How My Child Stopped Using Night Time Pull Ups
By Guest Blogger Kathleen Thorell
I knew my daughter had a small bladder when we potty trained her at age three. All my friends were telling stories of their children, the “camels” who were going hours and hours without ever having to go on the potty. This was so foreign to me. My daughter easily went to the bathroom every 30 minutes. Gradually, her bladder matured and she can now make it several hours without going.
At her four year old visit with our pediatrician, I asked about her wearing pull ups at night. She had mastered the daytime, but night time was another story. She often leaked through a pull up, too. (until I found a good fit for her- Kroger’s Nite Time Pull ups, the cheapest ones!) The doctor had no worries. He explained that eventually her bladder would mature and grow, and she would be able to make it through the night or become aware of when she had to go. Throughout her 4th year, my daughter noticed that friends and relatives didn’t wear pull ups at night…some even younger than her! It started to bother her, but she didn’t like the idea of leaking either.
A few weeks before her 5 year old check up, my daughter admitted to me that sometimes, in the wee hours of the morning, she was aware of peeing in her pull up. She chose to pee in her pull up rather than go out into the scary, albeit well-lit, hallway (Ok, maybe we need to stop watching Scooby Doo). I tried to react with understanding and encouraged her to get up and go to the bathroom. I even gave her a small flashlight to put under her pillow.
At her 5 year check up her doctor was again not concerned that she was still in pull ups. That changed when I told him about her confession. He then stated that this may be one of the rare times that a small reward system may work for bed wetting. He explained that rewards do not work with all kids because they simply sleep too soundly to know when they have to go. He also informed me that bed-wetting can be hereditary. My husband remembers having accidents until he was 7 or 8.
My daughter was actually excited to sleep in panties, but I had to get some supplies before we could start. I found some waterproof mats at Babies R Us for $8.99. They were meant for a crib and about the size of one, but they did not have the elastic sides. I wanted to be able to put the mat directly under her so that when leaks occurred, I could just change the mat instead of the whole sheet set. I bought two and hoped for the best. I also bought a pack of small toys from the Dollar Store and told my daughter she would earn one for every dry night she had.
Night #1
I prepped my daughter by explaining that I would wake her up before I went to bed to take her to the bathroom (she goes to bed around 7:30pm). I encouraged her to go by herself if she felt the urge.
Results: took her to the bathroom 2 ½ hours after her bedtime (she “sleepwalks” through it); leaked at 3am; leaked at 5am
Morning thoughts: My daughter was sad to not earn a treat, but not too discouraged. I am a bit tired.
Night #2
Results: woke her up to go bathroom 3 hours after bedtime…she was already soaked and sleeping right through it! Leaked 3am; leaked 5am
Morning thoughts: Again, she is mildly sad but not too discouraged. I want so badly to give her a treat for being such a trooper through the potty trips and mat, underwear, nightgown changes. I feel like I have a newborn again, getting up every 3 hours! What have I gotten myself into?
Night #3
I tell her that if she gets up to go to the bathroom, I will give her a treat. Risky, but I am sleep deprived and desperate.
Results: took her to the bathroom 2 hours after bedtime (dry!); leaked 12am; leaked 4am. No self-initiated trips to the bathroom.
Morning thoughts: My daughter is exhausted! The interrupted sleep is catching up with her. I am feeling discouraged and suggest that maybe it is too soon and we go back to pull ups. She adamantly refuses and states she wants to keep trying.
Night #4
Results: took her to the bathroom 2 hours after bedtime; leaked 5am.
Morning thoughts: We are both excited that she stayed dry up until 5am (she usually is awake by 6 or 6:30).
Night #5
Results: took her to the bathroom 3 hours after bedtime (trying to stretch out the morning hours); leaked 5 am.
Morning thoughts: She is a tired puppy, but stubborn! I enlist my husband to have a heart to heart with her about HIS bed-wetting so she won’t feel like a failure. He never gets to that because…
Night #6
Results: took her to the bathroom 2 ½ hours after bedtime; NO LEAKING!!! She didn’t get up to go to the bathroom, she just didn’t leak.
Morning thoughts: My daughter was ecstatic! I was incredulous and happy, but skeptical. Surely this was a fluke. Oh well, she loved getting her treat.
Night #7, #8, #9, #10, and #11
Results: 6 straight nights of no leaking!
I still don’t quite believe it. I assumed she would have to start going to the bathroom at night. Somehow, she retrained her bladder. I should have known my stubborn little girl would find a way to do it her way.
I am sure we will have accidents in the future, but for now we are all getting some much-needed sleep and she got a boost of self-confidence. I’d love to hear how others have tackled this issue or if you experiment with our little system.
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My granddaughter goes to the bathroom like every 10 minutes. She is 4 years old. She is dry during the day while awake but wets in her pull up while sleeping. Now she is peeing in her pull up even while she is awake. She is refusing to use the potty instead just pees in her pull up. Her father wet the bed until he was 9. He wants to put a rubber sheet on her bed and just let her pee all over herself. He thinks this will break her of peeing in her pull up when she is awake or sleeping. I don’t agree. Please help. What should I do?
Our daughter is 13 and bedwetting in puberty! She also wears cloth diapers and rubberpants to bed every night.She has 3 pair of rubberpants with ruffles on them across that are really cute.She is finially making her First Holy Communion on May 29th with the 7 year olds.Would a pair of her ruffled rubberpants be ok to wear over her diapers under her communion dress?
Yes! Our daughter just did her 8th grade confirmation back on June 5th and per the dress code all of the girls had to wear white dresses and veils with lace socks and white shoes.I did a pair of her bedwetting ruffled rubberpants under the dress and they looked cute and made her feel more pure!
our daughter is 12 and also bedwetting in puberty.She wears the cloth diapers and rubberpants to bed also and is fine with them.We finially baptized her at Easter sunday mass along with the other kids and dressed her in the traditional,white,poofy,sleeveless,above the knees baptism dress and bonnet with lace anklets and white shoes.Several of her bedwetting diapers and a pair of her white rubberpants were put on her and worn under her dress for the day.
We also have a similar scenario being that my husband also was a late night time toilet trainer.. around 5 years old – 6. Our son is now 4 years old and like yourself we have been waiting for a “dry nappy” (or in our case it’s been pull ups for ages..: still to no success. We also went cold turkey on our son and told him it was time to stop wearing the pull ups – only that it was us initiating it. It’s very hard work – tiring and yes it feels like newborn days again; getting up to wet beds and checking on them for dryness/ gauging the length of time they can stay dry. Hopefully you’ve turned a corner – it’s nice to hear some positive news after hard work because some days it feels exhausting and you feel cheated out of a child you just magically wakes dry (like all our other Mum friends seem to have experienced… even my own mum with all of her own children).
8 year old daughter has OAB and is getting better but it’s slow process. Wears cloth diapers and plastic pants to bed because that seems to be the only thing that keeps the bedding dry. Tried all kinds of disposable products with varying amounts of success.
My daughter has an overactive bladder and is still in pull ups at night and am wanting to try getting her dry she has been potty trained since 2 and a half but then found out about her bladder issues at 3 and a half
You are a wonderful mom!!!! Thank you for sharing.
This was bar far the most helpful article I’ve ever read about this specific topic. I have 5 yr old twin girls who still wear pullups at night and I’m at a loss for what to do. They were 31 weeker preemies so I have often wondered if they have tiny or weak bladders?! Maybe that’s what I just tell myself to make me feel better about it. I’m definitely going to try this routine, love the pee pad idea so hey can feel and wear the underpants why they are learning.
Yes, this is finally a step by step suggestion on how to train! My 5 year old was a preemie too and can’t get her out of them either. I’m dreading the lack of sleep but will try this. Any luck with your twins?
Hi! Just want to say this has been working great and we’ve had 2 days of a dry big boy after a few days of leaks. Two questions:
1) at what point do you start pushing the 11pm wake up to later
And
2) at what point do you stop the 11pm wake up all together in hopes of them sleeping through the night dry.
Our son is a very deep sleeper and I just don’t see him waking up in the middle of the night if he feels the urge to use the bathroom.
Thank you!
Our daughter is 13 and right in the middle of puberty and bedwetting because of it.Her Ped. says that she should grow out of it within the next year or so.We are using cloth diapers and plastic pants on her at night and she is ok with them.Her diapers are pinned on her with regular diaper pins and her plastic pants are in adult size medium that fit her blousy over the diapers for comfort.She has around 4 dozen pairs of the plastic pants in pink,yellow,blue and babyprints.Now that the weather has turned colder,she has been wearing her two piece footed pajamas and mostly her plastic pants with the babyprints on them over her diapers under the bottoms.She told me that she likes the feeling of being like a baby with the babyprint plastic pants over her diapers and under her footed bottoms!I am a somewhat worried that she may be becomming a ‘baby’ again.Anyone got any advice?
To Julie N.-It is not unusual for your daughter to feel like a baby wearing her cloth diapers and rubberpants!I have heard of other girls going thru puberty and bedwetting and wearing diapers and rubberpants for their bedwetting and also feeling like babies.Some girls are just that way and like the feeling of being like a baby.One family i know of,their daughter wore cloth diapers and rubberpants for her puberty bedwetting untill shortly past 15 and then when she stopped bedwetting,she kept on wearing the diapers and rubberpants because she liked them.She was finially baptized a few months later at catholic mass and she wore a poofy white short dress and bonnet with lace socks and white shoes and had the diapers and rubberpants on under her dress.Her mom told me that her daughter wanted to wear the dress and bonnet with the diapers and rubberpants under it.I say,if your daughter wants to keep on wearing her diapers and rubberpants,let her,she will outgrow them soon enough.
I am sorry but if a 13 or 15 year old of which don’t have any disabilities is having these problems then I think something is wrong. Their wanting to feel like a baby and wear diapers is in no way natural. I would seek out help from a physician and also psychiatrist.
I wetted the bed until I was 16 and would have loved to have some kind of diaper situation. It made my life a nightmare. No camps. Limited sleep overs. Constantly worrying. Maybe I should’ve seen a psychiatrist but I feel like I turned out ok.
To Grown Femal-Your parents should have had you wear diapers and rubberpants to bed every night.They do keep the bed dry,since i assume you are female,rubberpants are in pastel colors as well as cute nursery prints for girls.
Agree
Have two bedwetters and both wear cloth diapers and rubber pants to bed each night. They work very well and beds are dry in the mornings.
To Susan T.and Julie N.-I too have heard of and actually seen girls who were bedwetters going thru puberty and wore the cloth diapers and rubberpants,wearing them beyond their bedwetting! The girls that i have seen and heard of mainly wore their diapers and rubberpants for holidays and special occassions,such as Easter,Christmas,WeddingsmBaptisms,First Holy Communions,etc.All of these girls were in the 14 to 16 year old range and had the cloth diapers and rubberpants on under their dresses to be cute and add to their purity and innocence for the occassion they were in.
Bb
I am a girl,13,and have two friends who are bedwetters and they both wear cloth diapers and plastic pants to bed every night.Their parents bought the cloth diapers and plastic pants for them to wear and they both have told me that parents of bedwetting daughters prefer having their daughters wear cloth diapers and plastic pants.Is this fair?
Hello, while it may be normal for some girls going through puberty bed wetting at older ages can also be a sign of stress, change and even sexual
Abuse. I would encourage you to keep your eyes open. Also at that age she doesn’t need to wear diapers etc. just get a plastic bed protector, and have right there in her room
Sheets and blankets and chlorox wipes and regular wipes for cleaning her bed and cleaning herself. You can also use a bed protector or even a plastic table
Cloth from the dollar store like this: plastic cloth sheets plastic cloth sheets plastic cloth sheets make the bed like 3 times with a plastic sheet separating it every time and have a pile of blankets she can use available in a basket in her room.if she sets per bed she needs to peel off the wet sheet and plastic cloth there’s a clean one underneath use wipes to clean herself and set up a new blanket. She needs to wake up in time to take a shower every morning and she is responsible for washing her wet sheets and blankets. 13 year olds don’t need diapers they are capable of taking care of the mess themselves. I would quickly place the responsibility on her. She will have more self respect and motivation if you can give her the responsibility of cleaning changing etc.. just check to make sure she’s following through and sleeping on a dried pee bedsheet because she didn’t change it in the morning.
I’m having the same issue with my almost 6 yr old daughter too. She’s been potty trained since 2 or a few months before but wears a pull-up at night. Sometimes I have to change it during the night because she’s so wet. She sleeps like the dead and I don’t think will wake up on her own and if I try waking her so will be so ill or out of it. I’m having surgery in a month and will be home for 4-6 weeks and I’m gonna try to train her and hopefully make some progress.
Hi
I am in a similar situation with my 5 year old girl. We have tried it for a week twice but she just doesn’t seem to wake up through the wetting. How did you know what times your little girl was wetting at? Did you have an alarm? Thanks.
Thank you for this! My son is 4. He has been potty trained since he was about 2 and a half (his babysitter was a miracle worker) but he is still in pull ups at night as well. I forgot to buy more pull ups and were currently out. But it’s late, and I am exhausted. We are going to start trying your method TONIGHT! It’s kind of late (10:30 pm) and were still up watching TV on a Saturday night. Once he falls asleep I am setting an alarm for a few hrs after. And a few hours after that as well. I am excited to get him off of the pull ups.
Can you pls. let me know if this worked for your son? thx!
Sym,
I have a son who will be 11 in August and we are in pull ups nightly. It is so hard and I feel so bad for him because he wants to be pull up free but we can literally go a week of no wetting them we are back to wetting again or wetting once a week or every couple days. We have half dry days and half wet days. I do not know what more to do. I have tried waking him at night and boom he sometimes is already wet. I know they say they grow out of it but when? He has science camp in a. year and I want him to feel good and solid about him not wetting the bed by then.
A quick note, I had the same problem as your son and was unable to know when I had to use the bathroom due to a bladder issue. I had a small pocket that had formed on the bladder and it filled with urine until it just overflowed.
Not that your son has the same thing, but one quick surgery to remove the pocket and I never had another problem.
At this age I would suggest a discussion with his Dr.
My oldest Granddaughter had a medical condition that they discovered around this age.
Remember the Dr. doesn’t know what we dont tell. And tell adamantly sometimes
Hi. This was helpful. How did you know the times she woke in the night?
I wish we were to a point where my son felt himself using the bathroom. However, at age 9 we ate still in pull ups at migjt and he still has trouble wiping himself thorghly. Docor does not seem concerned. Hes about to be 10. I dont know how muvh more patience Ihave left. If it’s frustrating for me, I can’t possibly imagine his grief. Considering a urologist despite his pediatrician.
Your daughter’sjourney gives me hope. For that I thank uou.
Thanks for sharing the deatiled journey of your daughter’s success.