How do I get my daughter out of night time nappies?

[duncandtessa]

Hello

just wanting a bit of advice please? My daughter has been potty trained during the day for a year now (she is now 3 1/4 yr) and she wants to stop wearing nappies at night - however they are still quite wet in the morning (we've never had a dry night) and so I am reluctant to take them off. She also sleeps so deeply that she never wakes up to ask to go to the toilet. What's the best way of helping her to get out of them? Some people have said taking them to the toilet when you go to bed helps - any recommendations...thanks.

Tessa

[nunheadmum]

If your daughter is asking to stop wearing them, it may be worth giving it a go and seeing how she goes for a few nights. Our daughter did this probably around the same sort of age, saying herself that she didn't want her bedtime nappy. I thought it was a bad idea as her nappy was still wet in the morning but dad was doing bedtime and went with her. She wet the bed two or three nights in a row but it seemed more as if she wet it just as she woke and after talking to her about it and saying to remember when she woke to go on the potty, she was then dry.

We've had the odd mishap since but usually it's only when she's had a big drink before bed - we generally try to avoid any big drinks from about 1-1&1/2 hours before bedtime and always get her to go to the loo before bed.

Hope that helps!

[The Nappy Lady]

Hi there Tessa,

I was going to say much the same as Nunheadmum.

Do you have any decent bed protectors? If not I can recommend ours - rubber covered with cotton on both sides. My 5 year old would sleep directly on one quite happily when she went out of night nappies, and when she had an accident I could literally just pull it out of the bed and she could go back to bed 'til morning. She had another one under her bottom sheet just incase, but never had 2 accidents in 1 night.

In actual fact she pulled the wet one out herself a couple of times without even waking me up!

PM me if you want more details. I suspect you may have some already due to older child though.

You can do the lifting at bedtime thing, some are against it. I think if you do it the key is to actually wake them up enough that they get up and are aware of going to the loo - the argument is that if you just lift them and sit them on the loo without waking all it does is encourage them to wee in their sleep, which you are of course trying to avoid. You could always try both methods and see.

Hope it works out for you.

Molly

x

[Mrs TP]

I think you will just have to take the plunge and brave it. Do you actually know when the night nappies are getting wet? Is it throughout the night while your daughter is asleep or first thing when she wakes and is perhaps not confident to get up and go to the loo? I eventually sussed out my eldest was only wetting her nappy first thing in the morning as she couldn't be bothered getting up and going to the loo. She was older at 4yrs and I had a battle to get it off her as she found it comforting. Had the odd accident after removing it, usually when she snook into our bed and not her own - she would get up to go to the loo and come in to get me to help her and I would think she just wanted to get into bed with us and so would lift up the duvet to invite her in and 5 mins later I realised the real reason she was up. If your daughter is keen, give it a go.

My 2nd daughter stopped day and night nappies at the same time (approaching her 3rd birthday) and never looked back.

Children are all different and it is a balance between your instinct, what they want and what is practical (i.e. how much washing can you cope with if necessary).

Good luck.