A Child with Day- and Nighttime Wetting is Helped with Constitutional Homeopathy

IN BRIEF

An eight-year-old boy who would frequently wet his pants during the day as well as during the night is relieved with an interesting homeopathic remedy.

By Anke Zimmermann, Bsc, FCAH

Persistent Daytime Wetting

Jamison, age 8, was seen in my office in December of 2015. His mother was concerned that Jamison was still wetting his underwear during the day as well as at night. He was wearing a pull-up at night but the daytime wetting was especially concerning to mom.

"We have to change his underwear up to four times a day", Mom shared. "He does not void his whole bladder. We're wondering if he is just too engaged in whatever he is doing to notice. He loves to draw complex stories based on Super Mario Brothers, creating whole new worlds. We thought he would grow out of it, but that has not happened, so here we are!"

Mom had brought some pf his drawings for me to see and I noted that they were very complex and detailed. While in my office he also spent most of his time drawing and it was a bit difficult to engage him as he was so focused on his creation.

"He likes writing stories as well. He wrote a series of stories with a couple of friends.

Perfectionism and Intensity

Children's artwork can provide some interesting clues for homeopathic remedy selection

"Jamison can be a perfectionist. He can get easily frustrated if things aren't going the way he intended, especially with his artwork. Then his reactions can be quick and extreme. He makes up his mind about how things should go and then gets frustrated if it does not go as expected.

"Jamison makes plans the night before for the next day and gets all his clothes laid out to wear the next day. He loves knowing the sequence of things and likes to make lists. He plans pretty far out, for example he will save up money for certain purchases like Lego sets. He even included the sales tax in his savings plans. This has been going on for a few years. When he was four he went through a phase of being super focused on math, all he wanted to do was count, add, subtract things, it was super intense.

"When he was was younger he had a very regimented script for going to bed, he had to say certain questions and answers three times, I had to put him down in bed, tuck him in a certain way, wipe his nose, give him a butterfly kiss, ask if he was okay, ask if he wanted his door open and a certain amount of light on, it was exhausting

"He likes to collect things, especially Lego, he is very particular about his collection. He also has a collection of stuffed animals, he keeps them in a particular order and takes them with him to different locations.

"He gets worried about upcoming things. Going back to school on Mondays, especially after holidays, can be hard for him. He may cry or get sad or get a stomach ache in anticipation. He does not like to take risks, for example, he will not go on rides at the amusement park.

Health History

The pregnancy with Jamison was easy and he was born naturally and easily.  He did not sleep well for the first two years and wanted to nurse every two hours around the clock. He was very attached to mom and wanted constant physical contact. He continued to be very affectionate and loved to come home and cuddle with Mom.

Generals

Jamison loves pizza, chicken pot pie, raw carrots and broccoli, bagels, ravioli, lasagna and chai tea. He will drink five cups of chai tea a day. Sometimes he also likes Earl Grey tee, green tea or plain black tea was well as hot chocolate.

He always has to have a water bottle with him.

His sleep is generally good. If he sleeps with mom he will rub his feet on her all night or snuggle up close. He is not restless and wakes up fresh and ready to go.

He perspires on his forehead when active and likes to pour water on his head when sweaty.

Analysis and Plan

Jamison is an eight-year-old boy with persistent day- and nighttime wetting. He gets very engrossed in drawing and writing and previously in math and may be too focused to bother going to the washroom.

Of note was his intensity and tendency to perfectionism and planning, including laying out his clothes the night before, needing a very specific bedtime routine and making detailed plan regarding purchases, as well as saving for them including the sales tax, an unusual focus on money for such a young child. He also had anticipatory anxiety about returning to school after a break with stomach aches and was afraid to go on rides.

It looked like an Arsenicum album case to me and Jamison took Arsenicum album 200C, two doses in 24 hours.

Arsenic oxide

Follow-up April 2016

I had not heard from the family for four months because after the remedy Jamison noticed when he had to use the washroom and had been completely dry at night as well.
Just recently they noticed a slight return of the bed-wetting.

Assessment and plan: The remedy was correct and he needed another dose. He took Arsenicum album 200 C again. Arsenicum is a good constitutional remedy for him, it is not a specific remedy for bedwetting. Homeopathy treats the whole person, not a condition.

Follow-up October 2017

I had not heard from the family for 1.5 years as all had been well. Jamison was now ten years old and brought in because he was experiencing stomach aches with pains in the upper abdomen as well as pain in his legs. This was worse when he felt rushed. This has started after he went back to school following his summer break.

If he wakes up and it is 7 am he gets really angry, he wants to wake up at 6:50.

"I have no time to get to the bus!"

The same thing happens at the end of the day around 7-8 pm, he can have a melt down because he feels he is running out of time to get to bed.

"He has intense emotions for sure, it's like a recurrence of his earlier state", mom said. He has a tendency to be critical and is sensitive to loud music, gets agitated.

Assessment and plan: It looks as if the old Arsenicum state is coming up again with anxiety around time and planning and stomach aches and leg pains. He got Arsenicum album 1M and all has been well.

Discussion of Arsenicum album

Arsenicum album is not a very common remedy in children constitutionally but comes up frequently in acute conditions, such as colds and flus, digestive upsets and respiratory problems, especially certain asthma states.

Constitutionally is suits children who seem overly mature for their age and concerned with order, time, being neat and tidy and financial matters. They tend to be anxious and safety conscious, not risk takers. Planning and organizing comes naturally to them. Some of these kids are very particular about looking clean and neat and want their clothing changed if it gets any stains on them, and their hands washed if they get any food etc on them.

They can be vert detailed-oriented and this may show in their writing or artwork or in the way they organize their toys.

They can be anxious about many things, including being on time, health, overanxious about everything. May be restless and wander around or go from parent to parent. Anxiety may be brought on by a strong fright or an illness.

Arsenicum album can be a wonderful balm for these kids and help to sort out any health issues they may have, including, as in this case, bed-wetting!

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