In order for your son to be able to wake-up dry his bladder needs to be able to hold the amount of urine he produces overnight or he needs to be able to wake-up and go to the toilet when his bladder is full. For most children this comes with time but for some additional help is needed. There are a number of effective treatments available including conditioning alarms, which currently have the highest success rates – you may like to discuss the suitability of these with your doctor. In the meantime one of the best ways to manage bedwetting is to use disposable pants like DryNites – this will alleviate a certain level of stress for both you and your son. Not only do they reduce the number of wet beds and laundry loads they also encourage independence and autonomy as children are able to manage their bedwetting on their own. Asking your son to strip his own bed or help you to remake the bed is fine as long as it is not viewed as a punishment. If you are unsure of your reasons for doing this it may be useful to ask yourself whether this is something you would expect of him even if his sheets weren’t wet? You can reinforce and encourage his independence through rewards and praise. In much the same way as I give my children pocket money for picking-up their dirty clothes and making their beds – you can implement a reward system that acknowledges each time he helps strip the bed or disposes of his DryNites. He might like to help design a reward chart, one where he accumulates points that he can cash-in for a bigger treat! Whatever your approach it is important that he understands that his bedwetting is not his fault and is something he has little control over.

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