Maintain pressure on reforms to protect NHSJulie Walters supports bedwetting campaign
British theatre, film and TV star Julie Walters is supporting a campaign by ERIC (Education and Resources for Improving Childhood Continence) to raise awareness of the problem of enuresis (bed wetting).
The charity aims to help UK families for whom bedwetting is an issue and has designated June 2009 its first awareness-raising month with a campaign called ‘Banish the Wee Horror’.
Mamma Mia star Julie said: ‘The fact that hardly anyone wants to talk about bedwetting just makes the problem worse.’
Commenting on the campaign, ERIC director Jenny Perez: said: ‘Bed wetting haunts up to half a million children and teenagers every night. Embarrassment and shame often mean the scale of the problem remains hidden and only one in three families come forward for support.
‘The washing and the broken nights are bad enough. But the secrecy makes it worse for parents and young people alike. For many families, learning just how common bed wetting is can be a major relief. Often it’s a first step towards talking more openly about it.’
Wetting and soiling affects around one in 12 children. It causes behavioural, emotional and social problems for the child and stress for the family
ERIC has a telephone helpline on 0845 370 8008 (10am-4pm weekdays). Information is also available from the ERIC website, eric.org.uk. ERIC’s SMS service is also available by texting 447 624 811 636.
Have your say
You must sign in to make a comment.
Online training units, written and reviewed by experts. Earn two hours' CPD and a personalised certificate for your portfolio.
Subscribers get five FREE learning units and non-subscribers can access each learning unit for £10 + VAT.
Share
Readers' comments (2)
Lyle Danuloff | 28-May-2009 10:43 pm
I read your article and agree there needs to be increased awareness and understanding about what causes bedwetting and proper treatment.
We have treated thousands of children, teenagers, and adult bedwetters, tracking all related symptoms. Our extensive research validates bedwetting as a problem caused by abnormally deep sleep, which doesn’t allow for the bedwetter’s brain and bladder to connect so they can effectively respond to each other.
In 99% of all bedwetting cases, (based upon our research of tens of thousands of documented cases) the root cause is sleeping so deeply. It is an inherited deep-sleep disorder that results in bedwetting and more importantly...a fragmented, non-restorative, sleep.
This compromised sleep can also result in daytime symptoms; difficulty awakening, fatigue, memory difficulty, irritability, difficulty concentrating. These symptoms can increase as a bedwetter reaches adulthood.
There is No guaranteed that someone will outgrow bedwetting, in fact after the age of seven, it is less likely. 1 in 50 teenagers, as well as 3.2 million reported cases of adults still wet the bed. More importantly, if someone were to outgrow this problem, they are then left with a sleep disorder, along with possible challenging symptoms that can no longer be treated.
Proper treatment is never simple. If drugs are prescribed or considered to be at all effective, consider that once the drugs are discontinued, the bedwetting will likely resume. Drugs may serve as a temporary fix for a complicated problem, and drugs clearly produce side effects, some as yet unknown.
Many medical professionals misinform patients when they blame a small bladder as the cause of bedwetting. It is actually a RESULT of the bedwetting.
Psychological counseling has not been proven to end bedwetting. Neither has hypnosis, chiropractic care or homeopathic remedies.Alarms, bells and pads alone will not get to the core of the problem and create another failure for the bedwetter.
For 34 years, the Enuresis Treatment Center, in the United States, has been ending bedwetting for children, teenagers, and adults who thought there was no hope. Our research and experience has validated that bedwetting can be treated without drugs or invasive surgery. We have treated hundreds of bedwetters from the United Kingdom with great success.
The internet offers a great deal of information about bedwetting, unfortunately most of it is offered from sources that do not specialize in bedwetting treatment. When researching treatment programs, we suggest parents, or an adult seeking help, ask for references and check staff credentials. This will give better insight as to success and lasting results of a bedwetting treatment program. Please visit their website for more information. www.nobedwetting.com
Sincerely,
Lyle Danuloff, Ph.D.
www.nobedwetting.com
Unsuitable or offensive?
MarillionFan MarillionFan | 11-Mar-2011 10:56 am
Thank you so much for this ‘Banish the Wee Horror’ campaign (I love the name BTW!). It is such a difficult subject to talk to people about and 'bedwetter' is such an emotive term but is all we have.
Unsuitable or offensive?