diaper everynight already. Good luck and try the DDAVP - your problems will be over in no time.

I wet the bed until I was almost 11 and my son wet the bed until he was 13. My other children stopped when they were 6 and 8 and with him being the oldest, he was quite miserable. We tried everything and took him for a check up also. Just be patient and keep encouraging your son. He will stop eventually. Hang in there! Hugs!

My daughter had the same problem until about 6 months ago (she's 11 now). Anyway, our pediatrician gave us a prescription for desmopressin. She took one right before bed everynight and it worked like a charm. Unfortunately, bed wetting is just one of those things kids have to "outgrow" as their bodies develop (I was one of those kids myself!), but this medicine made it so much easier for both my daughter and us. She even felt confident enough with the medicine to go to sleepovers! Good luck!

Hi D., my daughter had the same problem. As a nurse myself I knew I had many options like meds, surgery to tighten the muscles, alarm devises in the bed etc. Her Dr. didn't seem to be too concerned but as she got older 9, 10 and 11 and would miss out on overnight camps, sleep-overs with friends it was really h*** o* both of us. Basically I did nothing but wait. She did wear overnight pants, she would have to wash her sheets if she leaked. The rules were no overnighters until she was dry for 2 months. She did everything to get out of that one, so we did have some tough years. In December 2007 she turned 11. In February of this year she finally started having dry nights and WOW was that an exciting time for all of us. I have to admit as much as I tried to let it go and be patient I did have some very frustrating times. I would get upset with her if she drank too much at night, or accuse her of just being lazy and not wanting to get up. The truth of the matter is she falls into this deep sleep that even the sound of a fire truck in the house wouldn't wake her. Eventually, when I realized my nagging was just making it worse I backed off. It was already humiliating enough because her twin sisters who were 3 1/2 were starting to have dry nights and didn't want pullups anymore. When we would see the Dr. as embarrassing as it was for her I would leave it up to her to decide what course of action she wanted to take. She had a friend (boy) that had a similar problem and he was on meds. His mom swore by them but I didn't like the adverse reactions to the meds. I gave my dtr. all the info. so she could make a decision for herself. Now it's all in the past and we never talk about it. I'm a mom of 4 children, 14,11, twins 4yrs and one on the way. Patience to you D. and remember he will stop. Get all the info. you need and do what's best for your family. Every situation needs different interventions. Good luck to you, jules :)

Don't worry - he will stop eventually, but it might go on for a few more years. My son wet the bed until he was 12, and nothing worked for him either. He still had sleepovers at our house because we were able to explain to a couple of his friends that it wasn't his fault, knowing that they wouldn't spread it around. Hang in there!

I admire that you don't get angry, because... poor kid! I don't know what "everything" is, but how about those pads that make an alarm at the first hint of moisture, to train his body to wake up when he needs to? I'm also thinking that a reputable herbalist might be able to suggest something. Good luck.

Hi D., I had the same problem w/ 2 of my boys, we got a script from the Dr. it was a nose spray and I think the name was something like DDAVP, or something like that. A lot of Doctors won't give it out, but it works like a reverse diuretic. We had tried everything else it seemed and then one of my clients told me she had the same problem w/ one of her boys. It worked like a charm!!! Hope that helps

I dont' know if this will help, but no you are not alone! You are doing the right things by getting a medical problem checked out, not getting mad about it (HUGE), and seeking support. My kids weren't as old, but bedwetting went on for 6-7 years with all 3 of them. My brother in law had this problem up until 12 or 13 years old. Some kids bodies just need to catch up with their age. Maybe he's just a hard sleeper. I know there is oodles of info on this on the internet, or possilby seeking a holistic approach to it if it seems to really bother your son.
I don't have any tried and true advice on how to stop the problem. With my kids, I had them wear those overnight pullups that they make for bigger kids, until they decided they did NOT want to wear them anymore. So after many wet beds, I just decided to try some brain training with them. I would tell them everynight before they fall asleep to tell themselves - and really beleive it- "I will wake up to go to the bathroom." "I am staying dry through the night." And I told them to really visualize themselves staying dry and waking up to go to the bathroom. Though I reminded them that though there bodies are still growing and even though they feel embarressed, there isn't anything wrong with them. BUT, keep trying to retrain the connections between thier body and brain through a sort of self hypnosis. I am not by any means an expert in this field, but I thought it wouldn't hurt for them to try to control their own bodies when they really wanted to do something. After about a week or so of this, they stopped wetting the bed:)
You could also do nothing and he WILL grow out of it. But mostly, just continue to be compassionate with him about it, not make it a big deal, and remind him that there is nothing wrong with him, his body is still growing:) Good luck.

I'm not totally sure what to say, however, I know chiropractic helped my daughter. Granted she's a lot younger but still was having problems--she like's "getting the popcorn" out of her back a couple times a year and it really seemed to help.
Hang in there! And let us know your progress!

We tried so many things with our son when he was about that age. Finally, what worked was an alarm clock and baseball cards. We would set his alarm for 1 or 2am so he could get up and go to the bathroom. He just couldn't make it through the night even though we cut out liquids very early. Every morning, if he was dry, he could pick a baseball card. I would buy a pack and fan them out, covering the names, and he would pick a card. He has always been a huge baseball fan and loved it when he chose a big name player. I would even go to the baseball card shop and occasionally buy one of his favorite player's card so he would get one of those as well. Hope you can fins something that works.

Hi D..

I am a licensed acupuncturist and I strongly believe that acupuncture and chinese herbs would help your son. IF the doctor is saying that he is fine than there is just an imbalance in his body right that can easily be fixed. If you would like me to email you some information on how acupuncture can help just let me know. Here is my email address: ____@____.com and if you would like to talk on the phone just leave your number on the email and I will call you.

Sincerely,
M. Burton, L.Ac

we have this problem as well, my son just turned 13 last week! everyone says he'll grow out of it....so we're just waiting around and trying to be supportive.

I had a son who had that problem. Michael Landon, the actor who did Little House on the Prairie also did. He even made a movie about it. It is common among boys. Basically, they finally grow out of it. Sometimes it can go as late as 14 yrs old. My son was 12. He said that one night when he went to bed, he just knew that he wouldn't have that problem again - and he didn't. The important thing is to do like you're doing. Protect the bed with a plastic/ rubber cover, then have him get up before the other kids (to avoid embarrassment) and change his bedding and wash down the protective cover and put new bedding on. Assure him that it won't last forever and that you know he is mature and you love him. My son is a well-adjusted, happy, loving husband and father with three kids. Good luck!

Encourage him to drink as much water as possible during the day. (As a child I wet the bed even into my beginning periods. I was told I couldn't have water after a certain time. Even had doctors check me out.)

When my own son started the same thing, my Mom found an article that the bladder didn't expand enough and if you forced them to drink more water, it would stretch and hold more overnight. My son was over it within two months.

Please try it. I know how embarrassed I was.

Sandy

I imagine at this point, you feel you've tried everything imaginable. Plastic mattress pads, to save the mattress from getting ruined, withholding liquids after a certain time in the evening, making sure he urinates right before going to bed, etc. Some doctors will prescribe Tofrinil, an anti-depressant that seems to help children you wet the bed.

All my boys wet the bed, with the youngest wetting until he was about 8 years old. It just took a long time before he grew out of it, his bladder matured, or whatever. My grandson is going to be 10 and still has accidents. He wears Pull-ups.

It does make it difficult for when they want to spend the night at a friend's house or go camping. But here are a couple of thoughts.

One: You simply do wait it out until his bladder matures, if that is the problem. And never, ever make a big deal out of it.

Two: Insist on having your son seen by a urologist to make doubly sure there isn't something else going on.

Three: They are finding that children with underlying sleep disorders can be bed wetters. Things like sleep apnea and narcolepsy can cause someone to not have the ability to awaken when the bladder and brain send signals to the body to wake up to go to the bathroom. These disorders may not be all that obvious at that young an age, but be there, none the less. That would take a overnight sleep study to find out. My youngest son has both sleep apnea and narcolepsy and I honestly don't know if they played a part in his bedwetting. (He's 30 now, and I can assure you he stays dry at night for some time now. LOL) I myself have narcolepsy and I certainly know how it can have a profound effect on how well, or not, one is sleeping. These are things you can investigate.

Make sure he stays away from drinks that promote urinating like sodas, etc. Water is always best. In the end, it may just take patience. Boys, much more than girls, have these issues. Could be you just lucked out with your 20 year old son. Good luck to you and your son.

Let me tell you...I feel your pain! I have 3 boys -- an almost 10 year old, an 8 year old and a 4 year old. My oldest son wet the bed until he was 9 years old. He woke up one day and decided that he didn't want to use pull-ups anymore, so we started taking him to the bathroom a couple of times a night. Within two weeks, he was done -- he hasn't wet the bed since. Then there's my 8 year old who is a MASSIVE bed wetter. We tried this same technique with him, but he was wetting still in between getting him up to go on the potty. We tried for over six months to take him to the bathroom every 2 to 3 hours through the night, but with no success. We became exhausted and frustrated. My husband was a bed wetter -- he wet the bed until he was 12 years old. I've always known that if one parent was a bed wetter that the chances are very high that the offspring of said parent would also be a bedwetter. So...the doctor assured me there was nothing "wrong" with my son, that I needed to get him back in his pull-ups and stop stressing about it!! We are all so much happier (although it took a few nights to convince my son that wearing pull-ups was not a bad thing -- they are a tool to help everyone get a good night sleep) -- and believe me, there are still nights that he wets so much it leaks through his pull-up, but he gets his sheets and puts them in the laundry room so we can wash them. Statistically (according to our pediatrician), 1 in 4 kids wet the bed so we are NOT alone!! Go ahead and try acupuncture, chiropractic -- whatever you feel you should do, but first and foremost, don't worry!! Your son WILL grow out of this -- eventually. Good luck!

A.

Hi D....I am very familiar with this problem. Myself, I did it til age 5...but was an underdeveloped kidney. Doc said I would outgrow the problem and I did. My ex did it til he was 12, but it was a psychological problem. My stepdaughter did it til her early teen yrs also. I tried everything...doctors, chiropractor, making her get up and wash her own bedding in middle of nite etc. It was only wearing both of us out. Honestly, it is a waiting period I do believe and patience. Her older brother had the same problem. I really do attribute their problem to their environment with their real mom at the time. They both outgrew it in their early teens. Just keep doing what you are doing and don't get mad. I believe it will only make your relationship with your child better when they get older...they will never forget this time in their life. Sounds like you are a wonderful mom, and understand the necessity of patience from being a nurse. You can do it.
Hang in there. Good luck.

S.

Hi D.,

Go back to the Doctor and ask him for DDAVP, I used it on three of my children and it works great.

D.

I wet the bed for many years and my parents tried everything. I just grew out of it. Please just support him and let him know it's not his fault.
They now have the overnight undergarments that look just like underware. They never had them when I was young. I would just let him sleep in those and try to not let it become a major thing.

I have two kids who wet the bed. My daughter has an immature bladder and chronic UTI infections so there is a medical reason for her problem, but my son wet the bed too. He has no medical reason - it just runs in the family. My mother wet the bed until she was 16 years old. My son is finally quitting now at 11 yrs old, so I would just wait it out with your son. He will stop eventually. We use pullups around here.

Good luck.

J.
www.livetotalwellness.com/janislanz
I show people how they can earn an income from doing something they have been doing for free before. Let me show you how to get your check every month.

Hi D. -

I'm not sure how it works, but if you son likes raisins, have him eat one of those little boxes of raisins before he goes to bed. Apparently there is an ingredient in the raisins that helps the bladder hold it's fluid overnight. I used it with my youngest son when he was 6 or 7 (can't remember his exact age) and it worked.

M.