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Potty Training 301: Night-time Training © Helen Davis, All Rights Reserved Once your child has the daytime routine down, it's time to start working towards staying dry at night.  This is a process and can happen quickly for some children and more slowly for others.  Don't worry and don't push them. Everyone in the family has been working hard at potty training, so it may be a good idea to take a break at night.  At first, put your child in a diaper or pullup for the night-time.. Be sure to encourage them that they are doing great staying dry during the day and that you are so proud of them!  Reassure them that it's okay to wear a diaper or pullup at night.  Also, you can tell them that if they keep it dry for several nights in a row, then you might try "unders" or "panties" at bedtime.  Woohoo! If your child is having difficulty staying dry at night, try the following: 1.  Limit fluid intake after 6:00 p.m. 2.  Have them go potty just before going to bed. 3.  Wake them up when you go to bed and have them go potty again.  They may be very sleepy, but you can help them into the bathroom and through the process.  Sometimes, just a few weeks of doing this will be the thing that triggers success, and they'll start getting through the whole night dry. Sometimes if your potty-training child is having nightmares, it can be a sign that they need to go potty.  One of our children who had been having a hard time staying dry through the night dry, came walking in, crying about the big fish that was after him. My husband said "Go to the bathroom and then come back and talk with us." He did and then just went back to bed.  The bad dream was gone because he had taken care of the problem.  Yeah.  We had a good laugh in the morning. For some children, night-time training may take months, even years to master.  Sometimes children can be 8-10 years old and having continuing issues with night-time training.  I know one family with a 6-year old boy who still on occasion wet the bed at nights, but they didn't condemn him for it, they loved him through it, and the problem resolved itself.  The key is standing with your child through the training process.  Don't condemn him if he wets the bed.  Walk through the steps and just keep moving forward.  Have him help you change the bed, carry the bedding to the laundry room and put it in the washer.  Not in a demeaning way, but matter-of-fact saying, "When you have an accident, this is what needs to be done."  Love him and pray with him to help him overcome this obstacle.  Also have him help you put new sheets on so he learns how to make the bed.  You may need to use some protection for your mattress - plastic or rubberized mats.  Eventually, he will get it.  Don't hesitate to consult your child's physician/pediatrician for advice and support if you think there may be a physical condition that needs to be considered.  Most important of all, love your children as they learn this important responsibility of life! Helen Davis is an early childhood expert. Her mother founded and ran the famous Sunny Beam Nursery School on Mercer Island, WA. She inherited her mother's gifting and love of children and has been involved in early childhood care for over 20 years.  To read more of her articles, visit Successful Family Chores

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