This post was inspired by reading someones feelings about having to use cloth diapers and plastic pants to manage her incontinence. She said she felt like a toddler. This made me think about the use of diapers to manage bedwetting and how it effects our self-image.
Self-image is very important in this country. Although self-image is a universal concept it seems to be especially important in this country. We our very concerned with how we appear to others.Our self-image is one of the factors that determines our success in jobs, social situations, relationships, etc.
While I think that it is important to have a healthy self-image and by that I mean both a belief that one is a worthy, competent person and a faith in one's abilities to overcome adversity, I think that in many respects our concept of self-image tends to be rather superficial.
A person's character has a lot to do with how people view self-image but as psychiatrist and best selling author Dr. Gordon Livinston says, "We are accustomed to thinking about character in the most superficial ways. 'He has a lot of personality' is usually about how engaging or entertaining someone is."
All this emphasis on self-image ties in with our feelings and attitude towards bedwetting and the use of diapers to manage it.
Out of all forms of incontinence bedwetting seems to be the most stigmatized particularly with adults. Many adults view bedwetting as a kid's disorder and if they have to wear diapers for bedwetting they view themselves as a failure.
I think that we need to reevaluate this attitude. According to the dictionary, failure means a lack of success. If a person has tried everything to cure their bedwetting without success and they have to rely on diapers that does not mean they are a failure. This is only one aspect of their lives. They might have not been successful at curing their bedwetting but by using diapers to protect themselves and the bed they are a success from that standpoint. Using diapers as a protective measure for bedwetting does not have anything to do with that person's character or what he or she is like on the inside.
If a person is involved in an injury that renders them paralyzed and they have to rely on a wheelchair does that mean they are a failure? Or what about a person who has to use insulin to manage their diabetes. Are they a failure? Of course not! These are tools that people use to help them manage a health problem and lead a more fulfilling life.
It takes a lot of courage to go against the grain and do something because it is the right thing to do and not just because it is popular. After all, "what is popular is not always right, what is right is not always popular." I think that this saying is definitely applicable to using diapers to manage bedwetting. In that respect, a person should be somewhat proud of wearing diapers to bed.
