Are There Any Bedwetting Solutions that Actually Work?
Bedwetting is a VERY popular topic in the parenting realm.
With children who frequently wet the bed often dread sleepovers, camp, or other overnight trips away from home
We asked parents who had “been there” and “done that” to help other parents find solutions to this pretty common issue.
Is Wetting the Bed Common?
You and your child don’t have to go through this struggle alone, you can find comfort in knowing that many moms and kids have walked this path before.
Some kids even wet the bed every single night until they are 10 or 11 years old!
I am even including one of my children’s experiences as well.
Like I said, many of us have struggled with this issue!
I think one mom cleared up things best in this comment on our Facebook page. I asked our fans what are their best bedwetting solutions for kids were.
Here’s my favorite response:
Never make the child feel humiliated or embarrassed of their situation. As annoying, frustrating & disgusting as it can be, right before I enter their room I prepare myself by remembering how it was to wake up in pee. Laundry can be redone — a child’s self esteem, not so much. No sleepovers until we are sure the child has outgrown the situation. The last thing the child needs is to be embarrassed in front of their friends.
That has been my viewpoint on bedwetting in children since the beginning of my parenting journey.
I had one child who didn’t stop wetting the bed until nine years of age.
It was frustrating for me and my child.
But, the shame I saw on my child’s face made all my frustrations disappear.
I can only image what is must be like to wake up night after night in a yucky, wet mess.
I hated to see my child sneaking and putting on diapers because she was too embarrassed to ask for a pull-up or diaper.
What are Some Tips that Help Prevent Kids From Wetting the Bed?
Get ready to take notes because these tips from our readers are game-changers!
Limit liquids at night.
One trick we used to cut back on bedwetting was limiting liquids before bed. Bedtime is at 8 p.m., so no drinks after 7 p.m.
We also noticed that sugary drinks made the issue worse, so we cut back on those as well.
We also made sure my bed-wetting child would go to the toilet one more time before we all went to sleep.
Those steps did help sometimes — but not all the time.
The bedwetting just stopped on its on after my child was 9 years old.
Be Patient.
My 8 yr old still wears pull ups at night and even leaks through sometimes.
This doesn’t embarrass him as he doesn’t do sleepovers or anything.
We have tried the alarm every 2 to 3 hrs, etc…. nothing seems to be THE ANSWER and he just starts feeling upset and ashamed and is very tired.
I do laundry a lot (and this hack helps!). Plus, I have determined to be a patient mom.
Use a Bedwetting Alarm
These alarms help alert kids when they’ve wet the bed.
The benefit of these is it helps parents learn how ot predict when their child is wetting the bed.
If parents can find a certain sleep pattern, this could help them avoid or end bedwetting sooner by finding a common time the child wets the bed.
Some parents love these, others don’t.
They’re definitely worth a try!
Sometimes It’s Best Just to Wait it Out.
My oldest child daughter never had a problem, but my second son was a bed wetter.
I tried so many things and one night as I woke him to use the toilet, he told me he would stop wetting when he turned 8, he was 6.
I figured that was his way of telling me to back off.
I did and the last time he didn’t make it through the night was the night before he turned 8. Now he’s almost 10.
Sometimes they just need to do it in their own time.
Use Mattress Covers
I try and cut off fluids after dinner and wake my child up in the middle of the night when they are little.
They’ll get the hang of it after a while.
Plus, we use mattress covers like these.
Don’t Shame Your Kids
I come from a long line of bed wetters.
My parents were very patient.
I did the same with my daughter. I limited liquids after 6 pm.
Patience is the key, don’t shame them as it will discourage them.
Avoid Sugary Drinks
I don’t stress my kids about it.
And, no sugary drinks at dinner or before bed really helped my oldest.
He can drink watered down juice now at age 8 but not at age 6.
Offer Rewards
My 8 year old boy still struggles with wetting the bed.
We have recently stopped using pull-ups and offer rewards for dry mornings.
He is very motivated by the rewards and is having some success.
We discovered that he is wetting the bed right before he wakes up and not during the night.
The rewards seem to motivate him enough not to be in such a deep sleep.
Use Big Kid Pull-ups When Needed
Big kid pullups (like ninjamas!) for night time help kids not worry as much about the possibility of wetting the bed.
You can set an alarm to wake up every night to take kids to the bathroom, but that is tough on parents and kids.
What Advice Would You Give About Helping Kids Who Wet the Bed?
Share your tips and solutions in our Parents Connect Group!
We can all learn from each other!
This is a very encouraging list for us moms who do have children still learning to stay dry. There is so much variance of agea with children successfully being night-trained, and it is so important that we share so moms know! I love that moms who follow your blog get to share-I do a similar series as well. We really do learn so much from each other.
My doctor told me that my son falls in a deep sleep and his brain didnt wake him up. I put him on pills but even with insurance it cost 100 dollars a month. So I bought pullups, a plastic cover for his mattress and just did laundry. I never let him feel ashamed and when he came home from school fresh linen and was not brought up. When my son turned 12 he hasn’t wet the bed in 1 yr and at 13 he has sleepovers and can fall asleep on the couch with no worries. Just patience on our part
My son was a bed wetter until around 10. he was such a good sleeper from a very early age, and slept so deeply I think that was part of the problem. We tried waking him to use the toilet, but could never rouse him enough! I did use plastic on the mattress but also found pads that went on top of the sheets, which meant all I had to do was pull the pad off and wash it rather than changing the entire bed…made life a bit easier on the laundry end!.
Okay, as a bedwetter myself for 18 years, nothing really works. Limiting liquid before bed doesnt work (your body is processing liquid into urine all day whether or not you consume liquid before bed – science degree). The only thing that even remotely works is waking up during the night, mostly before 12-1am. I went to doctors for it, they don’t know how to stop it, please don’t waste money. It stops on its own, I just had to wait. Please, never humiliate the child.
Also, there is no such thing as being ‘night-trained’ – a child does not choose to do it nor are they lacking the training to wake up at night. You can ‘train’ a child all you want, it isn’t going to change it.
One thing that can help is making them responsible for changing the sheets and remaking the bed as soon as they are able. Don’t make any comments, just let them handle it.
My child wet the bed until age 7, when the pediatrician told me about a BEDWETTING ALARM. I had never heard of that, but it totally worked and wish I had done it sooner. I had a Malem alarm that attaches to underwear and the pj shirt. It goes off when urine touches sensor. Ours went off 5 nights, then she was dry ever since and continues til now at age 8 1/2…You can get one from http://www.bedwettingstore.com or Amazon. Pricey, but WORTH it !!!
Thank you so much for the list. I feel a bit more prepared although our little one is still not quite there yet. Tonight, she fell asleep on the coach without changing into a pull-up and refused to let me do it. Let’s see how it goes…
Constipation can cause bed wetting. My daughter was still wetting the bed at age 9. She has had a problem with chronic constipation from a very early age. I took her to a gastroenterologist he told me that constipation can cause bed wetting because of pressure on the bladder. When we cleared up the constipation issue the bed wetting stopped!
I second the bed wetting alarm. It was the only thing that worked for my 8 year old.
This is encouraging, bc these are all the problems we have! She will pee more than once a night sometimes, and the waking up didn’t help, several times a night restrict liquids, we even tried medicine. The medicine seemed to help for a month or so then just stopped. It isn’t that it bothers me, but it’s a huge confidence thing for my soon to be 8 year old. It’s upsets her so much. And not being able to have girlfriends over or go there, I know is upsetting. I just hurt for her, I never had the problem but her dad did, her grandma in that side did and so forth. It’s nice to know I’m not the only one!!!