firstly, let me apologise for the delay in getting back to you I have had an overwhelming number of questions to answer over the past two weeks. It can be very frustrating when you make the commitment to try a bedwetting treatment with no apparent luck. Unfortunately while the conditioning alarm experiences probably the best success rates of all treatments – there is a small percentage of children it doesn’t seem to work with. There are two things we need to consider – firstly, how we can help him to stop wetting the bed and secondly, how best to support him so that his bedwetting does not impact negatively on his self-esteem. With respect to treatment – I would recommend speaking with a continence specialist who can examine more closely his personal needs – I know of a number of instances where children have attained dryness after combining the alarm treatment with hypnosis or chiropractic manipulation. In terms of his self-confidence – make sure he understands that it isn’t something he can physically control. It is not his fault and he should not feel embarrassed. He might even be interested to know that there is probably at least one other boy in his class who also wets the bed – sometimes children feel a bit better about themselves when they know that they are not the only ones! Sleepovers are one of the biggest concerns for children who wet the bed – this has a lot to do with being discovered by their friends. It is important that he doesn’t let the fact that he wets the bed restrict his activities, as this will only make him feel worse in the long run. Many children go on sleepovers and wear DryNites under their pyjamas – no one ever has to find out! One boy I knew wore his DryNites under a pair of Nylon tracksuit pants that made a ‘swishy’ sound so that no one could hear that he was wearing absorbent pants – in the morning he just put them in a plastic bag and hid them in his overnight bag when he changed in the bathroom. Whatever you decide you need to make sure that it is a decision he is comfortable with.

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