Dear John, your son may be experiencing encopresis which simply refers to uncontrolled soiling in children who are four years of age or older. For a diagnosis to be made soiling must occur at least once a month over at least a three month period, and can be voluntary or involuntary. Encopresis or soiling problems occur in 2-8% of children and is often associated with constipation or diarrhea but can result from underlying emotional causes or stress. My advice is to take your son to his GP for a full medical and behavioural assessment. Regards, Dr Cathrine

Dear Austin,

Hi Austin, while I fully understand your embarrassment, this is not something you should try and manage on your own. I find most parents are incredibly supportive and would hate to think of you trying to manage your bedwetting on your own. The most important thing for you to remember is that this is in no way your fault. DryNites are perfect for helping you to manage your bedwetting; they are discrete and can be worn under your pyjamas. You may want to look into DryNites designed for boys as they have different absorbency patterns, with the larger size offering a better fit. There are a number of reasons why teenagers wet the bed so it is very important that you speak with your parents and have them make an appointment for you to see your GP for a full medical assessment. Regards, Dr Cathrine

Dear lachie,

Hi L.S, unfortunately you are not alone when it comes to coping with teasing. Children get teased for all sorts of reasons, for being too skinny or too fat, having big ears, wearing the wrong type of clothes, whatever the reason it has nothing to do with you and everything to do with the kids who are making fun of you. Unfortunately some kids tease because they think it is a cool thing to do, because they want to get others attention or because they feel superior when they put others down. It is important that you do not try and handle this all by yourself, talk about this with your mum or dad or a teacher and discuss ways to handle the teasing. Practice ignoring the kids who are teasing you, and know whatever they have to say is not true. Sometimes humour can be quite effective, laughing along with the kids that are teasing you shows them that their teasing doesn’t bother you at all, so they are more likely to stop. In future you might prefer to wear a tight sport-short over the top of your DryNites so they are not detectable by your peers. There are a number of possible medical causes to daytime wetting in teenagers so if you have not done so already it is important that you speak with your doctor about this. Regards, Dr Cathrine

Dear Satoshi,

Hi S. S. – It is perfectly normal to feel nervous about your school trip but there are certainly things we can do in order to help you go away on camp without the fear of your friends finding out or having the constant worry of whether or not you’ll wet the bed. Many teenagers have attended school camps and sleepovers while wearing DryNites/GoodNites and have managed to do so without being discovered by their friends. I’m not sure if you have already read this – but there is a great story on our website about a girl who was about the same age as you who used DryNites to help manage her bedwetting while on school-camp. The story includes some really useful tips on ways to disguise the fact that she was wearing absorbent pants including leaving lollie wrappers in her sleeping bag. Wearing underpants over the top is certainly one option; thinking about where you can dispose of them in the morning is also an important consideration. As well as DryNites, some children have used medications to help manage their bedwetting while away from home. This is something that you would need to discuss with your parents and your doctor. If this sounds like a good option it is important to give it a bit of a trial run before you go away as medications do not work for everyone. It is often helpful to talk with one of your teachers before you do go away just so that you have someone to turn to if you need to – they often have great tips and suggestions as to how things have worked in previous years. Good luck and have a great school-camp! Regards, Dr Cathrine

Dear Melissa,

Given the strong genetic link it is not unusual for a number of children in the same family to experience bedwetting. If both parents were bedwetters, 77% of their children will be, while 44% of children suffer from bedwetting if one parent was a bed wetter – which means there is no certainty that your new baby will also wet the bed when he or she is older. When genetics plays a role we generally find that children achieve continence around a similar age to when their parent(s) stopped wetting the bed. It is not unusual for children who wet the bed for extended periods to return to wetting at times of stress or if they become overtired. We generally find that the wetting stops when whatever is causing the stress resolves itself or their sleeping patterns return to normal. I would not be overly concerned about your daughter at this point; bedwetting among 4-year-olds is fairly common and considered to be developmentally normal. If however her bedwetting starts to become an issue for you or her than I would certainly look into introducing some form of treatment. The most effective treatments currently available are conditioning alarms – they are successful in about 75% of cases. A successful outcome depends largely on the level of support and training provided so it is important that you consult with an experienced professional first. Regards, Dr Cathrine

Dear Melissa,

The larger DryNites size is designed for children and teenagers weighing between 27-57kg+. I would recommend requesting a free sample off the website first. It is important that these fit properly around the leg as improper fit may contribute to leakage. If you find the larger size to be too small I would recommend that you look into some of the incontinence products designed for adults, many of which are available online or through your local Chemist. All the best! Regards, Dr Cathrine