4 Yr Old Still in Pull-ups at Night

I agree.. my son is 5 and a half and we had accidents almost every night until about 7 or 8 months ago... he will still have an accident maybe every other month... The boy is just sleeping good :o). However what helped with my little one was me taking him on potty runs in the middle of the night (i know it takes some determination to get out of bed) but it got him used to waking up when his bladder was full. We did this for maybe 3-4 weeks until one night I heard him go by himself.

No worries.. every child is different.

I wish I had some advice for you! But, I'm dealing with the same issues with my 4 yr. old daughter. She'll be 5 in December, and still wets her pullup every night...and says the same thing...she doesn't know she's doing it. I know she would get up and go potty if she woke up and felt like she needed to go, but I just don't think she wakes up. We've tried all sorts of things, like limiting her liquid intake in the evenings, going cold turkey with panties, and rewarding her if she stays dry. I don't think the rewards work since she's not really aware that she's wetting her pullup. It's been very frustrating for us, but everyone I talk to tells us not to worry about it...that it's just a biological thing with some kids. But, like you said...I'm worried that she'll start getting teased about it if she hasn't kicked this problem before kindergarten.

One suggestion that a friend did with her son, that we haven't tried yet, is waking her up around 11:30pm...just before we go to bed, and having her go potty...even if we set her on the potty while she's still asleep! It eventually worked for my friend, so we'll probably try this if she hasn't gotten past this by next spring.

Good luck...I feel your frustration!

This is normal especially for boys. They are usually heavy sleepers and can't control it. My son was like this too, he stopped around 4 1/2 as well, but still had accidents time to time. He really loved Barney, so I got him Barney underwear and he didn't like to get Barney wet. When he would have an accident he didn't do it on purpose or mean to get Barney wet. I know I did get lazy at times and just put the pull-ups on because I was tired of doing laundry. He's 11 now, and doesn't have this problem anymore, still a heavy sleeper.

Good Luck!

I hope it's normal. My son is 5 and still in pull-ups at night. He does great during the day but still goes, at least, once during the night. He doesn't get himself up until he feels the wetness. He'll even get up to change himself sometimes. But he just hasn't been able to stop at night.

My friend's son did the same thing, even after he'd fully potty trained, he started wetting the bed but eventually grew out of it again. I have no idea why. So, I think this is not abnormal at their age.

I had this same problem as well. My mom came to visit and decided one night to let him sleep in his underwear and he has been wearing them ever since. It is amazing how well he did once he knew he did not have a pull up on. He gets up by himself and goes to the bathroom and then gets back in bed. Try it - it may work.

This isn't a problem. My daughter is 4 and wears a pull up at night. She's good during the day, but just sleeps too heavy or whatever at night.

It won't be anything he gets made fun of because kids don't talk about it and there are probably kids that will be in his class that still wear them too.

Good luck!

This is not even a problem. You would not believe how many boys are in pullups at night through Kinder. He won't be made fun of because nobody talks about it.

Normal. My 5, soon to be 6 yr old boy still wears pull ups. I was a bed wetter myself growing up until I was in 1st or 2nd, which is why I guess I don't worry.

From my understanding, it's more of a sleep disorder than anything. As a previous post mentioned, it is just a deep sleep you go in that is hard to get out of, even when you have to pee!

SUPER NORMAL!!! many boys /kids need pull ups until even age 8. but 4 is totally normal! just let him wear the pull ups and when he is ready on his own he will be ready!

HTH
good luck :o)
A. J

My oldest boy, now in first grade was like this. He wore a pull up at night until he was almost 4 1/2. He is 6 1/2 now, and still has accidents. They come in spurts. He'll be dry for a couple months, and then we'll have 3-4 in one week. I think it's because he's just a really deep sleeper like me, and probably even deeper during his growth spurts. My niece was like this too until she was almost 12. I would stop using the pull ups and see what happens. Maybe feeling the pee start to trickle out and being wet and uncomfortable would be incentive. I think that's what we eventually did. I also gave a sticker for when he'd wake up dry and after he earned 10, we'd go out to lunch or some other kind of reward. I have a water proof mattress pad on my son's bed and put two crib pads under his sheets to cover the whole area from his shoulders to his feet, so the mattress stays dry. (My son is a wild, all over the bed kind of sleeper.) Just be prepared to wash a lot of sheets. :)

I'm not sure why some kids are like this and some aren't. My youngest decided a month after he turned 3 that he wanted to go potty and was dry day and night. He's only had 2 accidents since January. He's a much lighter sleeper like my husband.

My 4 yr old and 6 yr old are both still in good nites at night so I guess it's somewhat normal. They never have accidents during the day but just can't wake up at night to go to the potty and I posted about the same thing and got a lot of support.

A.,

Totally normal.

Check out the diaper aisle next time you shop. When you see the Goodnights (after they graduate from Pull-Ups)you won't be worried anymore about your almost 5 year old when you see they go up to 125lbs.

In my experience boys take longer to be dry at night than girls.

A.,

Its okay! No worries girl. ;o) My daughter is 4 and she still wears them at night too!

Take Care,

Eliyah