Archive for the ‘special needs’ Category

Alarms and Pull-ups

Friday, June 4th, 2010

I am looking for a bedwetting alarm for my 6 year old daughter, and am wondering if any of these alarms can be used with a pull up. We do plan to move her to panties during the process, but was hoping to start out in the pull-ups she is used to.

First, this is the perfect time to transition to cloth underwear. There are a few children who are aware that a disposable back-up is in place and use this as a “crutch”. Using waterproof washable mattress overlays over the sheet make middle-of-the-night and morning cleanup easier and still allow your daughter to wear cloth underwear. Once wetting occurs, you can simply remove the wet overlay and replace it with a clean one. In the morning, just the overlays require washing. Overlays, in sizes that fit a twin, full or queen bed, are available on the bedwettingstore.com. These are specially made for us and are not readily available in retail stores. The ones with the tuck-in flaps on the sides are best for children who move around a lot when they sleep.

Secondly, the alarms are all designed to be used to detect a small amount of wetness from cloth. Most of you know how quickly disposable pants wick moisture away from the skin. Alarms sense the moisture more quickly and your daughter will become more aware of the feeling of wetting if disposables are not used in conjunction with the alarm.

In special situations, such as lack of laundry facilities or working with a special needs child, using a disposable pull-up with the alarm may be the only option. The Malem alarm company does make a Standard Sensor that can sense moisture from a disposable product. A small slit is cut in the pull-up and the flat sensor is slid into the pull-up at the spot where you expect the first drop of moisture. This sensor can be purchased as an accessory with any of the Malem alarms. Another option is to use a pull-up over the Rodger underwear that come with the Rodger wireless alarm. The pull-up should not cover the transmitter that is attached on the waistband. The underwear would still need to be laundered once it becomes wet.

Touch Sensitivity

Monday, April 13th, 2009

DK writes that her daughter is very sensitive to touch and refuses to wear a wearable alarm. Are there any other options for her?

There are many different styles of moisture sensing alarms available. The Rodger wireless alarm consists of two pair of cotton specialized briefs with moisture detecting threads sewn in. The small transmitter simply snaps onto the waistband and the sound comes from a unit plugged into the wall. She would have to be comfortable wearing these briefs with the 1”x1” transmitter on the waist. They are no different than other cotton underwear and do not have a lot of elastic around the waist or leg openings.

If she prefers to wear no clothing or underwear to bed, a mat type alarm would work for her. This style includes the Malem Bedside or WetCall Pad Type alarm. These pads are placed on the bed inside a pillowcase or under a towel. Once the pad becomes wet, it alerts your daughter and you that she needs to get up and go to the bathroom. Over time, she begins to stop the flow of urine and get up more quickly. With this type of alarm, there is nothing that needs to be attached to your daughter. The sound unit could lay on her bed or be placed on a bedside table.

You can ask your daughter which she thinks she would prefer using, while reminding her that using an alarm is the most effective cure for bedwetting. If she’s ready to get to dryness, this is the way to do it.