Older child- bedwetting.

[LovelyBath]

DS is 11. Still wetting at night. think it's hereditary as DH had this too and it stopped in teen years. GP wants us to test urine and go back to the clinic where they want to measure his bladder capacity etc. He won't. DH says don't make a fuss (as he had a fuss and didn't help).

I would like the desmopressin tablets, as does DS. Seems we have to go through this fuss first? Thought the GP might give it to us, but it seemed she isn't keen and she wants us to go back to the clinic.

[Fresh01]

I would say you need to change the way you talk about it. It isn't "making a fuss" it is a medical issue that there are health professionals who can help with the process. If the child had any other medical issue you would take them to the relevant health professionals to sort it out. One of my DD's is finally getting dry at night at 8.5. She wasn't keen but explained it as her body had a problem and the doctors were trying to solve it. Her brother had a speech issue and he had speech therapy to solve it.

You can get a urine test done very easily. You can just drop a labelled sample into your GP then they test it for infection and you call for the results.

We got great help from our Enuresis clinic but the referral process takes time. We never did the urine measuring but nearly did.

We did significantly increase her water consumption, no fizzy drinks, no blakcurrant juice. This bladder training helped her bladder get use to holding larger amounts of urine.

The first time we used Desmopressin tablets they didn't work, nor Ditropan. Over a year later the Desmporessin tablets are working. But we are now coming off them. You only use them for 3 months then a break to see if there is any change.

I have found the GP doesn't like just giving tablets in isolation but refers to the Enuresis clinic as they are many factors that can help them get dry which all work together.

Wet beds are very fustrating.

[LovelyBath]

Thanks for your reply. Yes GP has just done a test and then says she is going to refer us back to the clinic.

I should explain about the 'making a fuss' this is actually from DH as he went through a real fuss as a child / teen and his resolved by itself in the end. I think in those days, (70s) they focused on the cause being psychological and he had a lot of sticker charts etc and rewards and felt blamed, also not so good plastic sheets in those days. Says he wishes pyjama pants were around. So I am trying to kind of be thoughtful of this as well, although hopefully things have changed.

Right now, I am being seen as almost causing a problem as I have encouraged DS to try without the PJ pants and we are getting more wet beds....

Not easy (sigh)

[LovelyBath]

PS "We did significantly increase her water consumption, no fizzy drinks, no blakcurrant juice. This bladder training helped her bladder get use to holding larger amounts of urine."-

Yes we're doing this too. He takes a large flask of cold water into school and drinks it throughout the day. I do try to limit this in the evening but again this causes a problem with DH... also going to the loo after reading and before sleep.

I'm not sure what problem DH has with DS reducing the drinking in the evening, he said something about him being thirsty. It all seems to remind him of what happened with him... DS is old enough to make his own decisions however and I've started just not giving drinks at supper time.

[Fresh01]

Ah, I see what you mean about the making a fuss comment now.

Is your DS bothered? What does he want to do about it?

My DD did eventually get fed up during seeing different doctors/nurses and wanted to be dry. I think that helped. This was last autumn. I was also fed up of wet beds once or twice a night, 6 days a week as we had decided to have a period without pull-ups. We decided together back in pull ups for Nov and Dec whilst we did the bladder training then gave it another try in the New Year.

It has only been this year we have seen an improvement. She did have a bit of daytime leaking due to constipation that is now being treated (for 18 months now) and that has all stopped too. Your DS wouldn't have any constipation/day time issues? The doctor and enuresis nurse have told us that being dry at night is the last part of the jig-saw, if there are any other bladder or bowel issues, night will rarely be dry.

My DD refused to use a bed wetting alarm but it apparently works well in older kids if you stick with it.

There is a kids section on the Eric's website that explains it in kid friendly terms. They also have a kids forum for the kids to post to each other but my DD was too young to get really into that.

It is a fustrating time. I am still at the sigh of relief stage when she has a dry bed. Next stage for us in to take away the Desmopressin but waiting till after the Easter hols to try that.

[LovelyBath]

Thanks for your reply and taking the time to understand etc! Yes my DS is the same; he doesn't want to go to clinics etc and def doesn't want wee measured... had enough of a trial getting him to do the urine sample last week. He just wants it dealt with privately and discreetly and would like to try the tablets on his trips at secondary (they go away in the first few weeks to get to know each other). He also has his Yr 6 SATs at the moment and teachers have asked me to keep things simple at home relaxing etc.

Not easy is it. So, next step we are being sent back to the clinic where I will try and go as DS at school (unless they want him especially to be there that is) Do you find they want the child there? And then what I hope to do is continue in a discreet way and keep going and then possibly try the tablets depending on how things go. My husband in the 70s was prescribed Amitryptilline tablets which helped but made his very sleepy / woozy. I don't think they do that anymore, thankfully.

[Fresh01]

I can understand him not wanting to come out of school to go to a clinic. My DD got upset and wouldn't go back into school after an appointment the other week. Her teacher and I got her in but neither of us could work out the upset. She has had a few appointments lately and been fine going back in. Coming out of school one of her classmates said "where were you anyway this morning" Thankfully her granny heard and told her to mind her own business. When I talked to DD later it turned out her upset had been other kids quizzing her on where she was going/late into school.

Unfortunately yes everyone has wanted to see DD. They do height and weight checks, a urine infection check (why every time I don't know), took us 20mins in a clinic loo to get one of those once! Try and ask for a late afternoon appointment, our enuresis clinic does them so you don't need to come out of school. Hard logistically when you have more than one child. The Enuresis nurse specifically talked more to DD than me. She was lovely about it all.

Desmopressin has no side effects. It doesn't build up in the body and you give it just before they go to sleep. You can get 120mg and 240mg doses so you would need to try it in advance to work out doses. The first time DD tried it it (120mg then 240mg) did nothing to help her, she was still wetting as much as ever. A year later it seems to be working.

DD has her first ever sleepover next weekend. She is going to wear a pull-up under her onesie through her own choice. She will take a Desmopressin tablet too.

The enuresis nurse gave us the Eric's staying away from home leaflet. Best tip is have a bottle of water next the bed and if you do wet it "whoops you split some water" she did say to make her Brownie leaders aware and if she came to them saying she had accidentally split water on her bed they will know what she means and would sort it out discretely. Even her brownie leaders were unphased when I spoke to them and have had it happen several times before.

Because bed wetting is not spoken about past the age of 5, we all don't realise how many kids sadly have to deal with it.

[LovelyBath]

Thank you for the ideas, really helpful. Yes I will try and get the later afternoon appt if poss, that's a good idea. Yes I saw that if a parent has had it there is 40% chance a child will too and as his brother doesn't I think it might be just that.

Mine went on a sleepover yesterday and has the be persuaded to take a pj pant which he now calls a 'nappy'

The school, when he had a trip away in the past were helpful and rang me at home in advance, they did similar where they had a code which meant he had a wet bed.