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September 27th, 2011
02:17 PM ET
The many possible causes of bedwettingLisa Shives, M.D., is the founder of Northshore Sleep Medicine in Evanston, Illinois. She blogs regularly on The Chart. Read more from her at Dr. Lisa Shives’ Sleep Better Blog.
Lori was 9 years old and was still wetting the bed several times a week. If there was a six-month period of dryness, and yet bedwetting started again and lasted at least three months, then we call it secondary enuresis. The prevalence rates are higher in boys, but it is not uncommon in girls. The traditional thinking has been that primary enuresis is more likely to be caused by a urologic disorder, but even in secondary enuresis, that is also always a consideration. Most important is the age of the child, how often the bedwetting is occurring, and whether there are signs and symptoms of other medical problems or psychosocial stressors. For example, 10% of 6-year-olds still wet the bed at least twice a week and there is spontaneous cessation in about 15% of children per year. Therefore, I would have less concern about a child that age. One key question is whether the child has involuntary voiding while awake. If that is occurring often after the age of 5, then an organic, medical disorder is more likely. Also, in cases of primary enuresis, there is a strong hereditary factor. One concern that many parents have is whether the bedwetting indicates a psychiatric or psychological problem. Psychosocial problems are not considered a common cause, although there is literature showing an increased rate of primary enuresis in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and children living in disorganized families. Secondary enuresis occurs more commonly in children experiencing the stress of divorce or the trauma of physical or sexual abuse, or suffering from neglect. Besides urinary tract infections and malformation of the genitourinary tract, there are several disorders that can cause or be associated with bedwetting. The major disorders to consider are: 1) diabetes; 2) sickle cell disease; 3) malfunctioning of the hormone, vasopressin; 4) chronic constipation; 5) nocturnal seizures or other neurological disorders; 6) obstructive sleep apnea. As a sleep physician, I am most concerned that parents and other physicians are aware of the connection to sleep apnea. There are many theories, and they are not mutually exclusive, as to why disordered breathing at night would cause involuntary voiding. Sleep apnea often causes confusional arousals and when stuck in a state between sleep and wake, urination may occur. Repeated awakenings, even if they are so brief that the child does not remember, can disrupt the hormone vasopressin, also called antidiuretic hormone. When this hormone does not rise as it should, then the kidney keeps making urine during sleep and result can be bedwetting. Another possibility is that sleep apnea in children is well known to be associated with stunted growth. Therefore, it could be that sleep apnea slows the neurologic development that is necessary for a child to sleep through the night without wetting the bed. There is also an association between nocturia (frequent urination at night) and sleep apnea in older adults. The nocturia sometimes leads to bedwetting. I have so many older male patients who had been getting up to urinate five or six time a night and when we treat their sleep apnea and the trips to bathroom drop down to one or two, they are thrilled. In Lucy’s case, she had “rough breathing” and sweating during the night and she had moderate-sized tonsils and so obstructive sleep apnea was suspected. Indeed, her sleep study showed significant disordered breathing at night with an elevation in her carbon dioxide for most of the night. Her parents and the ENT physician felt that a tonsillectomy/adenoidectomy was appropriate. When I saw her two months after her operation, her sleep apnea had completely resolved and there had only been a couple of incidences of bedwetting as opposed to the nearly nightly occurrences before the sleep apnea was treated. Lucy is now happily attending sleepovers, free of worries of embarrassment, and is even going to go camping with her scout troop. The information contained on this page does not and is not intended to convey medical advice. CNN is not responsible for any actions or inaction on your part based on the information that is presented here. Please consult a physician or medical professional for personal medical advice or treatment.
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Her parents were concerned that she had a serious medical or psychological problem, but the only thing that Lori cared about was being able to go to sleepovers without dying of embarrassment.
Kids tend to wet the bed at about the same time of night each time they have an accident. You can set an alarm and gently wake them up at around that time. Works like a charm and after only a few times, they tend to get up themselves without you having to wake them up.
Tried that with all 3 of my children...they still woke up wet. Their doctor said that their bodies were growing faster than their bladders; combined with the fact that they are very deep sleepers. They are growing out of it. Wet less often, the oldest stopped around the age of 14.
Yeah, that doesn't work. Tried that with our son and he just wet the bed later in the night. Nothing works but time.
This is why man invented pull ups. No wet sheets & everyone gets a full night's sleep.
I have been using the wakeup method with my son too. I also bought a brand new mattress, took a look at http://www.qmattresses.com/ to determine which one was most stain resistant and kept it wrapped in plastic – just in case! Seems to help him too with not wetting as often.
ADULT STEM CELLS CURE'S AIDS / HIV and A NUMBER OF OTHER THINGS BUT WHY????? IS AMERICA BEING HELD BACK FROM THE MAJOR LEAP IN MEDICINE DOES AMERICA WANT TOO KILL YOU ??????? OTHER COUNTRIES MAKING MAJOR LEAPS INTO MEDICINE BUT AMERICA IS STILL IN THE STONE AGE WHY????? WHO BENEFITS THE FDA BIG CORPORATIONS .......???
I can remember back a long time ago, I remember waking up wet on many nights, and I remember what caused it.. I woud dream I was urinating inthe commode. Then it would wake me up when I was wet. I still dream alot but not the wetting part. I also sleep walked and on at least one occasion I opened the fridge and was ready to use it to relieve my self but the ever alert mom quickly escorted me to the bathroom. I still dream alot and remember what I dream most of the time.
You're a dreamer of many dreams.
This has happened to me as well, even in to adulthood. About once every other year I'll have a dream that I'm trying to urinate. I find that it is difficult to start my stream in my dream. I think it's because my brain knows I shouldn't be peeing. If I can get the stream to start in my dream...... golden shower time in the bed.
My son had no psychiatric or traumatic issues or apnea issues. He only had delayed puberty. He wet the bed once every 2 months until he was 14. My father did the same till he was 15. Like above poster said, bladder not fully grown yet. Not everything needs to have a medical "label" or underlying issue. It is just part of growing up, and some grow up later than others.
Same thing with my son. His mother, his aunt, two uncles, and several cousins all had the same issue. The girls all stopped around nine or ten, the boys all stopped around thirteen or fourteen. My husband, who DOES have sleep apnea, never had the problem. My other son and one of his cousins both had tonsils and adenoids so huge they interfered with their eating habits, and they snored loud enough to wake the dead, but neither of them had a bed-wetting problem.
It was a matter of growing into his body for my son, as it was with all his relatives who wet their beds. The best way to handle it is not to make an issue out of it. It happens, and one day it will stop. In the meantime, sheets can be changed. We bought fleece blankets which were easily washed every morning. Our son learned to make his bed with clean bedding, and the importance of a shower every morning. When he was older, he learned how to operate the washing machine. Not bad skills to have for any kid.
I've always thought bed-wetting was caused by urinating while sleeping. For kids who do not grow out of it in their early school years, it seems to stop around sixth grade. I don't think it's that big a deal, and I think people shouldn't worry about it.
Exactly! I find it amazing that in this day & age parents are still resorting to negative reinforcement for something that a child is doing while he or she is UNCONSCIOUS!
My daughter battled with many bladder infections as a child and always wet the bed! She had her kidneys checked and they were fine.We tried the setting the alarm thing.Sometimes it worked sometimes it didn't.She is a very sound sleeper and does sometimes breath harder at night.She is 16 now and still wets the bed sometimes but not near as often as she used to! We r hoping she grows out of it soon!
I had the same issue. I used to get bladder infections all the time and wet the bed up until around 14 with maybe a few instances once or twice a year up until 16. I also had the dreams of going to the bathroom in my sleep then waking up in the middle of already peeing. I still have the dream now but I don't do it anymore. I also came from a broken home and noticed the bedwetting occurred less once my life got settled so it could be a combination of both.
My son was a bed wetter. Every night for 7 years. At 7 years old, my pediatrician prescribed something called, DVAPP. It was a nasal spray hormone therapy. From the very first squirt, (one squirt in each nostral right before bed) the bedwetting stopped. My son was so happy that he made it a point to do this himself everynight. I NEVER had to ask him if he took his "nose medicine " .
My son was doing really well with not wetting the bed for some time. Then he just started doing it again, and would do it almost every night. It got to the point that we were almost going to take him to a doctor or have a sleep study done or something, because it was getting way out of hand, and we were a little worried.
Turned out there was nothing to worry about. He was just being lazy, and not getting out of bed when he had to pee. He had every ability to be able to help it. After a time of sleeping on the floor if his bed was wet, and losing privileges, gaining them back for having dry nights, he no longer wet the bed. Hasn't wet the bed in months.
Oh, and no liquids an hour before bed time. Drinking a glass of water before going to sleep is just asking for it.
@T3chsupport: Really? I'll bet you read Dr Spock too? I find it rather amusing that we let physical abuse be punishable, but not what you would do to your child. Shame people can be so ignorant
I'm just curious if you had considered just letting him sleep in pull ups or big-kid night pants until he got used to his body's signals at night? (I don't know how old your kid is.)
My parents also assumed I was being "lazy" but it was a combination of being a heavy sleeper, fear of punishment and a kidney problem that were the ultimate issues... I was never once aware of actually urinating on myself at night. Not once. I would wake up surprised to find myself in wet sheets every time.
I wet the bed until I was at least 12. Eventually, I began waking up at night to go to the bathroom and that helped. A couple of factors came into play in my case. First, I was basically "trained" to stay in bed after bedtime or risk punishment. Naturally, if I had to go to the bathroom, I held it and went to sleep anyway. When I woke up in a wet bed, I was punished.
Second, when I was 18 I was diagnosed with a constricted renal pelvis, which caused my kidney to "back up" spontaneously. This may have also been a factor since at night, or when lying down, the fluid would leave the kidney very quickly. (This has since been surgically corrected.)
Going into my 20s & 30s, I used to have to make frequent trips to the bathroom at night, sometimes as often as three or four times before I could settle down & go to sleep. When I started treating an apparently unrelated issue – generalized anxiety – the frequent bathroom trips stopped completely.
For my own kids, I have NEVER given them any grief about night time toilet needs, and I've told them since they were 3 that if they need to get up at night & go potty, they could do so any time they wanted. We kept them in pull ups during the night, and they got to transition to underwear if they stayed dry for a whole week. No stress. No punishments. No wet sheets. And my kids are 6 & 8 now and I can count on one hand the number of times that they ever wet the bed in their lives (all from around age 3-4).
Don't forget side-effects of medications eg with serotonin syndrome.
Bed wetting becomes a serious problem if it persists up to adulthood.
Best an awesome. As a mom i can feel the worth of it
THE BOTTOM LINE HUMANS ARENT ROBOTS AND WE RESENT THE FACT YOU TRY TO TREAT US LIKE WE ARE YOU HAVE A BIG CHALLENGE AHEAD OF YOURSELVES IN THE NEAR FUTURE BECAUSE OUR BIOLOGICAL GENETICS TICK AT THEIR OWN PACE
I don't remember wetting the bed when I was toddler but I do remember the last time I did. I was a freshman in high school (too old, I know). But I had a dream that I had woke up and went to the bathroom. And I just relaxed in my sleep and immediately woke up from the warm wet feeling. Maybe some children are having these dreams. What I did was made sure I went to the bathroom right before going to bed and whenever I was having those dreams, I forced myself to wake up.
My sister had issues of bedwetting until 7yrs of age! She also had urinary tract infections, and redness in genital area. Doctor after doctor knew nothing until one day she was lethargic, and kept drinking fluids. Turns out she had juvenile diabetes which could have killed if she wasnt rushed to ER to find BS was 800!!!!!! This is a typical sign of the onset of type 1 diabetes!!! Doctors and parents should know this, while ruling it out 1st because of the severity of the disease. Any questions on type 1 diabetes visit the JDRF website! thx
Bedwetting is a serious problem. Using diapers will help get through the weekend, but will not help cure your problem.
You should typically stop wetting the bed by age 4. Anything beyond that needs immediate attention.
My children had this problem. All three of them. I suggest you try using a CHUMMIE bedwetting alarm.
The product is available at http://www.CHUMMIE.com
It can be used in discrete (silent) mode when you travel.
I am not endorsing a company or a brand. I am simply stating what worked for my 2 kids. I wish you well.
Source(s):
http://www.chummie.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bedwetting_alarm
"discreet" not discrete. Two different words.
ADULT STEM CELLS CURE'S AIDS / HIV and A NUMBER OF OTHER THINGS BUT WHY????? IS AMERICA BEING HELD BACK FROM THE MAJOR LEAP IN MEDICINE DOES AMERICA WANT TOO KILL YOU ??????? OTHER COUNTRIES MAKING MAJOR LEAPS INTO MEDICINE BUT AMERICA IS STILL IN THE STONE AGE WHY????? WHO BENEFITS THE FDA BIG CORPORATIONS .......?
"WHO BENEFITS THE FDA BIG CORPORATIONS .......?" The Religious Right uses these issues to keep its caveman congressmen elected. They can just fly overseas and get good medical care for themselves.
My problem was due to having an 3 fully functional separate kidneys which I discovered in my late teens. To this day I can go many many hours w/o a bathroom break but when the kidneys kick in its a mad dash to the restroom.
I HAVE 2 BOYS AGES 9 AND 11 THAY BOTH STILL WET THE BED EVERY NIGHT AND ARE NEVER PUNISHED FOR IT THAY WILL STOP WHEN THAY ARE READY IN THE MORNING THAY STRIP THE BEDS AND PUT IT IN THE WASH AND I WASH THE SHEETS AND PAJAMAS WHEN I GET HOME NOTHING IS EVER SAID ABOUT IT I HAVE COUGHT MY 11 YEAR OLD EVEN DOING IT ON PERPOSE A FEW TIMES BUT WHAT BEDWETTING KID DOESANT DO IT AT LEAST 1 TIME ON PERPOSE THAY NEVER GET PUNNISHED FOR IT AND ARE NEVER EMBAREST OVER IT SOMTIMES MY 9 YEAR OLD WILL COMEDOWN AND HAVE BREAKFAST BEFOR HE CHANGES HIS PAJAMAS REALY PEOPLE ITS NIT SO BAD AND MY KIDS ARE HAPPY AND THATS ALL I CARE ABOUT
Try one of those alarms; if you wake up when it happens, you can learn to stop it sooner.
My son was potty-trained by the time he was three. However, he continued to wet the bed nightly until he was 6. We tried every approach to helping with his bed wetting to no avail. Finally, we had him muscle tested regarding the problem and discovered that his Omega-3 levels were low. We began giving him childrens Omega-3 supplements right away and only a couple of weeks later he was no longer wetting the bed and his daytime accidents also were gone completely. Homeopathy guys. Try it. It works.
Bedwetting or (noctornul) enuresis is a condition and should be looked into as the child grows older. I am a pediatric urologist and have been studying the various aspects of enuresis, symptoms and cure. There are a number of medications – Desmopressin acetate (DDAVP) the being the most popular which treats bedwetting. Unfortunately it doesnt cure bedwetting.
A time tested therapy may involve letting the child overcome it, but that could take years. Another approach is to us an enuresis alarm – Chummie bedwetting alarm being the most popular. Alarms are a good alternative to cure bedwetting without side effects for a fraction of the cost of medication.
Be careful when selecting alarms. It is recommeded to purchase a modern alarm with newer technology and features rathen the grandfathered alarms (like the malem alarm).
I agree Karla, Chummie worked for us and its a brilliant alarm.
I would strongly recommend the Chummie Alarm to every bed wetter out there.
My son used to wet his bed until he was 12 years old, we tried limiting fluids, tried medication and even gave therapy a shot. Each bought about a marginal change which was not more than 20% and then in a month back to square one.
That’s when a friend recommended I try the Chummie bedwetting alarm. I bought it off my local Best Buy store or if you’d like you could buy it online from http://www.chummie.com/bestbuy
Buying it in-stores will give you a chance to see the product before you purchase it and the Best Buy staff was very well trained on this product.
My son started responding to the alarm from day 1 itself and by around day 45 he had completed his 2 dry weeks. Which means he is free from bedwetting. It’s 3 months since his treatment is completed and no re-occurrences. The Chummie treatment system is both FDA registered and FSA eligible.
Since chummie is almost always sold out at at Best Buy and you may have to backorder it online and/or call for it in-stores.
I am glad this alarm worked for us and I'd definitely like to put the word out to all moms there to make this alarm your first choice towards bedwetting.
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I used to wet the bed, and it turned out to be a small bladder. I wake up in the night and relieve myself and have since I was ten. No psychological issues, just a physical fluke.
chronic constipation seems like an interesting cause. i wonder if we can stop bedwetting through diet regulation and change?
John
http://stop-bed-wetting.org
All I can say is that I hope that this was Bryce's last surgery for sure. He is trpooer!! I knew he would do fine, but dancing around only a few hours later?? You might have the next Superman on your hands...LOL! I am glad you had a good experience at the hospital, that makes all of the difference. Now get some rest and email me when you get a chance
my daught who is 9 newly strating wetting the bed why? please help
Try the Chummie Bed-wetting Alarm. We used it on our son and in just a couple of weeks he was bedwetting free.
If you are looking for international shipping I guess you can buy it from http://www.chummie.com otherwise if you live in the US, just pick it from the retail store near you.
Your daughter is already 9, I'd recommend you buy the alarm soon.
Goodluck.
I am shocked that people think that it is ok to wet the bed into the teenage years. From what I can see from the posts, the people who had this happen to them eventually found out that they had a problem that was causing the bed wetting. What kind of self-esteem are you promoting by allowing it to happen without intervention? What possible physical or psychological problem are you avoiding? If as a parent you don't at least check into it and hope that eventually it will stop on its own into double digit ages I think you should be ashamed.
According to Harvard Medical School, sleep disorders are commonly encountered problems in pediatric practice, yet under recognized to a large extent. The consequences of under-diagnosed and untreated sleep disorders may include significant emotional, behavioral, cardiovascular and neurocognitive dysfunction.
We hear from thousands of mothers and fathers every year seeking help to understand and stop their child or teenagers bed-wetting. The leading cause of bedwetting is an inherited deep sleep disorder and children can suffer with non-restorative sleep that produces bedwetting for years.
They suffer more then their parents or pediatrician may know. Embarrassment often leads to silence. Children as young as five often live with feelings of fear of discovery, shame, low self-esteem, and feeling different.
Bed-wetting is not anyone’s fault; our findings point to a deep sleep that prevents the brain from responding to the bladder's signal. Less than 1% of bedwetting cases are caused by a physical problem. Therefore, medical approaches do not end bedwetting.
Often the “Medical Advice” is to wait: Hearing "do worry, they will outgrow it". This is the worst advice you can get. While the child waits, the enuresis can remain and additional symptoms can result.
Bed-wetting can continue into teen years. The teenager feels different, burdened by shame and secrecy. Suffering continues with emotional pain and damage to self-esteem, especially when it continues to extend... even into adulthood.
The Enuresis Treatment Center does not believe waiting is an option. For 38 years we have understood and treated the underlying problem; an inherited deep sleep disorder. This non-restorative, deep sleep takes on many symptoms besides bedwetting. Daytime symptoms can include: difficulty concentrating, fatigue, irritability, and memory difficulty.
Our successful approach to stopping bedwetting is to focus on the real problem: changing the sleep pattern Our clinical findings have proven this is the best treatment protocol for the child, teenager, or adult suffering from bedwetting.
Please visit our website at http://www.nobedwetting.com
Regards,
Lyle Danuloff, Ph.D.
The Enuresis Treatment Center
800.379.2331
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