Bed wetting alarm which one to get?

[dottt]

dd 7 now wants to try this in past she has expressed horror. She's off alone with ds to camp this summer and she wants to try to sort.

If there's one that doesn't involve "funny pants" that would be good as she's v particular forever ripping labels out of clothes as they annoy her

[alwayslateforwork]

Malem.

You can get a mattress sensor if necessary, instead of the bit that clips to normal underwear. I like the ones with variable tones and a vibrate option.

[AllOverIt]

No suggestions but watching with interest. DS is 6.5 and never had a dry night. He literally floods his pull up every night. Think this might be the way we end up going...

[magso]

Malem make reliable alarms and is the brand recommended by our paediatrician a few years back. I would also recommend the ultimate type that vibrates and can be programmed to have different rings. (vibration alone can be useful if needed for a sleepover) A newer type can have the alarm next to the bed (or across the room to force getting out of bed) rather than on the childs pyjamas which might suit. I think this is what I would buy now if needed again as my child (sn and very intolerant) struggled with wearing the alarm box and wires on his PJs and used to rip it off. Another type made by Rodger has special sensor pants, available with a remote (wireless) alarm ( or an under pillow vibrator) as needed. I have not tried this but it seems a good idea as the pants look normal rather than having to put a sensor and wire in the PJ bottoms. I am sure others can comment on these.

[dottt]

Thanks that's really helpful :-))

[Lovemynailstoday]

Just to offer some encouragement by saying an alarm worked like a charm on my 8yr old DS years ago. Doctor warned it would take a couple of disturbed nights as the alarm wakes everyone. He was right, but worth it. Can't remember brand name but it pinned inside DS's own knickers. Good luck. We never looked back......

[alwayslateforwork]

Magso - mine too. Ds failed miserably with an alarm as he has now broken three of them by taking them off in his sleep/ ripping the wires to shreds.

Dd1 was dry within 2 weeks. It worked like a dream for her at 8.

[AllOverIt]

DS is such a deep sleeper, I'm worried he'd sleep through the alarm. I can literally lift him up, lay him on the floor, change the bed and plonk him back in and he'd still be fast asleep. We can't even wake him for medicine, or when we go on holiday early in the morning.

I'm sure this is why he's never had a dry night!

[alwayslateforwork]

In those instances, All, the alarm is supposed to wake the parent, who then runs into the bedroom clanging banging and shouting, shaking the child, putting the lights on brightly, and essentially making sure they wake up by whatever means.

Within a few nights of that deeply unpleasant experience, the subconscious adjusts and records that peeing is the trigger for the uproar, and so either the body withholds, or the kid practically sleepwalks itself to the bog.

Believe me, all three of mine sleep through fire alarms.

It wasn't much fun having to force my 8 year old awake with bright lights, clapping, shouting and shaking her, but she was completely dry within two weeks.

Two reasons for night wetting - deep sleep and lack of production of the right hormone.

Enuresis alarms fix the deep sleep. (With the parents help at first as they are the ones woken)

Meds fix the hormone issue.

Some kids obviously need both, as they don't produce the hormone, and are deep sleepers.

[alwayslateforwork]

...and that's why enuresis alarms get a bad press in some instances - because some folk think it's unkind or abusive to wake a child by any means when it is deeply asleep.

[AllOverIt]

That's interesting, thanks for that. I think his deep sleep, the fact he doesn't produce enough hormone and the sheer bloody amount he wees at night. I think he wees as much at night as he does in the day. He often wees through his pull up and into the sheet. Bless him.

He's not too conscious about it at the moment. I'll get him in the system through the GP when he turns 7, but look into the alarm. Maybe start the alatm in the Summer hols when I can catch up on sleep!

Trying to night train 3.9 year old DD at the mo. Unlike DS, she has about 3 out of 7 dry nights a week. DS has never had a dry night.

[rabbitstew]

We used the Rodger alarm, too. Thought it was absolutely brilliant. Ds1 woke up to it by himself every time, before he'd done more than make a damp patch in the pants, they were easy to deal with and looked like normal white pants, really, no external wires or mattresses to remove - just press the button on the power-socket alarm sensor to stop the racket, take the pants off, go to the loo, put the little wireless alarm box on a fresh pair of the pants, go back to bed. Simples!

[AllOverIt]

That sounds great, just what he needs. If you don't mind me asking, much are they?

[alwayslateforwork]

All, Ds is the same. We have to wash duvets, pillows most days, as well as just sheets. No pull up could contain it. He's 11 now, and it's about 50/50. Dd2 was dry day and night at 2, and has never ever wet the bed. Not even at 2.

I'm sure one of them was switched at birth.

[magso]

Allover the Rodger system with 2 prs pants and remote alarm costs £98 ( I am saving!!), Marlem are £50 - 60 if I remember correctly, but its worth checking on ebay as the malem arlarms are often available 2nd hand. When they work it can be quick enough for used ones to be in very good condition. New Marlem sensors cost around £20 (ours is broken hense recent search!) Eneuresis clinics do not usually accept children till 7.5 but will loan equipment (usually the sleeping mat type).
I was worried ds would not wake -the noise tended to wake every one else first- but quite quickly he started to wake even before us. I think the vibration helped. Then the wet patches got smaller. He was getting there but broke the sensor with violent ripping off ( his sn meant he could not stop the noise the way you supposed to!). The first week or so of training is rather tiring, but does get better.
Good luck

[dottt]

UPDATE About 3 weeks ago I got the Rodger wireless. The alarm went off for the first three nights. Since then she has been dry. I cannot believe it! I have been lifting her/using pullups/ washing sheets since she was three and a half. We have lurched from one to another. It has made such a difference to her, despite our support the bedwetting was upsetting her. Hooray, still cannot believe it, so lovely for dd.

[dottt]

How does it work the bedwetting alarm? Does it alter the brain responses?

[dottt]

Although expensive, when compared with the cumulative cost of pullups and laundry and skin irritation it is actually cost effective!

[buildingmycorestrength]

Wow, this is so encouraging. The dr has said they will lend us equipment but I think since we have two 'wetters' it might be fine to just buy it if the wait will be long. Both hate tags and anything itchy so I'm delighted that worked for yours.

[BrainSurgeon]

Wow so glad I found this thread, DS is almost 5 and not dry at night, I think he will need this too.
I've asked him (very nicely) why he doesn't go to the toilet when wee comes, and he said "I don't know when it comes mummy, I'm too asleep" so hopefully this will work with him.

Can I just ask, at what age did you take them to the GP? I am currently being told lots of boys are not dry at night at this age... but no-one seems to know when I should expect things to improve...

[Dahlialover]

I took my daughter to the doctors at 7, which was the advice at the time. Up until then, we just washed the sheets and kept everything low key at the advice of my sister (who also had problems). We had some washable pads from Mothercare that were useful.

We went to the eneuresis clinic, and saw a nurse who was very helpful and talked with my daughter about what to do, drinking and all the other issues very nicely. We eventually got an alarm and had charts (with weather symbols) to fill in and take back. Also, had to learn about bed making! She was dry within days, and we kept going back for about 6 months until they were sure. The nurse was more important than the alarm. Maturity is important and the desire to get dry.

Unfortunately, we had a relapse about a year later, when she went into the class of a particularly bad teacher. Out of desperation, we bought an alarm from the ERIC website and that seemed to work (buying the alarm, that is, NOT using it :) - we still have it in its box) with occasional accidents thereafter. The people who ran the PGL course in Y6 were very discrete and helpful, without having to talk to anyone at the school (by then, we were back with the bad teacher for a 3rd time).

There have been very occasional accidents since during times of stress, no sleep, exams. She knows why and what to do.

[exhaustedandfrustrated]

HELP please we have a child pre-teen (10) and we are now under the hospital we gave up with our gp who kept saying that its age related. try telling that to a 10 year old who wants to go for sleepovers. we are now paying privately (heaven help us) but its money well spent, however we have now hit the alarm the dr suggest malem, we searched for cheaper due to finances, and we have come across lots of potholes so to speak, first the wriggling the bit you place in the shorts moves hence the alarm does not work, then the wire was pulled out, you name it its happened, so now we are looking at rodgers alarm the wireless one, any advice we have had no sleep for two weeks as we keep waiting for the alarm to go off, child not bothered and sleeps like a log!! any advice would be fab. tyx

[bedwettingalarmUK]

For the first couple of weeks or so it is often the case that the child will not wake up to the alarm and at this time the child will need 100% support from the parent/carer. During this time when the parent hears the alarm they then need to wake the child up, leaving the alarm sounding (you must NOT turn the alarm off yourself) so that the childs brain registers hearing the alarm with waking up. The parent then gets the child to turn off the alarm (again they must not do this for them) and visit the toilet. After a few nights the childs brain will have started to 'tune in' to the alarm and will make the connection - that the alarm sounding means they need to go to the toilet, that they have to wake up and go to the bathroom. The next step is that the brain then starts to recognise the feeling of a full bladder before the alarm has been triggered and the child will wake up and go to the bathroom - beating the alarm.

[alisonaylen]

After years of trying to help my son to be dry at night- he is now 8 years old- I started with a bed wetting alarm this summer. It was a horrible shock to the system. I had avoided them as they seem so punitive and brutal - and that was how it turned out, my sweet son would lie there asleep and soaking wet with the alarm going off loudly as my husband and i were woken. After four nights we were all shattered. So I went back to a wonderful homeopath elizabethadalian.com we had used in the past to treat mild asthmatic symptoms. She talked immediate sense on the phone about how bedwetting is a mental issue not physical and that many children wish to hold on to their infant hood, there may be some anxiety about growing up etc etc. i went to see her and we talked about my son in detail. Last week two packs of pills arrived I wanted to share the experience as it has been amazing! He is calm and relaxed and has been dry 4 out the past 6 nights. We have a few more pills to go but have all had better sleep than at any time for years. Please try it before buying an alarm or giving them any drugs. Its costs about the same as an alarm and will not take weeks on broken sleep to break your child's habit.

[PrettyMomma]

Just want to add to this thread to say Thanks Mumsnet for pointing me towards the Rodger's alarm. I bought it off eBay having read these reviews. It's a bloody miracle, my son had never had a dry night, infact would sleep through 3-4 wet beds per night. We had two disturbed nights with this alarm and then dry since. I hoped that it might work, but I never thought it would work so quickly!

Yes, it's expensive but I'm hoping to resell on eBay in due course. Only negative? My sons would like me to put 4 stars not 5 because the alarm was noisy. Um, boys, that's kind of the point, isn't it!

If in doubt, I'd just go ahead and buy it. Wish we'd done so years ago!