Often when it comes to bedwetting no matter how hard we try children will continue to wet at night. This is partly because they really have very little control over what is happening while asleep. It also explains why incentives and rewards aren’t particularly successful in helping children stay dry, it would be like offering a chronic snorer $100 000 to stop snoring – they couldn’t do it no matter how badly they wanted the money. One of the most successful treatments for bedwetting is time. In general we find children will stop wetting the bed when their bodies have matured to a point where they can either hold on until morning or wake-up in response to a full bladder. For many parents it is a bit of a guessing game as to when this will happen – unless of course someone in the family also wet the bed as a child. You will probably find that your son will become dry at night around the same age your sister did. Until then it is important that you offer lots of support and encouragement, help him to understand that it is not his fault. In general we no longer recommend such things as restricting drinks (this can lead to constipation) or waking children during the night. You do need to make sure that he is drinking plenty of water throughout the day, that he fully empties his bladder each time he uses the toilet particularly before bedtime and that he avoids food and drinks that are high in caffeine as this will only stimulate his kidneys to produce larger amounts of urine. If you are not doing so already, you can help manage his wetting and reduce your stress levels by putting him in DryNites – these are great for encouraging independence as he heads toward school. You can get him to dispose of these himself in the morning and let you know when he needs you to buy more. This is something he will eventually outgrow – until then be as positive as possible, how you handle the situation is what is most important.

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