by M. F. Carbo

Created on: February 23, 2009

I know a thing or two about bed wetting because I was a bed wetter until the ripe old age of ten years old. I was fortunate because my mother was extremely understanding since she also wet her bed until she was ten years old. We've tried so many things to help me curb my bed wetting but nothing seemed to help me. I wasn't allowed to drink anything past a certain time of the evening in hopes that I wouldn't have a full bladder in the middle of the night. I remember getting up in the middle of the night and changing my bed sheets. It was an every night thing and I became so used to it I never woke up my parents even though my room was right next to theirs. Also, there were no sleepovers for me since my bed wetting was a secret I kept closely guarded.

What the most ironic thing about my bed wetting was that I would swear that I had gotten up in the middle of the night and was sitting on the cold toilet. Imagine my astonishment waking up feeling the warm urine traveling up my back. It was terribly embarrassing to me especially when you have a brother that thinks its quite funny. I wet the bed since a young child and at that time the only thing that a parent could do was to get the plastic sheet on top the mattress. It certainly didn't help hide the fact that I was wetting the bed! But it was all we had and I had to deal with that. I don't know if bed wetting can be inherited from a parent but it is a bit coincidental that my mother also wet the bed for the same length of time. My brother didn't wet his bed and neither do my two oldest children. My youngest is still too young to tell since she still wears a diaper. At least nowadays there is specialty undergarments made specifically for children who wet the bed so the child can lead as normal of a childhood as possible.

If you are a parent of a child that wets the bed please realize that it certainly isn't on purpose. All bedwetting children need the support of their parents and not be judged or criticized because of it, they are suffering with enough embarrassment already. Sometimes a child will start wetting the bed later on and this is can be caused by a traumatic event in a childs life or a possible ailment. If you have a child that all of a sudden starts bedwetting you may want to speak to your child's pediatrician for help determining what may be the cause of it. Your pediatrician may prescribe medication for the bed wetting if you choose. Just remember that most children will eventually outgrow it before they reach middle school.

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