Chapter 9: The doctor is always right
That night Elise dreamed of being little again. She was sitting in her older sisters room in just a blue shirt and a pink pullup. She was playing with her dollies along with Ivanna and Katie like they always used to do as children. The room was warm in more ways then one because she felt loved and appreciated. Just as she was beginning to take out Barbies Dream House, she heard a very loud, RIIINNNGGGG…..RIIIIINNNNNNGGGGG. Elise woke from her restful sleep and cursed the alarm clock that disrupted her wonderful dream. It was dark in her room with just a little bit of moonlight coming in from the big window next to her. Elise then remembered the events of yesterday evening and some of those feelings of guilt and shame that have come as an unintended consequence of trying to get a hold of the diapers that she cherishes emerged. As Elise was lying there, she felt a little bit of a strain on her bladder and then remembered that she set her alarm this early so that she could wet herself. Another few nights of this and there is no way that Mom won’t buy me diapers!” thought Elise as she tried to make herself more comfortable under her bedding. She was wearing her grey sweatpants and her pink halter top which was not the most comfortable outfit. Once she found herself in a position of immense comfort, Elise relaxed and let her body take over. Soon enough, she felt herself begin to pee and the warmth of her urine started running over her lap and pool beneath her. This was her favorite part of bedwetting but it was always over as quickly as it started. Elise let out an immense sigh of relaxation and found herself drifting back off to sleep before she was even finished peeing.
“Good morning honey! Did you sleep well?” asked Caroline to her daughter. Elise had been sleeping very deeply and hadn’t even heard her mother enter the room. “Come on sleepy head we have a big day ahead of us. It’s time to get up honey.” stated Caroline, once again in a loving manner. Elise turned over in her bed to face her alarm clock which read 10:37 am. Elise then shot up in bed still with the covers on her. “Oh my! I slept through school. What am I going to do??!!” exclaimed Elise with a very concerned look on her face. Caroline chuckled and walked over to her daughter and smiled. “I called school and let them know that you won’t be coming in today. I heard back from the Pediatrician this morning and he had some availability today to see you. So we are going to have to leave in an hour or two. After last night and all the stress that you’ve been going through I wanted to make sure that you had some time to sleep in today honey.” stated Caroline as she rubbed her daughters head. Elise relaxed and felt all that worry leave her body. She then became aware of some dampness that was still ever present beneath her legs. Her face became flushed in shame again. “Mommy…I…I had another problem.” whispered Elise making subtle eye contact with her mother. Caroline didn’t have a look of concern this time because she knew that her daughter was going to the doctor today and they might finally get some answers. “That’s okay honey. Why don’t you get into the shower and get all cleaned up. I will go throw your sheets into the wash and afterwards well have some breakfast before we leave. I’m sure Doctor Schultz will be able to help you honey.” related Caroline still rubbing her daughters head. Elise then hopped out of bed and walked into the bathroom where she started showering. She left her soiled clothes by the door and once her daughter was getting cleaned, her mother grabbed the wet clothes and blankets and headed down to the laundry room.
Elise took her time in the shower and felt very good today. She rested but she was also a bit taken back by her mother’s less concerned response to her bedwetting. After some deep thinking though she took that as a good thing. Maybe she's getting used to it and its becoming less of an issue, thought Elise. Once she was done in the shower, Elise brushed her teeth, brushed hair and cleaned up after herself before she returned to her room and got dressed. Today, Elise chose to wear a pair of black jeans, a green hoodie with her schools logo on it and a purple pair of Victoria Secret panties that were full cut and provide full coverage. They were her fanciest pair and she wanted to make sure that despite her, “issues” that her doctor saw that she was a grown up. Once she was all dressed, Elise headed downstairs and had breakfast with her mother.
Once they were done eating their breakfast, Elise and her mother then went right to the garage, got in the car, and began heading to the Pediatrician. The car ride wasn’t long but it was kind of awkward because of the reason for Elise’s visit. Obviously it had to do with her recent string of nighttime and now daytime accidents. While her mother believed they were true accidents, Elise was starting to feel anxious about seeing the doctor because the reality was that all of them have been faked. Would he know that she has been having accidents on purpose? thought Elise. The rest of the car ride went by too quickly for Elise as she sat stewing nervously.
Once they arrived, the girls went right inside and headed up to the second floor to where the doctor’s office was located. Once inside, Elise took a seat right next to the little play area in the waiting room while her mother was checking her in. It was a smaller office with only a handful of chairs which lined the wall across rom the receptionists desk. The play area was also quite small to the right side of the desk near the entrance to the hallway were the exams rooms were located. There was another family waiting and there were two children. One was a 6 year old girl whom was playing with the toys in the play area and an older girl who was probably closer to 11. She was sitting next to her mother reading a seventeen magazine. Due to how small the room was, everything anybody said was heard.
“Hi Janice! How is everything? I’m here with Elise for her 12:45pm appointment.” stated Caroline to the receptionist. “I’m wonderful! Hope all has been well with you too Caroline!..Yes..Let me see here…..Elise Doss 12:45 for Dr. Schultz. What is the reason for the visit today?” asked Janice. Elise felt her stomach sink as she knew that the reason for the visit would be heard by everyone in the room. “Well you see..Elise has been having some..well…Incontinence issues….” responded Caroline in a whisper. Elise felt her face get red again in embarrassment. At least her mother used the medical term for it rather than stating that she has been having all sorts of accidents. Elise looked around the room and the other kids didn’t seem to notice anything or seem like they were aware of anything but the mother met Elise’s eyes and gave her a curious look. Elise just slouched into her chair wishing that she didn’t exist. Once the check in was completed, Caroline made her way over to where Elise was sitting and sat down next to her. “You are all checked in honey. Janice said it will be just a couple of minutes.” related Caroline to her daughter with a large smile. Elise continued to pout and wish she wasn’t there. Not long after Dr. Schultz who was a tiny man balding man emerged with his white lab coat from behind the exam hallway. “Elise! Look at you, you have grown so much since the last time I saw you! Come on back! Mom you are welcome to join us too!” directed Dr. Schultz. Elise and her mother grabbed their stuff and headed to the back exams rooms.
The room was small but it was chalk full of interesting posters of the human body and it had a large exam table which Elise jumped right on when she arrived in the room. The table was covered in a paper which lined the leather seat and it crinkled underneath her. Elise just hoped that the outcome of this visit might lead to other items crinkling underneath her. Caroline sat in a chair next to her and Dr. Schultz came in last and closed the door behind him. “So Elise, Before we get into the reason for your visit, I want to get some information from you quickly alright?” asked Dr. Schultz. Elise nodded. Dr. Schultz then asked her some generic questions like what grade she was in and how she was doing in school. Afterwards, Elise was then evaluated by getting weighed and her height measured. Elise had grown as she is now 5 feet 6 inches tall and she weighed 113 pounds. Once that was done, Dr. Schultz listened to her lung sounds and gave her a regular physical. Afterwards, came the part Elise was dreading, the reason for her visit. “So Elise, Mom, what brings you in today?” asked Dr. Schultz. He looked back and forth between both women waiting to see whom might respond to his question. Before Elise could even answer, her mother said. “Well you see Dr. Schultz, the past week has been very…um…..very worrisome for my Husband David and I as Elise has started….well….um.…having some accidents.” related Caroline in a very concerned tone. Elise felt her face flush redder than it had ever been before. “I see. Can you describe to me in a little more detail what you mean by accidents?” replied Dr. Schultz. He was now starting to write down something in her file. “Well I guess…um Yeah….Elise has had some nighttime issues over the past few nights. I’m not sure when the last time she hasn’t wet the bed was actually. Maybe on Saturday night?” related Caroline looking over concernedly at her daughter. Elise felt mortified and she wanted to float away like a ghost and get out of this situation in any way possible. Elise also wanted to chime in and defend herself and her, “honor” but what would she say? She chose to instead keep her mouth shut in order to avoid incriminating herself. She knew deep down that this was a necessary evil and in order to get the diapers which she wants so desperately, she was going to have to sit through this. It will all be worth it, thought Elise. Dr. Schultz continued to write down information into her file as both Elise and her mother waited for a response. Dr. Schultz then looked up from his book and asked, “Besides the nocturnal enuresis, is there anything else related to these accidents that I should know? Elise then shook her head no but her mother responded immediately. “Well there has been some other things too…..Elise has also been…well. having some fecal related instances too…..I think its been 2 times now in the past week that she has made a mess of her underwear. That was also during the day too not at night. To be honest with you, Im not sure what to make of it.” related Caroline. Elise didn’t think this conversation could get any worse but it did. All she wanted to do now was to run away. She didn’t dare look Dt. Schultz in the eye, he probably thought she was a strange person, or even worse a baby. Dr. Schultz nodded in validation of Caroline and her worries and kept writing things down into her file. At this point it seemed like he was writing a novel! After a few minutes of writing, he looked over the file for a second and then gave a response. “Well Elise! This has been quite a week for you hasn’t it. I’m sorry that you've had such a rough go of it lately. I know this can be quite embarrassing but you shouldn’t feel that way. I am a physician and I have seen it all in my 22 years of medicine. What you’re going through is quite normal. More normal than most people think it is.” Elise looked up from the floor and felt a little better now that he was talking directly with her. She was able to choke up a response despite the heaviness of the shame she was feeling. “So….. you don’t think I’m weird or broken?” asked Elise. Dr. Schultz chuckled to himself and then said, “No my dear. I promise you that these issues happen and I bet there are quite a few people your age and even in your school who going through something very similar. Nocturnal Enuresis happens a lot to teenagers because their body grows faster than their organs do and the bladder is just having trouble adjusting. I mean the last time you were here was 9 months ago and in that time you've grown so much, almost 2 inches. That might not seem like a lot, but it is! I’m sure you will grow out of the nighttime troubles in due time.” Caroline and Elise then looked at each other and smiled. “So you mean I won’t have to keep having these problems anymore? How long does it take for my body to catch up?” asked Elise. She knew she was laying it on thick but she had to play it off like she hated having these accidents and that wanted them to be over as quickly s possible. “Well, it’s hard to say. Everyone is different after all. Maybe a year, maybe 2, maybe only 6 months, I unfortunately wont be able to tell you that answer. It just takes time my dear.” responded Dr. Schultz. “Two Years! I can’t be having accidents for 2 years!” exclaimed Elise. Caroline started rubbing her daughters back in support. Dr. Schultz then walked over to her and also patted her on the back and said, “Like I said young lady, 2 years or 6 months. There is no way to know, however I would put money down that it won’t take that long.” Elise just sat there and registered the information. She knew that she could stop these accidents from happening tomorrow if she wanted to but she didn’t. She just wanted to get her diapers and continue on this path. She felt validated and more certain that this was all going to be worth it. Caroline then asked him a question. “What about the daytime accidents?” Dr. Schultz looked down at the paperwork and then responded, “Well those are also likely due to the huge growth spurt your daughter has been going through but it also probably has something to do with her environment. Things like what she’s eaten or how long between bowel movements she has can cause those daytime problems. I wouldn’t be too concerned with them. I’m sure just like with the nighttime troubles that they will go away on their own in due time.” Caroline seemed to be alright with that answer and she sat back into her chair and nodded. “Is there anything else you guys would like to ask me before I go onto the next patient?” asked Dr. Schultz. Elise then thought this would be the best time to ask about protection. “Well Dr. Schultz, I am really frustrated about these accidents and I hate waking up soaked every morning. Is there anything I can do to make myself more comfortable or help to prevent them from happening?” asked Elise. Dr. Schultz then replied, “Yes there are certainly things that you can do to limit the accidents from happening. I suggest not drinking any fluids before bed and limiting them around 3 hours before bedtime. I think making sure you pee before going to bed would be important and lastly maybe set your alarm clock during the night to a time you may have used to get up to pee during the night. That too might help get you up and use the bathroom before the accident even happens. Although that strategy doesn’t always work because oftentimes the timing of the wetting cannot be predetermined. Many parents also do not wish to wake up their children during the night if they don’t need to because that can affect their sleep patterns. As far as making yourself comfortable, there are a few things that some families do, the first is utilizing a bed liner or plastic cover for the bed, some use a bed mat or a “chucks” as we call them here in the medical field, and the third which is the most popular, the use of a protective undergarment. If you guys need anything else feel free to make another appointment but I want to see you in 6 months for your next check up!” Dr. Schultz then left the exam room. That was a lot of information for both mom and daughter to take in and they spent about a minute together in the room just ruminating on the Doctor’s advice. Afterwards they left the room and mom mad her copay at the reception desk. Then the girls left the office and headed down to the car.