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ADHD and Bedwetting

Advice and Treatment Options for Parents

By Debora Geary

In the face of all these treatment options and not many clear-cut answers, perhaps the hard-won advice of a mom in the trenches is the most useful to parents in this situation. Sylvia offers this advice for parents:

• Find out if there is an underlying problem, such as stress or a bladder infection. Rule these out.
• Try cutting out drinks one hour before bedtime. (She points out, however, that this did not work for her family because of their schedule.)
• If you know your child is wetting the bed, try waking him to go to the bathroom before you go to bed, but try to keep it at the same time every night. "If I waited until 10:30 p.m., it was too late," she says. "10 p.m. seemed to work for us."
• "I always made him shower off before changing clothing. Sometimes this was a hassle, but then I didn't have to deal with it in the morning," she says. "Our mornings were nutty anyway."
• Don't yell. It is something the child has to learn to feel. Be patient. It should be over by puberty.

For many children with ADHD and bedwetting challenges, there will be no silver bullet, just the patience of a parent willing to try and try again.

Take heart from Sylvia's story – in the end, it seems to be working. By 8 1/2, her son was only having accidents about once a week. Now at 10, he has made it nearly six months accident free.