Reply from Rob, Child's Age 40 - 1/24/03 - IP#: 62.252.112.7

I it seems your son may be wearing and wetting diapers because he likes to do so. When he wet infront of you it was obviously no accident and this was his way of confirming that. He, I am sure, wants you to accept this part of his character. If he is also wearing plastic pants to school it may be he wants his peers to accept this too. I would be wary of this as it may lead to the exact opposite of what he wants as his peers may reject him! If, as I suspect, he is into infantalism (the need to wear and/or use diapers) then the desire for acceptance will be strong to overwhelming! (He may also start using them and for more than wetting!) The way you are handling this to date is admerable. I would try not to seem disappointed in him when he wets (as this is leading to more wetting) but do talk to him about the way he feels about anything and everything. Gain his confidence, and try and find out if there is a specific reason for him wetting -but be gentle. He may feel unloved in some way or it may make him feel good. Many times the person does not fully understand why. (The medical proffession are notoriously ignorant about infantilism as very little study has been undertaken.) Whatever happens try to keep calm, there are far worse things than a youngster wanting to wear and use diapers. The way you deal with it will dictate his attitude to you and may affect the rest his life in general. You know your own child best. If he wants to wear diapers or plastic pants outside and especially if he uses them, perhaps it would be better under supervision and not in front of his friends -explain this is for his protection. There is a site on the net, Bitter Grey's Den, that has a very helpful artical: "When Kids Love Diapers" this is especially for parents and it should be very, very, helpful. The website is:www.geocites.com/mitcher14/wkld.html or Understanding Infantilism http://understanding.infantilism.org/why.html any problemd post on board and I will try to sort them. These articles are a must. I have tried to be as helpful as I can -I wish you well -let us know how you get on?