Call it a Night

The first part of the process went relatively smoothly for Yaakov, though it did take longer than Malka’s daughters. Then came night training.

Despite months of trying, Yaakov couldn’t stay dry through the night. “I figured he just wasn’t ready, so we took a break,” Malka says. She tried again six months later, but none of her methods worked. A year later, they made a third attempt but were just as unsuccessful.

Is Something Wrong?

When nighttime potty training doesn’t go as planned, it can unnerve (and exhaust) even the most experienced of mothers: “Why isn’t this working? Is this normal? Is there something wrong with my child?”

Pediatrician Dr. Jenny Berkovich, who regularly sees bed-wetting patients, is a voice of calm for frantic parents. “Technically, most kids should be able to stay dry through the night starting at age five. But it’s very common to see kids much older than that still requiring pull-ups at night,” she says. “In fact, it’s estimated that 10-15 percent of seven-year-old children still struggle with bed-wetting. The condition is twice as common in boys as in girls.”