When to Treat Bedwetting

March 05, 2014 2 min read

The best time to treat bedwetting is when it starts to become an issue.

The good news is that bedwetting alarms are such an effective, non-medicinal way to end bedwetting that no family has to "wait until they outgrow it. Waiting and doing nothing is old-school advice. Every child is different, so there is no absolute right time for every child.

When deciding on the right time, ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS:

Is your child around 6 years old and wetting most nights?

Most children have developed the ability to stay dry all night by this age. Some 5 year-olds are motivated to become dry and some 7 year olds are not. Primary bedwetting means that it has always been present and in most cases, the bladder and kidneys are perfectly normal.

Does your child make comments about wanting to be dry and not wear pull-ups to bed?

Children begin to notice that others their age no longer wear pull-ups or that a younger sibling or cousin can stay dry.

Is this a calm time without a lot of family stressors?

Some times are better for learning new behaviors than others. New babies, job changes, moves and marriage troubles can be stressful for any family. Wait until these things have smoothed out before attempting to work on nighttime dryness.

Is your child beginning to get invitations for sleepovers and camps?

Social activities with peers are important for any school aged child. Some children are easy going and are fine with wearing a pull-up for overnight activities. Others turn down every invitation until they are consistently dry.

Is your child reliably dry during the day and having daily bowel movements?

Daytime wetting and constipation in school aged children should be evaluated by your health care provider. You can be assured that infection, diabetes, and constipation are not contributing to the nighttime wetting.

If the answers to these questions are mostly YES, this may be the right time to discuss using a bedwetting alarm to sense the wetting and help your child put together that important brain-bladder connection.