SOS : My Child is Too Old to Wet the Bed!

When I was a young girl, I distinctly remember seeing a made for TV Movie about a teen who still wet the bed. Because his mother was fed up with this behavior, she nagged and berated him. She even hung his sheets out of his window for the world to see one day. She wanted to embarrass him out of this habit. Of course it didn't work and later on in the show, it was revealed that he had a medical issue that led to his bed-wetting problem. Unfortunately, this mother's poor response to her son's behavior is not rare. Many parents don't know how to deal with a bed-wetter once they've past a certain age. As a result, it's important to get some type of action plan together in order to really assist a child or teen who is still wetting the bed past the age of 8. Here are a few helpful hints.

#1) Don't embarrass your child. If your child is school-age and still wetting the bed, he or she is already embarrassed. You don't need to add to their misery with degrading names or antics. In private, let your child know that you love them and that you will do anything to help them with their bed-wetting. Also, it's important to squelch or diminish teasing amongst their siblings.

#2) Keep a journal. You or your child should document when they wet the bed. Is it nightly? Or isn't only after a certain event. Journaling will lead you to the source of the bed-wetting and help you and your child figure out a solution.

#3) See your physician. Take your child to a doctor for a physical exam. It is possible that a medical issue or even a response to certain type of unrelated medications might be causing your child to bed-wet. Your doctor can help you explore the source of your child's problem and work towards a resolution of it.

#4) Let your child change their sheets. If your child is old enough to wash their own clothes or change their bedding, let them do it. It will help them feel more responsible and less embarrassed about bed-wetting if they are able to change their own sheets.