As a child I was a bed wetter, or at least I thought I was. Years after we were grown, my older brother, with whom I shared a bed as a child, made a confession. Actually he wet the bed, but pushed me over on the wet spot before I woke up. We can laugh about it now, but at the time it certainly wasn’t funny for me.

Bed wetting has to do with bladder control. Before the age of four of five many children may occasionally wet the bed or their clothes, even after they have been potty trained. By the age of five or six most children are able to stay dry during the whole night. Bed wetting as a problem is defined as a child of five years or older who wets the bed one or two times a week over at least three months. Although some children, who show this behavior, have been bed wetting all along, for some it can begin well after the child has been dry for a long time.

Children don’t want to be wet and uncomfortable; they do not wet the bed on purpose. There are a number of different possible reasons why a child over the age of five continues to wet the bed.

For some children it is a matter of slow growth of the nervous system so that bladder control comes later than it does for most children. Other children may have small bladders that fill quickly. In some children it may be due to a deficiency of the antidiuretic hormone that provides the signal that the bladder needs to be emptied. Still other children may sleep so deeply that they miss the bladder signals. Abrupt appearances of bed wetting can be caused by emotional stress. It is not unusual, fro example, for a child who is dry to wet the bed on the birth of a sibling.

For most children bed wetting is overcome by the age of six or seven when bladder control and the ability to recognize and respond to the signals of a full bladder are well established. In the event that the problem is not resolved at this age, parents should seek professional help. For children over five who continue to wet the bed, there are some things parents can do to help the child:

• Have the child drink most of his or her fluids early in the day and avoid having fluids before going to bed
   
• Caffeine can inhibit signals and the child should not have chocolate or colas especially at night
   
• Make it a habit for the child to use the toilet immediately before going to bed
   
• Let your child know that you understand it is not his or her fault and involve them in making decisions about fluids, chocolate etc.
   
• Praise your child when he or she has bad nights

We are all different and children, who wet the bed after most children are dry, are usually only experiencing developmental delays. If we appreciate this and don’t make a big to-do about it, most children will resolve the problem on their own.