Q&A #4
Welcome to our Bedwetting Q&A!
This is now a regular series, where we answer some questions that we have been asked about bedwetting. Please contact us if you would like your bedwetting question answered - details are at the bottom of the page.
Q: I’m getting mixed messages – should I increase or decrease how much my son drinks?
A: Although it might seem counter-intuitive, if your child is wetting the bed it is important not to withhold drinks from them. You need to ensure that your child is drinking enough fluids to keep his bladder strong. This table here shows the recommended fluid intake for a child depending on their age and sex, but bear in mind that factors like the weather and their activity levels will also influence how much they should drink on a daily basis.
Water is the best drink for your son to have – try and avoid caffeinated and fizzy drinks, which might irritate his bladder. His drinks should be spread regularly throughout the day. Reduce his fluid intake just before bedtime to avoid him going to bed with a full bladder. If he is thirsty, he can still sip some water but avoid drinking too much at this stage in the day.
Q: My son turns his bedwetting alarm off, what can I do?
A: For the alarm treatment to be effective, it is important that your son wakes up as soon as the alarm sounds and goes to the bathroom. None of our wearable bedwetting alarms have an “off” switch, to prevent this, but it is possible that he is either changing the settings before it sounds or pressing the reset button when it sounds, and going back to sleep.
If he is turning the alarm off and rolling over, it is important that either you change the set up on the alarm to prevent this, or that you go in when the alarm sounds and ensure that he gets out of bed.
Depending on the alarm you have, you can change the settings or set-up to reduce this risk. Some of the most effective alarms in this situation would be:
Malem Ultimate Bedwetting Alarm (MO4) – the alarm settings (sound, vibrate, sound + vibrate) are located within the battery cover, so that your son can not change the settings.
Malem Wireless Bedwetting Alarm (MO12) – this wireless alarm can be placed on the other side of the bedroom, forcing your son to get out of bed to turn it off.
If you have a question about bedwetting that you'd like answered, let us know!
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