DD is FIVE fgs, but still not dry at night. DS is FOUR and neither is he..

[moodlumthehoodlum]

Apart from failing dismally as a mother, what exactly can I do to get them dry at night?

I've tried them just going without nappies, with expected consequences, ie wet beds and wet legs. Their pull ups are soaked by the end of the night, so its not as if I'm getting dry nappies on a day to day basis.

I used to be really relaxed about it , but now I am beginning to panic about it, as DD is going into y1 FGS - surely she should be dry by now...

Or do I just have to wait?

Just wait - they won't be referred to the bed wetting clinic until they're 7yrs old (ie drs don't worry about it at all until they're 7) still very normal )

(and a DS who is about go to into YR1 and has been dry for 2yrs.......go figure )

don't fret

dd was 5 and I took her out of pull up's nurse told me to not give her anything to drink after 6pm and lift her for the first few nights - she was dry from then onwards.

others say the 6pm drinks thing is rubbish but it worked for us

Eneuretic (sp) clinic told us no drinks an hour before bed. No lifting (doesn't actually help them learn to recgonise the signals themselves), but really too early to worry about it just yet

Oh thanks lovely ladies.

Please can you come over and tell my mil that? She's appalled by the whole situation..

Phew.

Really, don't worry about it. It happens when it happens.

DD is 7y and has only been reliably dry in the last year or so, and still has the very odd accident. It is not from want of trying on DD's part either.

DD came out of reusable night pants when she turned 4y as she refused to wear them any longer. We got a couple of reuseable bed mats instead, from Mothercare that laid on top of the sheets on her bed. And over the last 3 years she just gradually got better and better.

We did try lifting, although made sure she was awake before taking her to the toilet around 10pm, and wdid have some success with this.

One thing that did make a difference was to ensure that DD only ever drank water after about 3-4pm at night. If she drank any other liquid than water it was almost guaranteed that she would wet. With just water she was more reliable.

IME there is very little you can actually do. You can't train for night time dryness like you can for day time. It happens when their body is ready and not before. For some this is at 2 years old, for some it is 7y.

tell mil appalled is not of any blardy help and could she try a positive emotion instead

Hula - some it's even older (DS1 will be 9 in September ).

I have ds1 (6 - about to go into yr2) and ds2 (3.6). Neither of them are dry at night.

They've both being going without pull-ups for the last 2 weeks. Ds1 has been dry about 4 nights in that time; ds2, none! They're both keen to continue trying, so I'm happy to let them! Although the washing is beginning to be a PITA!

So no advice, just solidarity!

Don't worry they will be dry eventually..it just feels like it will last forever but it does stop...just lots of positive praise even if they do 1 night..I used to take them to the loo with me if I got up during the night..irritating at times but it helped

my DD1 wasn't completely dry in year 1 so please don't worry

Worry not.

You are not faling as a mother; night dryness is a developmental and physiological stage that childre reach when they are ready. Some children reach it later than others and it tends to have a familial basis, so if mum or dad were later to be dry then the child will be too.

If they are not waking when wet and pull-ups are soaking in the morning then leave them in pull-ups for now. Maybe when they get to about six, try leaving the pull-ups off and see what happens. A child may need to feel wet to wake to wee in the night and pull-ups prevent that as they feel so dry and comfy.

Make sure they are drinking enough in the day as a bladder needs to be toned and stretched to be able to hold a large enough volume to cope with nighttime. The best way to tone a bladder is to fill and empty it regularly, so at least 6-8 decent sized drinks a day and regular toileting ie every 2-3 hours.

I have had three children dry at night before age two, and one who is wet every night at age 6. You can't force it, when they are ready to be dry at night it will happen.

That's all very helpful, especially the points about toning the bladder. DD has camel thirst (ie none at all), until precisely 7pm at which point she becomes very thirsty. So, my mission for the summer holidays is to encourage her to drink more, earlier in the day. And, only water after 4pm.

And, mil, if by chance you are reading this - see - mumsnet knows best....

There is a hormone that needs to kick in to
slow down the production of urine at night.

That will happen when it happens. Lifting them will not speed this up. Restricting their fluid intake might help a bit.

My DD was still not totally dry when she was 7 and still had occasional accidents till she was 9.

It is far more common than you think. 25% of 5 year olds are not dry at night. Lots of mums just don't talk about it (unlike the mums whose DCs crack it by what might be deemed an "acceptable" age.)

Ignore your MIL or blind her with the science of hormones etc. Or you could explain that there is a genetic link and ask if she had trouble staying dry at night when she was little .

DS1 wasn't dry until over 6, DD until over 5 and DS2, my latest to train in the day, is dry at 4. My parents were slightly but I ignored it. There is not a link with intelligence or maturity. And at 16, no one will be able to tell who wet the bed when they were still at primary school and who didn't.

FAQ - very true; should have put 7+y really.