Seeing a chiropractor for bedwetting.......

[Chloe]

Has anyone had any luck with this? If so, how long did it take? I have heard of some only having to have one adjustment to stop bedwetting, but I've heard others say it was over a period of time. My ds8 had two adjustments before Thanksgiving with no noticeable improvement in his nightly bedwetting. We were away on vacation for two weeks after that, then he had three adjustments in one week and two the following week. He had a couple of dry nights here and there, but he's had that before. I'm wondering if we should keep it up or call the urologist we were referred to by his pediatrician. The chiropractor is an out-of-pocket expense for us. I don't mind continuing with it if there's a good chance it will work if given more time. I have a feeling a urologist would just prescribe medication, which we'd like to avoid. Ds is very bothered by the bed-wetting. Any other ideas?

 

Thanks!

[Samiam]

It worked for us. Middle DS wet the bed every night through age 5 1/2. We did all of the normal things, ie no drinks before bed, go potty before bed, even wake up in middle of night to go potty (but often we would be too late), etc etc.

 

Didn't want meds, the positives are negated by the side effects, IMHO.

 

Went to Chiro. He showed us the X-Ray where DS spine was clearly out of alignment. He went 1-2 times a week (depending on our budget and schedule) for about 2 months.

 

Has not went the bed since. THAT was the only change that we made. It only makes sense that chiro care helped. It did not stop overnight, mind you. It tapered off, and by mid-2nd month, never again. We stopped at that point due to expense (out of pocket) but I would love to have all of my children in chiro care for maintenance, really.

 

ps. Also wanted to mention that DS also had daytime wet issues, like he would "dribble" and not even realize it. Like I would see a wet spot and say "Did you wet yourself" and he would be completely suprised to see that there was a wet spot and it wasn't just from drip-drying after urination, it was more wet than that. So I really believe he just could not "feel" the sensation very well, ie spine out of alignment.

Edited January 3, 2011 by Samiam

[wapiti]

Going to a urologist is a whole lot more involved than medication. It's about tests to find the root cause. I don't know about bedwetting specifically, but there are several possible causes for various types of voiding dysfunction. Sometimes PT is recommended, though I don't know how that works exactly. I'm not familiar with medication for pediatric urologic problems, though I'm sure there are some scenarios where that might be involved - usually that would be a short-term thing. The treatments are as varied as the causes.

 

In my ds7's case, for example, he had a tethered spinal cord that required surgery, though that is rare. Prior to that, he had a UPJ obstruction, which was surgically corrected as an infant, thank goodness.

 

Many/most urologic issues are fixable. Some types of urologic problems can lead to more permanent harm if not fixed in a timely manner. I have no familiarity with chiropractic treatments.

 

If you've been referred to a urologist by your ped, unless the problem has gone, I would go to the urologist. Preferrably, see a pediatric urologist.

[Dobela]

I would go to the urologist to make certain that there is nothing abnormal about your son's kidneys or parts that contribute to urination. Actor/commedian George Lopez had to have a kidney transplant. For years, even into his teens, he was a bed wetter but no one took him to a urologist. What could have been easily corrected as a child eventually destroyed his kidney. I also have a friend with a dd that was still wetting the bed at age 8. The urologist found in an MRI that one kidney had 2 tubes running from it. Both were too small and it interfered with urine flow. After corrective surgery he dd has never had another accident and is not on medication.

[Allearia]

Have you tried the bedwetting alarm? When my older ds was 8 we tried the system with the underwear and the wireless alarm, I think this is the one we used:

 

http://bedwettingstore.com/Bedwetting_Alarms/rodger_wireless_bedwetting_alarm.html

 

My son was very motivated and it only took 2 days. Before that I don't know if he had ever been dry, he wore pull-ups that were always wet and we tried not to make a big deal about it but he was starting to be bothered. Well worth it!

 

We'll use it with my younger ds soon, he wants to try the "electric underwear" but I'm not sure if he is old enough.

 

ETA: He has been completely dry at night with no accidents for at least 8 months now, can't remember exactly when we did it but it was amazing.

Edited January 3, 2011 by allearia

[Cinder]

Our ds overcame bedwetting with an alarm, so I have no experience with going the chiro route. The alarm helped him recognize when he had to urinate. He'd spent years holding it during the daytime that he couldn't even tell when he needed to go. It took about a month or so but he's had no problems since. He was older, though--about 10. I wish we'd done something sooner.

[Samiam]

You will find that mainstream Dr's will refer you to a urologist first. That is what their training tells them to do. They do not know of other alternatives and most do not think of chiropractic care as a viable medical option, even though it has been around for thousands of years, much longer than any of their medical schools.

 

Although all of the issues that previous posters were all very real, and did require further medical intervention, that probably isn't the case for a majority of bed wetters, again IMHO.

 

While not give the Chiropractor a chance to see if he can fix it naturally. Give it 2-4 months. If you don't see a change then perhaps your child is one of those that has a serious medical issue causing betwetting, and you can check out the urologist.

 

I would love for you to post back updates in a few months as to what the outcome is.

[Chloe]

Have you tried the bedwetting alarm? When my older ds was 8 we tried the system with the underwear and the wireless alarm, I think this is the one we used:

 

http://bedwettingstore.com/Bedwetting_Alarms/rodger_wireless_bedwetting_alarm.html

 

My son was very motivated and it only took 2 days. Before that I don't know if he had ever been dry, he wore pull-ups that were always wet and we tried not to make a big deal about it but he was starting to be bothered. Well worth it!

 

We'll use it with my younger ds soon, he wants to try the "electric underwear" but I'm not sure if he is old enough.

 

ETA: He has been completely dry at night with no accidents for at least 8 months now, can't remember exactly when we did it but it was amazing.

 

Thanks. Yes, we tried that. It did not work. Believe me, my ds is very motivated. We try not to make a big deal about it either, but at one time dh promised ds an ipod if he could go a whole week without wetting. This was over a year ago and when we were thinking maybe he was just being unmotivated to get up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom. He had admitted once that he was scared to get up in the middle of the night, though we have always left the hall and bathroom lights on for him. Twice in the last two years he has stayed dry 6 nights in a row. He's just never been able to make it that seventh day. Believe me, he tries. He wants that ipod.

 

I think we'll give the chiropractor more time, then check with a urologist.

[Chloe]

If you've been referred to a urologist by your ped, unless the problem has gone, I would go to the urologist. Preferrably, see a pediatric urologist.

 

Thanks. Yes, I understand what you are saying, but we were referred because we persisted. His pediatrician never seemed concerned about it, but I felt like she didn't fully understand the extent of his bedwetting. It wasn't until I told her that ds was extremely bothered by it that she referred us to the urologist. I had every intention of going that route until my sister mentioned a friend of hers who had success with a chiropractor. That's when I thought I'd try that first. My sister has a child with a bladder-control issue and her urologist prescribed medication. I want to avoid medication if possible.

[Chloe]

While not give the Chiropractor a chance to see if he can fix it naturally. Give it 2-4 months. If you don't see a change then perhaps your child is one of those that has a serious medical issue causing betwetting, and you can check out the urologist.

 

I would love for you to post back updates in a few months as to what the outcome is.

 

I think this is what we will do. I guess I was just hoping it would be a quicker fix. Thanks! I'll let you know how it goes.

[Leonor]

It can also be due to allergies or sensitivities.

[littlebug42]

I hate to say this but it may just be. I wet the bed until I was a teenager - no underlying problems and believe me my Mom tried everything. I even had surgery when I was 8. Then, it just stopped. My dd7 is a bedwetter and her nephrologist told me that there was nothing wrong with her. He said it was a laundry problem, not a physical one. I made the decision that I was not going to make a big deal out of it and torture her over it as I was. I understand your son's desire to quit and hopefully, the chiropractic care will help. That was actually one thing my Mom didn't try. There just may be no cure for it other than time. I hope this comes across as gently as I intend it because I so empathize with your son.

[Chloe]

It can also be due to allergies or sensitivities.

 

This may be, as this particular ds is the one with a peanut allergy and out-grown egg allergy. He also has asthma and had severe eczema as a baby. He was also just diagnosed with dyslexia and a visual tracking disorder. :sad: Poor guy. None of my other dc have had any of these issues.

[bettyandbob]

For my ds it was both allergy/sensitivity related. We did major food eliminations. He was already gluten free when we started to try more things to tackle this. We went casein free for a while and we followed Feingold. We are no longer casien free, but we still follow Feingold. Ds also has environmental allergens (dust mites, dander, trees and grasses). We can't control the environmental allergens as we as we can control food. Controlling the food helped ds deal with the environmental allergens better and reduced bed wetting. Reduced means he went from daily to 2-3 times a weeks. However, he would go back up to daily at times. A friend of mine mentioned how a chiropractor cured her dd, so we tried it. After a couple of adjustments wetting stopped. Occasionally, he'd start wetting again and we go to the chiropractor for an adjustment and it would stop. I think the wetting stopped completely at age 12. I think it was a little over a year with the adjustment tune ups are few days of wetting. This makes sense, because I know sometimes it takes a few adjustments before things begin to "stay in place".

 

I think chiropractic adjustments really help, but for some kids they are only one piece of the puzzle.

 

alarms did not work for my kid either. And after reading that kids who took the meds went right back to wetting when they came off the meds, I didn't think that was a useful route, especially after I read about the possible side effects (death--I don't mind wet sheets that much).

[Rosie_0801]

Has anyone had any luck with this? If so, how long did it take? I have heard of some only having to have one adjustment to stop bedwetting, but I've heard others say it was over a period of time.

 

It's kind of both, I think. Each adjustment would stop dd wetting, but only until she knocked her back out again. Now she seems to have grown out of being so sensitive to knocks. What does the chiro say? Is his back always out at that point? If so, continue going because no other medical professional will put it back in, but if he's not actually knocking himself (my dd has a wonderful habit of jumping off the sofa and landing on her bum) then there is going to be something else to it, like allergies as others have mentioned. If your chiro isn't talking to you about what he/she is doing and won't if you ask, find a new one.

 

Rosie

[SonshineLearner]

Wow, I've been unconcerned about my son, knowing that many are late bloomers in the "not wet" thing. He isn't always wet, just sometimes. (never during the day) Perhaps I should have him checked. I already believe in Chiros... perhaps I should try that again :)

[NoPlaceLikeHome]

I hate to say this but it may just be. I wet the bed until I was a teenager - no underlying problems and believe me my Mom tried everything. I even had surgery when I was 8. Then, it just stopped. My dd7 is a bedwetter and her nephrologist told me that there was nothing wrong with her. He said it was a laundry problem, not a physical one. I made the decision that I was not going to make a big deal out of it and torture her over it as I was. I understand your son's desire to quit and hopefully, the chiropractic care will help. That was actually one thing my Mom didn't try. There just may be no cure for it other than time. I hope this comes across as gently as I intend it because I so empathize with your son.

 

:iagree: I think it can often be a variation of normal to still have problems wetting the bed at 8 or so. I would use night time pull ups for comfort IMHO and ask your doctor. I remember wetting the bed at that age and even once at 13 :001_huh: and nothing was wrong with me. I do wish that I had night time pull ups though:) A family member's dd also had problems at 8 and eventually outgrew them.

 

I also think a chiropractor will not help in this situation.

[Dobela]

This may be, as this particular ds is the one with a peanut allergy and out-grown egg allergy. He also has asthma and had severe eczema as a baby. He was also just diagnosed with dyslexia and a visual tracking disorder. :sad: Poor guy. None of my other dc have had any of these issues.

Has your son been checked for sleep apnea? When my son was struggling with his asthma ands allergies he was wetting the bed. Once we got him under effective treatment for those and his tonsils were removed, the bed wetting stopped. For your son it may be disruptions in sleep that are part of the cause.

[Ottakee]

Does it have to be either or?

 

I would see the urologist. They aren't just going to give him meds without clear reason for the medication. There could be underlying issues---my sister had 4 kidneys, some have other physical abnormalities, etc.

 

Likely it is just an immature body and time would take care of it but after seeing my MIL need a kidney transplant and now FIL in kidney failure and on dialysis 3 times a week, I would be a bit more cautious.

 

We did take our daughter at 4 to the urologist because she was not potty trained AT ALL. She had never once had a success on the potty at that point. He checked her over, did a few tests and said that the signals weren't getting from bladder to brain and back yet. In another few months she was trained---no meds for that, it just took time.

 

I do think that chiropractors can help a lot of issues but if it is structural in the kidneys or tubing, no amount of chiropractic care is going to fix that.

 

I would esp. pursue it since your son is so upset by it. I know you said you didn't want to go with meds but sometimes the side effects of no meds (low self esteem, no sleep overs, rashes from the wetting, etc) can be worse than any possible side effects of the meds.

[texasmama]

Chiropractors have helped us with a variety of issues but not bedwetting. I have not read the other replies but offer this personal experience. I had one child who wet the bed when he became cold. When I made sure he was warm, he didn't wet the bed. I have no idea what the connection was. Also, dairy consumption can be tied to bedwetting for some, I have read. Hope you find some answers.

[texasmama]

This may be, as this particular ds is the one with a peanut allergy and out-grown egg allergy. He also has asthma and had severe eczema as a baby. He was also just diagnosed with dyslexia and a visual tracking disorder. :sad: Poor guy. None of my other dc have had any of these issues.

 

Does he consume cow's milk products? Your post above made me wonder about a dairy sensitivity.

[AngieW in Texas]

We tried medication. We also tried every home remedy listed. We even tried the remedies in combination except when they were impossible to do at the same time (like making her use the bathroom every 2 hours around the clock and making her hold it as long as possible during the day - can't be done at the same time).

 

The only thing that worked was the SleepDry bedwetting alarm. Before the alarm, she was dry 10-12x/year (yes, that's per year). The first week with the alarm, it got her up 2-3x every night. The second week, it got her up 1-2x/night. The third week she had a couple of dry nights. The fourth week was completely dry. She was wet once the fifth week. After that she was wet only two more times and she was miserably sick both times.

 

She was 8yo at the time.

 

http://sleepdryalarm.com/

[gracesteacher]

I would see a Urologist and if everything is normal see a sleep dr. A lot of bed wetting happens in sleep due to what is going on with the body it breathing and arousals (waking up for moments)

Watch his neck when he sleeps does he hyper extend it? If yes there may be an issues

[Scuff]

I'd do both. A specialist is going to have a wait to get seen anyway. Schedule your visit and see the chiro in the mean time. I love my chiro. But it hasn't made a difference with my dds' bedwetting. I would guess it depends on the cause of the bedwetting.