I hear it almost every day.
A parent calls me for a consultation, and after we talk about their child’s bedwetting, they pause. Then they say something like, “We’ve tried so many things already, Dr. Lazarus. I don’t know if I have it in me to try one more approach.”
And I get it. I really do.
The emotional toll of “trying everything”
By the time families reach out to me, they’ve often been on quite a journey. They’ve tried:
- Bedwetting alarms that woke everyone except their child
- Medications that helped a little, then stopped working (or never worked at all)
- Waking their child every few hours throughout the night (exhausting for everyone)
- Limiting fluids after dinner (which made their child thirsty and miserable)
- Reward charts that started out exciting but gradually became a wall of disappointment
Each time, there was hope. Each time, it felt “like this could be the answer.”
And each time it didn’t work, that hope got a little bit harder to muster.
So when parents tell me they’re tired—not just physically tired from washing sheets at 2 AM, but emotionally tired from the cycle of hope and disappointment—I understand completely.
And here’s what I tell them: This fatigue isn’t a character flaw. It’s actually evidence of how much you care.
Why this feels different (Because it actually is)
When I hear parents say, “Okay, we’ll try your program,” I gently stop them.
Because here’s the thing: this isn’t “one more thing to try.”
Let me explain why.
Most of the approaches you’ve tried before fall into a few categories:
1. External interventions – Alarms, medications, someone else waking your child up. These are things being done TO your child, not BY your child.
2. Behavioral restrictions – Limiting fluids, scheduled bathroom trips, reward systems. These manage the problem but don’t teach the underlying skill.
3. “Wait and see” – Hoping your child will outgrow it, which many eventually do, but in the meantime, years of camps, sleepovers, and confidence pass by.
Our program is fundamentally different because it teaches your child’s brain and bladder to communicate with each other. It’s a skill-building approach, not a management approach.
Think about it this way: If your child didn’t know how to ride a bike, would training wheels solve the problem forever? No. Would removing training wheels magically teach them? No. They need to learn the actual skill of balancing.
That’s what we do with bedwetting. We teach the brain-bladder connection that somehow got missed along the way.
What makes people succeed after so many disappointments
I’ve worked with hundreds of families who felt exactly the way you might feel right now. Skeptical. Tired. Protective of their own hearts and their child’s heart.
And yet, most of them see improvement. Often significant improvement.
So what’s the difference between families who succeed and those who don’t?
It comes down to two things:
1. Shifting from “trying” to “doing”
(Yes, I’m quoting Yoda here, and I’m not even a little bit sorry about it.)
When you “try” something, there’s a built-in escape hatch. “Well, we tried it” implies you gave it a shot, but you weren’t really all-in.
When you “do” something, you’re committed to following through with the program completely. You watch all four videos. You practice the techniques. You give it the time it needs to work.
2. Understanding that progress isn’t always linear
Some children improve dramatically in the first few weeks. Others have a slower, steadier improvement. Some have what I call “two steps forward, one step back” progress.
All of these patterns are normal. All of these patterns can lead to success.
But if you’re expecting perfection immediately, or if one wet night after three dry nights feels like “proof it’s not working,” then you’re setting yourself up for disappointment.
Hope isn’t naive—It’s necessary
I know that after multiple disappointments, it feels safer to keep expectations low. That way, if it doesn’t work, you can’t be hurt again.
But here’s the challenge with that approach: low expectations actually reduce your chances of success.
Why? Because your child picks up on your energy and your belief. If you approach this with a “here we go again, another thing that won’t work” attitude, your child absorbs that. And that attitude affects their engagement with the program.
I’m not asking you to manufacture fake enthusiasm or pretend away your past disappointments.
I’m asking you to stay open to the possibility that this might be different. Because it is.
What I see that you don’t see yet
You’re looking at your child’s bedwetting through years of struggle and disappointment.
I’m looking at it through decades of helping children just like yours become dry.
I’ve seen the 8-year-old who wasn’t dry any night for years become completely dry within three months.
I’ve seen the 11-year-old who’d been on medication for two years with minimal improvement have dramatic success once we taught her brain and bladder to work as a team.
I’ve seen the teenager who was too embarrassed to go to sleepovers or overnight school trips finally experience the freedom and confidence that comes with dry nights.
I’m not saying this to brag. I’m saying this because I want you to borrow my confidence until you build your own.
This isn’t about trying harder—It’s about trying differently
The exhaustion you feel isn’t because you haven’t tried hard enough. You’ve tried incredibly hard.
The missing piece isn’t effort. It’s approach.
You’ve been managing the symptoms. Now we’re going to teach the skill.
You’ve been hoping for change. Now we’re going to create the conditions for change.
You’ve been “trying” different things. Now we’re going to “do” something that actually addresses the root cause.
What happens next
If you’re reading this and thinking, “Okay, but what if this doesn’t work either?”—that’s a completely normal thought.
Here’s what I’d suggest:
Take a deep breath.
Acknowledge that past disappointments were real and difficult.
Then ask yourself: What if this time is different? What would it mean for my child to be dry? How would their confidence change? What experiences would open up for them?
That vision—that possibility—is worth staying open to.
And remember, I’ve helped hundreds of families navigate this exact journey. Some older, some younger, some boys, some girls, some with more severe bedwetting and some with less.
Many of them felt exactly the way you feel right now.
And most of them, after completing the program, tell me the same thing: “You gave us hope. And then you gave us results.”
You’re not alone in this
I know the “just one more thing to try” feeling is real. It’s heavy. It’s discouraging.
But you don’t have to carry it alone.
We’re about to join your team. And together, we’re not going to “try” anything.
We’re going to teach your child’s brain and bladder how to work together. And we’re going to approach it with confidence, patience, and positive expectations.
Because your child deserves that. And so do you.
If you’d like to take the next steps, click here to start Keeping the Bed Dry®.
You’ve been hoping for a long time. Let’s turn that hope into action.
About Dr. Jeffrey Lazarus, MD, FAAP
Dr. Jeffrey Lazarus is a board-certified pediatrician who combines over 25 years of medical experience with expertise in medical hypnosis and cognitive behavioral therapy. He is one of only 8 pediatricians in the United States certified as an Approved Consultant by The American Society of Clinical Hypnosis.
After completing his pediatric residency at Stanford University Medical Center, Dr. Lazarus specialized in using medical hypnosis to address conditions that traditional medicine doesn’t treat effectively. He created Keeping the Bed Dry®, an at-home video program that teaches children’s brains and bladders to communicate effectively—proven successful in independent research published in Clinical Pediatrics and recommended as a first-line treatment by the Journal of Pediatric Urology.
Dr. Lazarus practices in Menlo Park, California, and works with families nationwide via telemedicine.