4 Steps in 4 Weeks to a dry bed without drugs:
Solutions that really work to end bed wetting!
The techniques that really work to end bed wetting have been in use for decades by ‘enuresis consulting’ companies and pediatric hospitals but recently there has been a new understanding of why these methods work.
Bed wetting (nocturnal enuresis) is a common problem, so you'd think that the solutions would be widely known, but family, friends, doctors (even Dr. Oz!) say "he'll outgrow it", "restrict his water" and "get her up". That’s not much help if your child is one of the 15% who won’t overcome bed wetting soon.
Recent studies show that a 10-year-old bed wetter has a 50% chance of going on into the late teens before ‘outgrowing’ it.
At DryKids we think it’s better to intervene to fix bed wetting sooner rather than later because in our experience children, even those who say “it doesn’t bother me”, are more troubled than their parents realize. One British survey of teens found that bed wetting was second only to parental divorce as their most devastating childhood memory.
There are over 10,000 kids with 'enuresis' here in Ontario, where we train parents and kids in the 4 Step method. Here are a few tips for a start:
Tip No.1: More water, not less. The only medicine that helps to end bed wetting is water!
The good news is that bedwetting can be fixed without drugs. The solutions that really do work have been used for decades, at hospital clinics in the US, England, Denmark, Australia. Several large (and expensive) consulting companies have known the ‘secret’ methods that really work, for over thirty years. Many of these methods will help every child, but the best solution is a four-step process that assesses and fixes the particular causes.
In-home training: our DryKids program has a higher success rate than hospital programs, because an experienced therapist visits the family at home, to determine the causes and train parents and children in a program designed to address the issues that we find. Average time to completely dry is 2 months.
Q: How long will this take?
A: Here are a few kids we've helped lately. Our success rate is over 90%, and in most cases the frequency of wetting slows down to fewer nights, within two weeks:
Anthony age 15: 6 weeks to dry.
Amy age 5: 3 weeks to dry
Nick age 10: 3 weeks to dry
Beth age 17: 21 weeks to dry
Tony age 11: 6 weeks to dry Mark age 15: 8 weeks to dry
John age 17: 12 weeks to dry
Joel age 12: 4 weeks to dry
Lisa age 10: 2 weeks to dry
Darryl age 10: 4 weeks to dry
Jack age 12: 5 weeks to dry
Jenny age 9: 3 weeks to dry
Claire age 5: 2 weeks to dry
Stacey age 14: 12 weeks to dry
Q: How much does this cost?
A: $475 or less. The assessment visit is $175, then $300 further over time, if you choose coaching rather than doing the program on your own.
Tip No.2: Reward for effort, not for results. Wet sheets are frustrating, but it’s not his fault.
"Hi Peter,
it's Jacob. I haven't peed at night for 4 days in a row!!!!! I can hold my pea (!) until morning!
Sincerely, Jacob" (age 8, 3 weeks on the DryKids program)
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Peter, Just wanted to let you know how well A.....'s doing - 12 nights dry! He's so happy and we're so appreciative of your help.I think you know what a relief this is. I think you also know that we doctors are trained in "traditional medicine" and to take the leap of faith and say that this is NOT a problem that can be solved by traditional medicine was one I was happy to make - as a mother." Dr. Sharon R.... Toronto (3 weeks on the DryKids program)
Tip No.3: Throw out the pull-ups. Our clients never use them, and their sheets are always dry with our 'drybed training' methods.
If your bedwetter is under five years of age,
Try some simple remedies before using drugs, alarms, or consultants. Children can get dry easier at that age, before they begin to feel 'different'. Avoid the obvious things - getting a child up in the night, avoiding drinks in the evening before bed, scolding or rewarding - these actually prolong rather than fix the problem. What does work is talking it through: explaining how the bladder works, how to hold it, guided imagery (practice waking up and walking to the bathroom), and avoiding problem foods after the evening meal.
Tip No.4: Taking a sleepy child to the toilet is just teaching him to wet in his sleep. You do get dry sheets, but it does nothing to help the child learn to be dry. Instead, just wake him and ask if he has to ‘go’.
THE FOUR STEPS to DRY:
- Strengthen the bladder signal, and teach new sleep patterns to be more receptive
- Learn to wake up when wet, and stop wetting quickly
- Learn to wake up before wetting, to a bladder signal
- Learn to ‘hold it’ all night by creating natural ADH instead of using DDVAP