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yola
03-09-2008, 11:07 AM
Dominik's been out of nappies since he was 2 1/2, but has almost constantly worn night-time nappies since. He was adamant that at 5 he would stop, and he did with much success initially. However, 2 weeks on the bedwetting has returned. He's quite upset about it and doesn't want to go back to nappies; however I don't have the time to change, wash and iron bed linen on a daily basis!

So we're going to get him a bedwetting alarm. Does anyone have any experience of these? There are two types; body-worn and under mattress. They're both quite pricey so before I buy one or t'other it would be useful to hear of any experienced anyone's had with them.

angieh
03-09-2008, 12:06 PM
Sorry Yola - no experience at all in that department. Could you ask your health visitor's advice?

yola
03-09-2008, 12:27 PM
My what??? LOL I haven't seen one of those since Dominik was about 6 months old so I have not a clue as to who she might be!

alexgirl73
03-09-2008, 01:49 PM
I went through a bout of bed wtting with Hayley after she had cystitis at 3 (after being successfully dry for nearly a year). I stopped giving her anything to drink at least 2 hours before bedtime, made her go to the toilet just before bed, and then when I was going to bead around 11pm, would giver her a gentle shake and quietly guide her to the toilet to make sure she went again, After a little while her body learned to recognise when she needed to go during the night, and we've only had one or two accidents since. usually when she's had something to drink at a late hour. Hth!

Donna
03-09-2008, 05:08 PM
I think some kids are just prone to it. I know my boss's daughter still occasionally wets the bed and she has turned 8!!

Good luck with whatever alarm you decide to buy.

yola
03-09-2008, 05:14 PM
Alex, I did read that not giving them a drink before bedtime has no bearing on whether they pee or not; we've tried that and I think it's what made Domi so upset. He was thirsty and we said no to a drink and he still peed :(

I think waking them before going to bed yourself is a good idea. Problem is that Dominik is such a heavy sleeper - and that's what I think is key to his bedwetting - is that it will take a lot to wake him. This is a boy that sleeps through the alarm clock in the morning!

Donna, my brother used to wet the bed on and off until he was about 10 (I think). It's not unusual but I'd rather nip the problem in the bud before it becomes a major issue for Domi and means he can't have friends over to sleep or have sleepovers at their homes.

Donna
03-09-2008, 05:39 PM
Yes sleepovers could be a problem - my daughter had her 14year old friend sleep over who wets the bed... I had no warning from the mother or the child or my daughter (who knew) and she soaked the bed. I was not happy.

If I had been warned I could of made provisions and cut the drinks out beforehand.

Thankfully my daughter is no longer friends with the girl!

Kim
03-09-2008, 06:40 PM
My foster lad still wets the bed and he is 14 on Tuesday. He is on medication for it, and we are gradually trying to wean him off of it, but he just wets the bed again. :roll: He has attended an enuresis clinic and apparently it has nothing to do with having drinks before bed time, in fact experts believe that cutting down on liquid adds to the problem. :? We have also tried waking him in the night with limited success.

Yola, my nephew was a late bed wetter and my sister attended an enuresis clinic and was loaned an alarm, it was extremely successful :) In the meantime you could try using a kylie (bed pad) on the bed, under the sheet, which absorbs the urine, I paid about £10 for mine from the health clinic, it does help save the bedding, but I don't iron them anymore! The enuresis nurse gave me details of a good web site, but I can't find the details at the mo, will get back to you!

Kim
03-09-2008, 06:44 PM
Yes sleepovers could be a problem - my daughter had her 14year old friend sleep over who wets the bed... I had no warning from the mother or the child or my daughter (who knew) and she soaked the bed. I was not happy.

If I had been warned I could of made provisions and cut the drinks out beforehand.

Thankfully my daughter is no longer friends with the girl!


What a shame for the girl, it is quite a common problem in teenagers, more common that I thought. Very embarrassing for her and I'm sure she didn't want to tell you, but her mother should have. I doubt cutting out on drinks beforehand would have made any difference though, hasn't in my experience with our foster lad anyway. Teenagers have enough angst at their age without bedwetting too. :(

Fran
03-09-2008, 08:15 PM
My daughter was diagnosed with an irritable bladder at quite a young age, not only was night time wetting a prob but she couldn't hold in the day, if she needed to go then she had to go straight away. She took medication for years and luckily she is now off mediacation and the irritable bladder problem has settled. She was under a specialist at the Children's hospital, Sheffield for years and one of his major advice tips was NO fluids at all after 6pm. She was also not allowed fizzy pop and when I enquired about a bed wetting alarm, he actually said they were more or less useless :?

Dominik is still quite young Yola, I wouldn't stress too much about this. You'd be surprised at how many other children in his class still have this problem too ;) The family that we went on holiday with this year have a 5 rising 6 year old boy still in nappy pants at night, yet their 3 year old little girl is dry most nights. I do believe it can take boys longer than girls to fully train in this area. Good luck!

calismum
03-09-2008, 09:04 PM
Yola, I am sorry this is an issue for Dominik. My friends son had the same problem so I have phoned her and had a chat. This is a summarry of what she has offered in advice. She said some is by her own experience, some from others she spoke to and some that she found out after he stopped (about aged 8 .)
- as an alarm only works once the bladder starts to empty it won't stop the actual wetting and may cause the child to worry about wetting even more. There is thoughts from some that it should not be used on kids under 7 as they may not understand it won't make them stop. Monique had one (the type that goes into underpants) she's not convinced it did much to help in the long term.
- plenty cuddles and reassurance that it is ok and quite common. Jamie thought he was the only boy his age that had this problem.
- obviously waterproof sheets
- encourage plenty drinking throughout the day to help develop bladder control. But avoid any drinks with caffiene as this is diuretic. Theory is that his bladder is saying 'I can't hold all this' when it is not really full.
- During the day, try to encourage him to hold on until he is fit to burst and then a bit more. This is to help train the brain to recognise the feeling of a full bladder and that it can hold on and stretch the bladder. Moni said this worked quite well.
- explain how urine is made and the bladders role in storing it (Monique thought this a bit daft at the time but was surprised it seemed to help)
- make sure he's not scared to get up in the dark, leave a low light on.
- Washable absorbant pants were more acceptable to Jamie than 'nappies'. (meant less washing of bedding)
- lastly she said it is important to tell you that you are not alone in this and he will grow out of it - sends you lots of support and agrees changing beds and washing sheets every day is a real pain

Hope some of this is of help or at least support for you both.

Good luck

CM

Jac
04-09-2008, 09:43 AM
Yola
If he has been dry and doing well I would be more inclined to see if there is an underlying problem.
Is he having problems at school that he's not telling you about. Does he get on well with the teacher ect. Sounds to me like that could be a problem other than drinking too much ect
If he's not back at school yet is he worried about changing class/teacher?

yola
04-09-2008, 09:50 AM
Kim, Fran, Calismum . . . thanks all so much for your input. It's really valuable reading of others who have had direct experience of this. I think what I will do is hold off with the alarm at the moment (OH is adamant he wants to get it so I shall print of some of these posts to persuade him otherwise) as I have concerns over it - primarily over Dominik being startled awake and getting more upset. Instead I will place a large towel under the sheet (he already has a mattress protector) to absorb most of the spillage.

We are very careful not to stress or stigmatise him over this, and he doesn't touch fizzy drinks . . .I don't have them in the house! He is the driving force behind not wanting to wear the nightime nappies, I think he equates it with Sebi and his nappies and being a baby.

I like the idea of 'bladder training'. I can see him going for this . . . we can play a game of getting his wee to behave :lol:

Thank you all once again!

Jac
04-09-2008, 10:01 AM
Yola think we were both posting in this thread at the same time.;)

yola
04-09-2008, 10:42 AM
Yes, I think we must have Jac! He's back at school today. No real stress issues about it, seems very happy to be back (which is good). I think maybe the different people looking after him in the last few weeks (my brother, my Mum, his older 1/2 brother) may have upset his routine a bit but not enough to cause significant upset . . . I hope!

Jac
04-09-2008, 08:33 PM
The thing is Yola, what we don't think is stressful is to them. Possibly hold off for a wee bit. Don't make a big deal out of mishaps. I'm sure he will return to normal. If I'm wrong I will do your laundry:D

Kim
04-09-2008, 09:55 PM
I am sure he will be fine Yola, he is still quite young and I think you are right not to use the alarm, perhaps only as a last resort. I can't remember exactly, but I believe my nephew was a lot older than Dominik when my sister used it. Please keep us updated. x

calismum
04-09-2008, 10:30 PM
Yola - forgot to mention that Moni said Jamie was also a very heavy sleeper and she thought that contributed a great deal to the problem.

He was (still is) the type of kid who could fall asleep in the car and be carrie dinto the house, undressed and put to bed without even stirring.

Link to the pants he wore http://www.ericshop.org.uk/pants-continence-male.asp

CM

yola
05-09-2008, 08:51 AM
I had a good look round that ERIC site yesterday CM, it's very good . . . I noticed the pants. If we have continuing problems I might invest in some. As it was, I laid the towel under his yesterday but thankfully it was an uneccessary precaution.

However, I have woken him now twice at about 11 (when I was off to bed) to ask him if he needed a pee. Although he didn't wake up properly it was sufficient to rouse him enough to be aware of bladder pressure and both times he said no. And both times he woke up dry!

Jac
05-09-2008, 08:55 AM
Well done. He may have just been going through a bad patch.
I hope he continues to be dry.

Kim
05-09-2008, 03:19 PM
Yola, the ERIC site was the one I was going to give you!!!! I spoke to the enuresis nurse today and asked her for the web address as I couldn't find it. I'm sure he will be fine, and you seem to be doing all the right things! With our foster lad I'm sure his problems are emotional.

calismum
05-09-2008, 10:33 PM
Hope he continues to do well and manages to train himself to keep dry.

Fingers crossed for him

CM