Wetting his pants....Any solutions? | ADHD Information

Ever since he was potty trained my 7.5 yr old son would wet in his pants, not a lot but like leaking.  Well when he was dx last spring I asked the pediatrician and he said that is common in kids with ADHD.  It seems like he waits too long to go and wets a little.  His underwear is always smelly and it's hard to get out even after being washed.  Has anyone had similar experience and any suggestions to help him to stop.  We have tried reminding him and making him go when we see him wiggle but nothing has seemed to help.  I know he is getting at that age where kids tease other kids and if he smells like pee I know it will hurt his self esteem even more than it already is. THanks.

Have you tried just sending him in to go every 2 hours?  Sometimes building potty breaks into the routine can help, just like when you potty train a toddler.  It can be so easy to miss the signs- wiggling, etc- when anything else is going on.

Add a cup of white vinager to the rinse water in the washer to get the smell out.  I had the same problem when my son was having lots of nightime accidents- I found the vinegar tip on a cloth diaper website. 

Our DS 5 (ADHD) waits until the absolute last second to go also, he just can't stand taking that break to go.  At home we tell him to go as soon as he wakes up, the minute we get in the door after school and before bed.  If we notice more activity than normal or wiggling, we also make him go.  At school I've talked w/his teacher and she tells him to go a couple times during the day, especially if he gets wiggly.  I think having a routine like jaderock54 suggested is a good idea.   

Good idea about the vinager..I will have to try that.  Thanks.

I have tried telling, yelling, making him go but he puts up a fight...I think he may be ODD..has not been dx yet..waiting to see psychologist in March.  I am just not sure what else to do.

My son used to hyperfocus when playing on the computer or gameboys that he would pee his pants. He FINALLY outgrew it, but it took a bit.

When he is home, give him gentle reminders.

They have to reach a point that they too don't like being wet or the smell!

You can always try on non-gym days goodnights but for during the day the equivalent to depends for older adults.  I also wonder is it his medication or bladder problem I would keep on the Pediatrition. MY SON 9, EVEN ON MEDS BUT NOT AS MUCH, WAITS TOO LONG AND LEAKS IN HIS CLOTHES. HE IS OVER FOCUSEDED ON WHAT HE IS DOING AND WAITS TOO LONG. I AGREE ALSO THAT IT MIGHT BE A MEDICATION ISSUE. I WOULD TALK WITH HIS DOC TO TELL THEM WHAT IS HAPPENING.I don't think its the meds because he always had this problem.  I think he just gets too involved in things and holds off.  I am hoping I guess that he will outgrow it.  Reminders don't work unfortanatly.  Thanks for all your help.

Hey, I wet the bed untill i was 10, i didn't know untill recently that it was down to ADHD (i was only diagnosed in the summer of last year). i eventually grew out of it but my parents woke me up and put me on the loo unitll i went. He might put up a fight, why not try an egg timer and set it for every two hours. you could star chart his progress, make it into a game and reward him for every day he goes clean panted.

if theres one thing I really know about ADHD is that reward makes us happy and games makes everything fun!!

Ever since my DS was fully trained he never had an accident.  Then a few months ago he started having them all the time...so we're talking a good 2 years without any accidents.  He was on adderall XR, now Concerta is the medication he's been on for 5 months, but started having accidents 2 months into its use.  The pediatrician doesn't see a correlation, but I don't see what other explaination there could be. My son wasn't out of pullups at 6 and every time I tried I ended up changing the sheets, etc. I got a sensor for about and he was cured in about 3 weeks. Seriously!! I had no idea it would work so well. He is a good sleeper - at the time he was on no meds. The clip went by his penis and the monitor on his shoulder where it would vibrate and make a sound to make sure he woke up. Even the teeniest drip would turn on the alarm and I was amazed it was in time for him to get to the bathroom. I would try it - he didn't mind it and after he felt more normal to be able to sleep in underpants. Good luck!

twodoodles, my son is also on concerta and had this problem for awhile, but it stopped at least a year ago.

I truly believe it was him hyperfocusing, not the concerta, but who knows.

All I can say is it stopped. And he is still on concerta.