How to treat bedwetting?

Bedwetting alarms
Are the most effective treatment for uncomplicated bedwetting. 

Drugs and medication
Can provide temporary relief from bedwetting for some bedwetters. 

Wait
Approximately 15% of bedwetters spontaneously become dry each year. However, there is no way of predicting whether your child will do so.

How do bedwetting alarms work?

An effective bedwetting alarm will sound at the moment of wetting, thus alerting your child's sleeping brain. Over time, the brain is trained to be aware of messages from the bladder and maintain control during sleep.

When the moisture-sensitive part of the alarm is wet, the alarm goes off and the bedwetter is woken. The brain responds by sending a signal to the bladder muscles to stop the flow of urine. Gradually a connection between wetting and being woken is made and the bedwetter's brain learns to "beat the alarm", ultimately leading to dry nights.

Nearly all bedwetters sleep soundly, but they will learn to hear an alarm if it is an expected part of the training. The key is good preparation, so they know why the alarm is being used, and a motivated child, so they will want to take charge of their wetting and become dry.

Expect an average of 12-16 weeks to reach stable dryness (21 consecutive dry nights). Each child is unique, so the range can be from 4 weeks to 7 months. Below is a generalised pattern of training:

• Step One: Alarm sounds, parent helps child to wake but the child gets out of bed and turns off the alarm. The bed is wet.
• Step Two: Alarm sounds, parent helps child to wake, the child gets out of bed and turns off the alarm. The bed is damp but not wet.
• Step Three: Child responds to alarm, gets out of bed and turns alarm off . Bed is damp.
• Step Four: Child responds quickly to alarm, so wetting is minimal.
• Step Five: Child "beats" the alarm and is completely dry. Dryness is achieved by either sleeping through the night or waking to go to the toilet during the night.
• Step Six: Child has several dry nights in a row. Wetting episodes with alarm response breaks the run of consecutive dry nights
• Step Seven: Child reaches 14 consecutive dry nights.
• Step Eight: Child continues for another 7 consecutive dry nights without using the alarm.
• Step Nine: The goal of 21 consecutive dry nights is reached.
• Step Ten: If the child is still dry, training is finished. If there is a wet night, resume alarm training.

Relapse

Once a child has been reliably dry for three consecutive weeks, continued dryness can be expected. However, occasionally bed wetting may start again at some stage. There is often no obvious cause. A relapse can be defined as two or more wet nights within two weeks. A quick 'refresher course' with the alarm is usually all that is required to resume dry nights.