Hi – bullying can be an insidious and emotionally damaging experience and is often the cause of bedwetting in children – so it is great to hear that she is no longer a victim of such behaviour. In saying this, it is not unusual to find a number of children in the same family experiencing nighttime incontinence, given the strong familial link. When genetics plays a role we generally find that children achieve continence around a similar age to when their family member stopped wetting the bed, so it may be worth asking around to see if anyone in your or your husbands family wet the bed as a child. By far the most effective means of treating children’s bedwetting is the conditioning or bedwetting alarm. The alarm is designed to wake-up the child when he or she begins to wet. The conditioning approach is based on the theory that by repetitively waking a child at the time of urination the child becomes conditioned into recognising that urination is about to occur, and consequently learns to inhibit their voiding reflex. This method requires a great deal of commitment on behalf of the family, as parents need to take initial responsibility in ensuring their child wakes in response to the alarm. Treatment can take up to 6 months, with about 1/3 of children experiencing relapse. If this occurs you need to reintroduce the alarm, with most children being treated in a much shorter period of time. The major cause of failure is poor compliance on the part of the child and the parents; so do not try and begin treatment until you have consulted with a continence advisor. Your biggest decision will be whether to treat both children at the same time or hold off with your son until your daughter has achieved nighttime continence – this is something that you should discuss at your first appointment. All the best!

Regards,
Dr Cathrine

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