Good morning. Come into my office and sit down. Thanks for seeing me. That's OK.
How can I help? Well I've got a 4-year-old son, Bob. He's still wetting the bed.
Is that normal? I thought he should be dry at night by now. In most cases it is
quite normal for children, especially boys, to still wet the bed at night at
this age. Can you tell me how often Bob is wetting the bed?
Oh it's almost every night. I don't understand it, he doesn't have a problem
during the day. He's not a naughty boy but I wonder if he's trying to get more
attention from me. In most cases it's quite normal and very common for
children to be dry during the day but have wet beds at night. Only a small
percentage of children who wet the bed have a medical problem. Actually it
usually runs in families. Oh really? My husband didn't say he wet the bed as a
child but I'll ask him. You said that some children wet the bed because they
have a medical problem. Could Bob have something wrong with him?
It's unlikely. Does he have any medical problems, for example diabetes or kidney
problems? No. He's always been very healthy. That's why I don't understand
why he's doing this. If it's not caused by a medical problem, why does it happen?
It seems to be related to a few issues; some children have small bladders which
become overactive at night. They are dry during the day, usually because they go
to the toilet often but at night, of course, they are asleep. Oh really? I
didn't realise it might be because Bob's bladder might be too small. Well that's
one possibility. Some children may produce large volumes of urine at night
because the hormone that regulates the amount of urine is not working properly
yet. Once again during the day the kids won't notice and probably go to the
toilet frequently. Some children have bladders which are not yet mature and if
they are deep sleepers they won't wake up in time to empty their bladders. I see.
That makes sense. Bob is a deep sleeper. I can understand
now why you are saying Bob doesn't mean to do it. Another thing that you need to
remember is that if children are constipated, the bowel may press against
the bladder and cause a bit of leakage. The really important
thing is that he's not doing it deliberately. I understand.
It's really not his fault. How is Bob feeling about the bedwetting? Does it
upset him? He gets very upset when it happens. Sometimes I get a bit annoyed
with him you know if I have to wash the sheets every night. I try not to but
sometimes it's hard. Yes I know it's hard, especially if Bob is wetting the bed
every night. You just need to remember that it's very common and kids aren't
wetting the bed to be naughty. Has it affected Bob's confidence with
other children? I don't know. I don't think any of his friends know about it. I
haven't said anything to his teacher about it. I was going to ask about a
school camp Bob is supposed to be going on. Do you think I should let him go?
School camps are important for children but I understand why you are asking the
question. It's important that there's someone Bob can go to at the camp if he
needs to. Is the school nurse going to the camp? I'm not sure. I can find out.
What if he wets the bed? He'll be so upset. Yes he would be. Why not explain
the situation to the school nurse or one of the teachers who will be at the camp?
He can wear toilet training pants under his pyjamas. No-one will notice. That's a
good idea. I don't want him to be left out. Another
thing I wanted to ask - I've not been letting him drink any fluids before he
goes to bed. Is that the right thing to do? Actually bedwetting has nothing to do
with drinking fluids in the evening - that is except drinks which contain caffeine
like chocolate drinks. Soft drinks and orange juice aren't a good idea either
because they increase urine production. The best drink to have is water. So, it
won't make a difference? He'll grow out of the bedwetting in his
own time. In the meantime being thirsty won't help. You can put a plastic
mattress protector on the bed and get some toilet training pants so the
bedwetting causes less work for you. All right I'll try that thanks for the
information. That's all right. If you need any more help let me know.