Night time nappy tantrums - why now?....Help!

[grant10]

Hi All potential providers of help/advice! I originally posted this in the "Nappies" forum, but it's as much a behaviour issue really, so am re-posting it here. In any case, any help or advice you can offer will be greatly appreciated. So here goes....

My toddler ds has been dry at night for a while now but still needs a nappy at night, which was never much of a problem when he was still in day nappies, but since ditching those he's become an absolute nightmare to get his night time nappy on. The refusals start from the very moment he sees the nappy, by totally ignoring me and being generally uncooperative - and at this stage I've not even mentioned it's time to have it on! I should add that the task is made more difficult by the need to put a terry on him, which unfortunately I have no option but to do but is something he has been quite used to with no major objections.
The real problems begin when I start to undress him, which triggers tears at first which rapidly turn in to shouting and physical rejection, then with the need to use a ridiculous amount of force to make him lay down on the nappy, the red mist truly descends. Now I'm having to contend with him continually thrusting his legs and arching his back, like a bloody mad man - and so much that I need help to hold him still while I get on with safely pinning his nappy on. Mercifully and frustratingly he calms right down at this point, just as if he realises he's lost the battle and there's no use in putting up more of a fight, while getting his plastic pants and pj's on with no fuss at all, as if nothing untoward had happened!....how flipping frustrating is that?
This has been a nightly routine for nearly a month now and I just can't fathom why the heck has he become so utterly refusing to have his night nappy on? I dread bed time every day and am so stressed out about it. I think I've tried all the obvious tricks, but has anyone had a similar experience? Any ideas how to overcome it? (For the record, I'm dealing with a wet nappy most mornings, so there's no ditching it in the foreseeable future!)

Many thanks for any help or advice you can give me.

[selly24]

Is he used to Terry nappies?ie has he worn them in the day?
Maybe he needs to have his success at day potty training separated from the need for a night nappy. Using a totally different type of nappy and renaming too could help " these are your night pants". might disposable be more comfortable for him?

[grant10]

Hi Selly, many thanks for your reply. He's been in terries most of the time, day and night, so is completely used to them. To begin with I used disposables, but they often made him so sore that I tried terries as an alternative and that seemed to solve the problem, so I've stuck with them. On a couple of occasions I've tried a disposable again at night, but he's developed signs of soreness each time suggesting his skin is reacting to them in some way. This gives me no other night nappy option that I can think of, especially as a well boosted terry has always performed really well in coping with his heavy wetting, with rarely any significant leaks - which I have never managed with a disposable.
I'll have to keep working on this problem and hope it's just a little blip. A friend has suggested I should get the nappy all ready on his bed before his actual bed time, then with no reference to a nappy at all put him only in his pj's downstairs and try to get him settled and sleepy. When that's achieved, carry him quietly up to his room that's as dimly lit as possible, then pj's down and nappy on before he's realised what's happening. The theory is that he's fully expecting to be laid down on the bed and will be far too dozy to care about being nappied in any case!
We'll try this tonight.........watch this space!

[Jw35]

Pull ups! I've just switched to these for my 13 month old, so much easier! I slide them on her while she's backing off my bed to escape!

[grant10]

I thought pull ups might be the answer, but they leaked terribly and and caused soreness again (presumably made from the same materials as regular disposables). The problem is he's not a baby, but quite a big toddler so controlling him to get his nappy on is very difficult and he really can wet an awful lot through the night, which pull ups just didn't cope with.

Thanks for your kind suggestion though!

[Kiwiinkits]

I would just buy a water proof sheet (brolly sheet) and wash the sheets if he wets the bed. You might find he never wets. My dd potty trained at 20 months and never wet the bed at night, not once. My other dd did wet the bed occasionally after she potty trained but it's not that much of a hassle to wash the sheets from time to time.