55 people voted.  Their ages ranged from 10 to 53.  17 people were 
        age 21 or over, 11 were age 16-20, 21 were age 11-15, 1 was 
       age 10, and 5 did not give their age.

  Votes were as follows:

     30 votes for: "Parents could work with their school nurse, minister (rabbi), or doctor to confidentially hook up their children or teens who wet with other kids in their school, church, or doctor's practice who also wet." 

     20 votes for: "Parents of bedwetters and adult bedwetters could link up using the Internet to form a national political association to recognize bedwetting as a real medical problem just like any other medical problem."  

     30 votes for: "Famous people, who are former or current bedwetters, could openly reveal it.  There could be an address on the web where they could confidentially link up with other famous people who are bedwetters so they could all go public together."

    16 votes for: "Parents could put an ad in their local newspaper, with an anonymous P.O. Box number, seeking parents of other kids who wet. This could provide their kids with friends with whom they wouldn't have to keep bedwetting a secret. " 

     6 votes for: "Nothing should be done... bedwetting should be kept a secret forever."

     10 had other ideas, such as:

Age 16: "People just gotta be real wit it and understand dat its just a medical problem no big deal."

Age 43 (child's age 10): "Setting up a support group through a local church or medical clinic might work, but some kind of screening system would need to be used to keep out predators. Possibly a public ad that would invite wetters and parents to a meeting place and time, there be screened by a founder and if legitimate, directed to the REAL support group meeting place and time"

Age 15: "Your ideas are good, but I'd recommend to other kids to be careful who they tell. Once the information is out, you can't take it back."

Age 23: "There should be more tv ads that talk about bedwetting. So the kids that wet the bed can see there are more people out there like them with real bedwetters on it and there should be an easy way to find it on the internet so kids and parents can talk about it openly."

Age 15: "I think it is up to each person to decide how open or closed to be. Some people tell anybody and don't care what they think. I admire their bravery, but I'm a coward I guess. I'm NOT ashamed of wetting, but diapers are my big secret, and I won't tell anyone IRL. Many adults and kids make fun of wearing protection, even here, many kids say they hate wearing diapers. Well, what is the alternative? The stigma gets worse as you get older. But I just live life and remember that many people have problems much worse than me, so I really can't complain."

Age 13: "talk with people u like u self (that can be friends, school or famaly)"

Age 16: "People just gotta realize that it aint no big deal it just a problem we have and we gotta deal with."

Age 12: "have like a support group at the hospitual or something run by a doctor. but its gotta be kept a secert so other dont know"

Age 30 (child's age 10): "there could be local clubs or groups inside clubs, liek in the boy scouts or such, that are for bedwetters so they can realize that they are not alone, and have a lot of potential friends out there like them. But there needs to be something, the school/chruch/doc suggestion is a great one!!! I am adopting and a lot of kids in foster care have night time problems and some even daytime. My 10 yr old has some daytiem accidents and wears pullups to play it safe"

Age 23: "Maybe a few more TV commercials for bedwetting products, like the ones already out for Goodnites, would help more people realize that this is a common problem and nothing to be ashamed of. Kids who still bedwet certainly shouldn't be ashamed of their condition, but they don't need to go around telling everyone about it, either. Real friends should be supportive and understanding about the condition, and a confidential way of hooking up with other bedwetters might be helpful in locating new friends who will definitely understand. But outside of close friends and parents, no one else needs to know!"

  Does your medical insurance or health plan cover treatment of bedwetting?

    21 said NO
    11 said YES 
    20 did not know
     3 did not answer this question

Keeping bedwetting a secret is a heavy burden for kids and teens who have the problem.  Kids with bedwetting are afraid to go on sleep-overs, to go to camp, or to go on away-game team events.  Many kids with bedwetting don't tell even their best friends.  If their secret is discovered they may be teased cruelly by other kids.  And because bedwetters are alone with the problem this teasing is even harder to bear.

If bedwetting were an openly discussed medical problem, teasing would be much less.  Furthermore, kids and teens with the problem could ban together and support each other.  From the above voting results, it appears that contacting your school nurse, doctor, or minister (rabbi) to confidentially hook up your kids with other bedwetters is the best approach.  The kids with bedwetting could then have friends who would not tease them.  Parents could get support as well from other parents whose kids also wet.

We appeal to famous people who are current or former bedwetters to help un-cloak bedwetting.  Wetbusters is happy to serve as a confidential contact point for famous people to hook up with other famous people who also wet the bed.  Please email director@wetbusters.com to offer your help.  Your identity will be kept strictly confidential.

Less than 1 out of 3 people on this poll say that their health plan pays for bedwetting treatment.  It is unfair that bedwetting is not regarded as real medical problem by most health plans, in spite of the impact that it has on a child's self esteem, and that it can permanently affect personality development.  Recommendations are now appearing in the medical journals that bedwetting be treated as soon as it starts to really bother either the child or the parents.  We encourage parents and adult bedwetters to write to their state representatives and to their health plans and appeal this unfairness.

We have a dream... that someday bedwetting will no longer have to be kept secret and that bedwetting will be treated just like any other medical problem.  Thank you for your help.