Night time training : 4yo getting up for a wee or wearing a nappy - which is better

[MajesticWhine]

DD aged 4 is still wearing a nappy at night. Her nappies are never dry in the morning. Aside from the cost of pull-ups, I don't really mind. However, a friend says her DD is night-time trained and wakes up and goes for a wee in the night and then takes herself back to bed. I am not sure if I could train DD to wake up and go to the toilet, rather than pee in the bed, but even if I could, I think I would prefer her to wear a nappy, rather than get up in the night. Interested to know what does anyone else think?

At 4 years old I really wouldn't worry about it.
Don't fall into the trap of believing that because your friend's dc is trained your dc has to be.
It's fine to be wearing a nappy, she'll be dry when she's ready.
4 is still very young.

DS is four and been dry at night for about 18 months but for around a year I'd lift him when I went to bed and pop him on the potty and he'd have a wee. Good luck, it's so much cheaper!

My dc would have a pee on the potty if it was right next to their bed at night. They had one of those big seat ones, like a throne! But they both (a girl and a boy) reliably used it if necessary and were out of night time nappies before the age of 4. Just luck I guess. You could also lift when you go to bed and put on the loo? 4 year olds sleep so deeply they are unlikely to come round and properly wake up, iyswim. You can but try and if it doesn't work after 3/4 nights then go back to a pull up.

Ds is 3 and I have just started this with him. I went all out with no nappy, but lifting at night. He really didn't get the idea of holding it when he woke up, you know the first pee that you need as soon as you start to wake. Anyway after 10 days in and a bad night of two accidents by 4 in the morning, and him getting upset (and he was waking as soon as he'd started) I sat him down and asked him if he would rather have pull ups on so if he had an accident it didn't matter, but he could get himself to the loo if he managed it. Since the first night of pull ups, he has been dry, two weeks now. He does take himself in the night if he needs it and is able to manage all by himself. He does shout if he does a poo though as he needs help wiping his bum still but where he took ages to be reliable during the day, the nights have been easier. He was never dry while wearing a normal nappy but I do think often it wasn't much more than the first morning wee as he wakes and plays with his toys between 6&7 in the morning.

Don't worry about it. It is a hormonal thing. People can encourage it earlier than the hormones kick in by restricting fluids and lifting, but if you don't do either of those things, they will still get there, unless there is a medical issue. There is no better about it. Although once they are hormonally dry at night, their body will wake them for a wee, so at some point she may get up for a wee. Its quite bizarre to be watching the TV downstairs and to hear your 4 year old flushing the loo upstairs! If you are both comfortable with the current situation, then there is no need to worry.

Thanks. Interesting to hear other perspectives. I might try out the lifting thing sometime. I vaguely remember doing that for a while with my DD1 she is much older so I've forgotten.