I have a 5yr old boy who we have been trying to toilet train at night.... but for the past 6months... we haven't had any success- only the occasional dry night. Along with him, it is also affecting us, considering we are waking up 2-3 times a night to take him to the bathroom, stopping his fluid intake 2-3hours prior to bed..and still he manages to wet the bed. I am at the stage were i'm looking at putting him into drynites, but my husband is hesitant. Along with not thinking he is actually ready.... i miss my unbroken sleep.... Do you suggest continuing for no matter how long it takes or allowing him the time to get to that stage himself (whilst using drynites)? Am I just looking for the easy way out for myself??
It is perfectly normal for you to feel overwhelmed and a little helpless – this is the most common response for parents whose children continue to wet at night. And it’s not about finding an easy way out – it’s about finding a way to best manage this process so that you all come out the other end feeling confident and supported! It is important to remember that children develop at different rates – while the majority of children begin to develop nighttime bladder control around the age of 3, for some it just takes a little longer. This is not something they have a lot of control over – which is why it is difficult to train a child to be dry at night. Children wet the bed for a number of reasons, some do so because they produce double the amount of urine overnight, others do so as they are unable to wake to the signal that their bladder is full and needs to be emptied. Most children who wet the bed have no underlying medical condition with many outgrowing it on their own without the need for treatment. Parental attitude is one of the most important factors in the management of bedwetting. If you are tired or frustrated children will pick up on this, impacting negatively on their self-esteem. I think the easiest way to manage bedwetting it to use DryNites. DryNites will neither speed up nor prolong the process, they will however reduce the frustration associated with dealing with lots of wet sheets and will ensure your son isn’t waking up cold and wet and that you get a full night sleep. Waking him at night to take them to the toilet may help in reducing the number of wet beds. You need to keep in mind that this is unlikely to teach him to wake-up on his own and go to the toilet and may in fact prolong the process by conditioning his bladder into emptying at the same time each night. Withholding liquids at night is no longer recommended – you are better off encouraging him to drink plenty of water spread throughout the day. It’s really up to you and your son about when to pursue more formal treatment options – most doctors do however recommend holding off until children are at least 6 years of age due to the high spontaneous cure rate before then. Good luck – and remember, this is just a phase and it will come to an end!
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