I\'m Summer, a mouthy, sarcastic bitch. I\'m passionate about natural birth, long term breastfeeding, and living naturally. I curse too much, love tattoos, and will some day be crushed to death by my book collection. I homeschool, dream of gardening, and swing to the left. 
Seven Tips to Help Stop Your Child’s Bedwetting
This is one of those things when a parent debated whether they should talk about it or not. On one hand it’s helpful to share these little things and get feedback from other parents. On the other hand how much will my kid hate me for sharing this online. Weighing the sides I decided to just let it out.
Evan wets the bed at night.
Now, out come the disclaimers. The poor boy is a bit doomed, as often kids who wet the bed have a parent who did so as well. And that parent would be me. I was 7 before I was finally able to make it through the night constantly. So the poor boy got my weak bladder genes passed on to him. Still, even with genetics stacked against him we do have a few tricks up our sleeves to help him. Like limiting drinks before bed and early morning bathroom runs (when he wets the bed it’s usually around 6 AM). the biggest trick we have, though, is not to make a big deal out of it. No blaming, attacking, threatening him with pet beds. Just accepting that he’ll be ready when he’s ready, and until then he’s able to strip the bed and get his sheets in the washer for me.
I was emailed about this article that I could share on my blog from Moms Talk, as well as an accompanying ebook and decided I wanted to pass it on. It’s frustrating and annoying and aggravating to be the mom of the kid still peeing the bed. And it’s embarrassing to be the kid that still does it. So for those other parents not talking about it, here you go.
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Bedwetting (also known as enuresis) is usually caused by an underdeveloped urinary system causing the release of urine during the night when the child is in a deep sleep. This issue is a lot more common than most parents realize. That fact doesn’t make it any less frustrating for the parent or less embarrassing for the child.
It’s frustrating for the parent because they have to change wet sheets in the middle of the night on a fairly regular basis, oftentimes nightly. It’s embarrassing for the child, often preventing them from wanting to spend the night at friend’s houses or go for birthday sleepovers.
One of the most important things you want to do about your child’s bedwetting is make sure you don’t get upset with them over it. It’s not their fault. Do not punish them! Because the child will more than likely already be feeling self-conscious, embarrassed about it you need to help reassure them that they aren’t alone and there is nothing wrong with them.
Here are 7 tips to use to help your child’s bedwetting problems:
- *Limit the amount of liquids in the evening. Have them drink the majority of their liquids during the morning/day.
- *Limit caffeine. Again, especially in the evenings.
- *Make sure that your child goes to the bathroom before bed.
- *Set an alarm to get up in the middle of the night & take your child to the bathroom.
- *Reward chart. This will help encourage your child to keep trying. Place a sticker on the chart for every dry night.
- *Bed wetting alarms. These are placed under the child and go off at the first sign off wetness.
- *Pull-ups can be used for younger children.
To get some more information on your child’s bedwetting and tips to help stop it be sure to pick up your copy of the Mom’s Talk eBook’s Guide to Stopping Your Child’s Bedwetting.
Great tips, thanks for sharing. We really don’t get to worked up about it. We have plastic sheets on the beds, and do lots of washing. We have found that the less of a big deal we make out of it, the better it goes for them. Eventually, they outgrow it. Our oldest was almost 8, but our 7 yo rarely has accidents. Our 5 yo has accidents still pretty regularly, but we just don’t make a big deal out of it. He tells us, we tell him to take a shower and bring down all of his bedding so it can be washed. Once they are a little older, they are able to wash their own bedding and avoid the embarrassment of even telling us. Limiting liquids is a BIG one though!
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We do pull ups at night. I refuse to get up in the middle of the night for a bathroom run, I like my sleep too much. Maybe when my kids get older it will become more of an issue. In our case it is my husband’s fault.
I have to beg to differ on the reward chart thing. Yuck. If you suggest not punishing for one behavior, but then reward for another, it comes to the same thing – conditional parenting.
We use pull-ups too. I’m also pretty convinced that it’s genetic. I was a very tight sleeper and sleep walker, and there is nothing that anyone could have said that would have helped me to not wet the bed. I finally got past it at age 6. But those occasional days when my diaper was dry in the morning, and my mother praised me, just made me feel bad (as I imagine a reward chart would). After all, I was totally not in control of it, so the praise just felt very conditional and frustrating to me.
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