www.incontinentsupport.org

I have enough control to usualy make it through the night dry. But it comes with a heavy price. I have to wake many times during the night, get out of bed and go to the bathroom. This gives me very poor sleep, leaving me very tired during the day. Thus I find just using my diaper the most convinient way of dealing with this.
Is there any thing wrong with this? I once found mentioned in a nursing forum, as a matter of fact, that "Millions of men and women manage their own nocturia every night by wearing absorbent incontinence pads or fitted briefs, or both. They sleep, or at least stay in bed, for eight hours or more, get up, wash up, and away they go with their day --- for years." This pretty much what I do, but I wonder if there is a good reason not to do this.

I’d say that for those who can benefit from a complete examination and tolerate the many medications available for what sounds to me what may be a treatable issue, you should try that avenue.
I believe that if you essentially untrain your bladder by voiding in bed nightly, that’s a slippery slope and could lead to more issues by not identifying and treating the cause.
My opinions only.

Vandel, I see no good reason to compromise a quality night's sleep and your daytime well being. You're risking your health just to pee in a toilet because it's considered the right thing to do if one can. If you share a bed with someone and the bed is staying dry, voiding into absorbent underwear shouldn't be an issue for a bed partner since the person isn't being disturbed/inconvenienced by your voiding, whether it's voluntary or otherwise.

IMO, you should stop whatever you're doing to wake up multiple times during the night and just let yourself sleep through the night. Maybe on some nights you'll wake up with a full bladder and voluntarily wet into the diaper. On other nights your bladder may not wake you, and nature will take its course. I would suggest that you just play it by ear.

On another subject, I'd like permission to pm you regarding an update relating to a situation about which you posted a few months ago. I don't like to get unsolicited pm's, so I prefer to ask permission before I send a pm.

W.

I can definitely understand your conflict. Before my incontinence started I was getting up twice a night. Each time it took me 30-45 minutes to get back to sleep. The result was that I was losing an hour to 1 1/2 hours of sleep a night and not getting more than 2-3 hours of uninterrupted sleep at a time. It was exhausting and went on for a few years! I was always tired...

When I started wetting the bed, while it was disturbing and concerning, it was also the first time I had slept through the night in a long time. I sought and tried various treatments (meds/surgery) which didn't help, but I'm pretty grateful to finally be getting the sleep I need at night. Knowing you have also sought treatment for your issues, I'd say use your diaper, get some sleep, and roll with it.

_________________
"When you die, on your deathbed, you will receive total consciousness. So I got that goin' for me, which is nice."

Getting an uninterrupted 8 hours sleep is very important for your overall health, having to wake up multiple times a night to pee and not being able to get back to sleep will eventually take its toll on your health. Only you can decide if simply using your diaper is best for you and if you get a better nights sleep and are more rested it’s worth it even if the trade off is having more nocturnal accidents over time. I too choose the diaper route over meds and yes my incontinence has grown worse over time but I think the trade off was worth it for no side effects and a better nights sleep. My urologist is ok with my decision as I have kepped him in the loop and as long as its not life threatening having to use a diaper is a small price to pay.

We all would like to be free of our diaper needs but some times the simplest solution is the best option.

I think - on one hand you'e lucky that you can make it still to the toilet but on the other hand... Just for me I can say - maybe I had done better using diapers over the night also the last five years before my UIC started, because I had also to to go at last twice the night and often was very tiered over the daytime.
But with my knowledge now it might had been maybe also a good idea to train my bladder better. I'm still frustrated that I'm not waking up early enough to reach toilet in time anymore, but at last one good think happened since I decided to stopp set the alarm clock: I'm much better rested then then all the years before. So hey - yes why not. There's just one thing you might have in mind: Take care that your bladder not shrink because that can start a downward spiral that later takes much more effort to cure. So as long as you not have to run every hour over the daytime thinks may be fine. If you have all-ready OAB problems over the daytime I would think over and maybe check with a PT if a bladder training is the better way. If you make it to extend the bladder volume there are also some chances that you make it better over the nighttime.

In the years prior to my sphincterotomy, painful bladder spasms disturbed my sleep as many as five times each night. Ignoring everything else this did to my body, I was a sleep-deprived, walking zombie, a hazard on the highway to myself, my passengers, and all the other drivers I encountered. Being able to sleep undisturbed by bladder cramps, or fears of a wet bed is both a blessing and a necessity. I will never forget the solemn warning my urologist gave me prior to that surgery. However, being cramp free, able to sleep undisturbed for the first time in years, made that surgery welcome.

Given that you (and the bed) are wearing appropriate protection I think bedwetting is better than having interrupted sleep. Especially so if your sleep would be interrupted multiple times a night. This is especially true for me since if I wake up after just a few hours of sleep it's nearly impossible for me to get back to sleep.

Can bedwetting be the best option?

National Safety Council : Falls account for nearly one-third of all non-fatal injuries in the U.S.

National Safety Council : Every 20 minutes, an older adult dies from a fall.

National Safety Council : While falls can occur anywhere, they most often occur at home.

Do I need say more? I will. You are, at best, half-asleep, and up you get to go to the bathroom. Has even one of you considered the medical risk to your very life for what? Not wanting to wear absorbent protection?

Come on kind people !!

Oh I get it !! All of you are teenagers.

Smiling.

Hi

I too had this conflict in the end I went for sleep and diapers. I am a better happier healthier person as a result so much more productive at work and play personally I made the correct choice!

Hope this is of some assistance!

Greenbank