Right Age

DW writes: I have two children who struggle with bed wetting. My son is 7 1/2 and my daughter is 4 1/2. My son is not the least interested in trying to stay dry right now. He simply DOES NOT want to be woken at night. Last summer, I tried the Malem Ultimate with him, paired with bribes for dry nights, but he cries and gets very frustrated over being woken up. My daughter, however, now wants to stay dry and is cooperative when I get her up at night. I am considering using the alarm for her, but am concerned that she may be too young. Are there any guidelines for what may be too young? And any words of wisdom for my son?

I think you have identified an important piece in getting to dryness - wanting to do so. At some point in time, your son will indicate that he is ready to tackle getting to dryness. You can wait until he is ready without any untoward effects. As far as your daughter goes, I certainly do have families where one sib has used an alarm and now a younger sib really wants to use it, too. You know your children better than anyone else. If your daughter wants to try the alarm for a few weeks, you should begin to see progress by then. If it becomes a source of frustration for her, you can delay it a little longer. I will tell you that in families where a younger sib becomes dry, the older ones take note and do what they can to get to dryness as well.