Well, THAT’s Not Going to Work!

OK – settled in after vacation. Our first night up at the plate again. We’re ready to roll. The alarm’s in place (or, so I think). The kid’s in bed. I’m not hearing anything – you parents know that too-good-to-be-true silence I’m talking about.  

I go check on him, and he’s fast asleep – good sign. But, he’s unhooked the sensor end, and is holding it in his hand. No wonder it’s quiet! Unless he’s sweating profusely on his palms, that sensor’s going to be silent all night! Why did he do this? Why is the sky blue? It’s just one of life’s little mysteries.  

Compliance is, apparently, going to be the sticking point here.  

Having had some incredible training through Klemmer & Associates (www.klemmer.com), I’ve learned a thing or two about compliance vs. commitment.  

Compliance is doing what you’ve got to do – and usually leads to doing it begrudgingly or half-heartedly at best. It’s like flossing your teeth – nobody really likes it… but it beats getting yelled at by the dentist, right?  

Commitment, on the other hand, implies you’re fully on-board. You’re ready to play full-out. You’re fully invested, with a no-matter-what attitude.  

So, how do you move your bedwetter from compliance to commitment where it concerns bedwetting remedies?  

You’ve got a couple of choices – a carrot, or a stick. The carrot is something your child wants – the stick is something they don’t want. Either way, it’s got to be something your child cares about. Yes, even kids are savvy enough to ask, “What’s in it for me?”  

I’m thinking stickers on a chart aren’t going to cut it! In fact, for a carrot, we may have to look at cold, hard cash to move him to being committed. It would be a fair trade – up to some dollar amount, say the amount we’re paying for pull-ups. Stick-wise, we could bark up the same tree. It would really stink, as a kid, to have to put your own allowance into play to cover the expense of pull-ups — all because you chose not to give this alarm a full-out chance to do its thing. Right?  

What do you think? I’m up for ideas!