how can i get him out of nappies?

Question

my son is 7 years old and still wears a nappie in bed some times it is dry but most of the time it full i stop him from drinking before he goes to bed and have even got up in the night and put him on the toilet but nothing works. he is really embrassed about it and hate people knowing. is he just lazy or could he have something wrong any advise

Answer 1

My son is nearly 7 and he is still sometimes wet at night, never in the day though. I contacted the school nurse about it and she said it is normal at his age, but if it carries on after he is 7 contact her again. She also suggested make him drink lots during the day to make his bladder get used to being full, stop him drinking around dinner time, and DON'T take him for a wee at night as he won't be triggering the response to his full bladder by himself.
Also if you think it is a psychological thing, try a star/reward system, as if they think they will get a star in the morning they will go to bed thinking about it, and possibly not sleep as deeply (as is my sons problem!). Think what they are like on xmas eve, they dont sleep deeply cos they are thinking about the gifts they are going to get :)
My son has been much better for the last couple of weeks, the nurse said that we are probably just waiting for the hormone that reduces the amount of wee at night to kick in, so hopefully that is what is happening now :)

All the obvious things apply, dont scold them if they are wet, just ignore it or a "never mind" and carry on as usual. Reward when they are dry, make a fuss of them, hugs & kisses etc. Pampers bed mats are very good, if you dont mind the expense for a while, but as they get better at being dry, one can last for ages :) Depends whether you think it outweighs the cost of washing sheets and duvets every day!

Good luck

Answer 2

When someone sleeps the body stops producing urine which is why we can usually go the night without having to go to the toilet. However, the body needs to learn this. One of the best ways is the uncomfortable feeling of being wet. The body doesn't like the feeling and gradually "learns" to control itself during the night.
Your son also needs lots of reassurance. He needs to feel safe, secure, normal. Show him the dry nite nappy range in the shops and point out the age range. If it isn't normal why are there nappies in his size? Manufacturers wouldn't make them if he were the only one, would they?
Get some absorbant mats for the bed. They prevent the matress from getting wet, although the sheets will need to be put through the washer a few times.
Always make sure he goes to the toilet before he goes to bed. This should form part of his bedtime routine: Toilet, teeth, and maybe a story if he's been a good boy that day.
The summer time is always the best time. Children sweat more and lose more fluid that way, making it less likely for urine to be produced in bladder splitting quantities.
I wish you and your son all the luck and patience you will need.

Answer 3

Talk to your doctor and make sure that your son doesn't have any physical problem. Many kids still wet the bed at 7 because of the development of their bladders. You should probably wait it out a little longer. You can also try this:

First of all, don't let him have anything to drink after dinner. Next, you may have to deprive yourself of sleep for a week or two. Try getting up several times in the night and checking on him. If he has not wet the bed, have him get up and go to the bathroom. You want to train him to wake up in the middle of the night. If he has wet the bed, have him get up right then and help you clean up and change the bed. You want to have him associate wetting the bed with being uncomfortable and disrupted (you don't have to be mean, just matter of fact). If you are consistent, he will probably stop having this problem within a few days, but hang in there if it takes a bit longer.

Be sure you explain the plan to him before you begin and emphsize that you are not punishing him but trying to help him. Tell him you will need his cooperation and promise him some type of reward or celebration when this is all behind you.

This worked for me with my daughter who is a very heavy sleeper, and it was advice that was passed onto me from a friend who had success with it as well.

Answer 4

I think you need to stop putting him in nappies and be prepared for some night time bed changing. Keeping nappies on your child only postpones the problem, as the bladder doesn't have a chance to mature. It IS quite normal for children, especially boys, to bedwet at this age, but he needs to learn to wake up for a wee, and he won't be able to do this if all he has ever known at nighttime is a nappy. It is a pain, my six year old (7 next month) still occasionally wets the bed, but you have to try giving him a chance. Buy a few mattress protectors ( you can get them from argos or mothercare) and some cheap bedlinen and try leaving the nappies off. As the summer holidays are coming up it's the ideal time to give it a go. If you want any further advice, contact your health visitor, or go to your GP. Star charts are a good way to motivate a child of this age too. Go for it!!

Answer 5

this is pretty normal in boys. my friends son wet the bed til he was eight. id stop putting nappies on him tho, that mite be a sort of comfort thing for him. try a sticker chart. if he can stay dry two or three times a week, he gets a treat at the weekend. add more days til hes dry all week. this is how i got my little one dry. really make a fuss when he has a dry nite. they like seeing the stickers on the wall, knowing theres a treat coming later. there could also be a sense of worry, is he being bullied at skool etc. my friend went to the docs, he got her a mat that when it gets wet a bell would ring to wake the child up. try your doc if all else fails. good luck.

Answer 6

many many children wet the bed.

for info, i am one of four girls and three of us wet the bed - one until she was 15.

he is not lazy -it is a medical condition. a health visitor can give advice and even fit him with an alarm, but i hated these when i was a child.

as for tips - i don't stop my kids drinking after a certain time as it trains their bladder to operate at a lower level - so it can make the condition worse. i think some children naturally grow out of it - for some others - my daughter only wets the bed when she has fizzy juice - so i don't give her it. i encourage my children to go to the loo before they go to sleep - not just before they go to bed.

i clearly remember that when my mother told me she had had enough and we could drink whatever we wanted when we wanted - that is when i stopped - and i was 11. for some children though, it's just one of those things. a lot of my friends children still wet the bed and you could perhaps reassure him that it is nothing to be scared of and that the majority of his friends will do it as well -like him though - they won't tell anyone else.

have a talk with your doctor and see what they say - they will be able to go in depth with you and discuss ways to manage it

i konw this is not really constructive and helpful - but sometimes it helps just to know that we are not alone.

Answer 7

I would take him to the doctor first, but I'm sure there will be nothing physically wrong with him. It's probably just habit. Just do it. Throw the nappies away, or ask him to. Get proper mattress protection and lots of spare sheets. Tell him it's OK if he wets the bed, but show him how to change the sheet by himself. Less pressure and more responsibilty may help.

Answer 8

You have to be firm and while easier said than done it does work. Initially try rewarding him when he makes it through the night without the nappy, then progress to rewarding hime when he doesn't wet the bed. It takes perseverance but with practice and patience it does work. Good luck.

Answer 9

7 years old?!? Quit putting them on him! He's in school now and he needs to grow up. Tell him that diapers are for babies and he isn't a baby anymore. If he has an accident during the night then you are just going to have to deal with it but don't make a big deal out of it, it'll make him feel bad. Help him through it but be firm and don't cave because he needs to get out of diapers as soon as possible.

Answer 10

at 7 yrs old , it is embarrasing for kids, there is a problem i know i some children , a friend of mines child has it , and apparently her daughter is ok during the day but wets of a night, this is todo this a sleep disorder and apparently what happens is unlike you or i if we need the loo at night we get up and go, as our brian tells us to do this, but your son could have this disorder and his brain doesnt tell him,to get upand go to the loo.


i personally would although i know its embarrrasing for your son take him to the doctors and say when he wets and when he doesnt and this as i said above could be a sleep pattern disorder, and it can be cured witht he right medication and , my firends daughter is ok now, shes stopped wetting at a night.


i hope this helps , but i would personally get professional help for your son here,while he is younge.