Ask Dr Cathrine
Dr Cathrine Neilsen-Hewett is an experienced Child Development expert. As a mother of three young children, understanding children’s development and promoting positive approaches to parenting has become both a passion and a full-time career. You have the opportunity to ask your questions now.
These questions might be similar to 'Hi, miss 10 stopped wetting the bed by 3yrs of age then at 4 she started again. there were no major changes or upsets in her life at the time. '
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Question from a first time mum- what do I do to stop my daughter from going at night?
There is so much to get your head around as a first time mum! Firstly, let me reassure you that it is perfectly normal for your daughter to still b...
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My son wears DryNites every night. He never wakes up dry. What should I be doing to help him?
When it comes to coping with your child’s bedwetting it often helps to know how normal it actually is. Approximately 17% of 5-year-old children con...
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4yo daughter - should I put her in nappies or drynites for bed time?
It is quite common for children to experience the occasional accident during the day for a couple of years after being toilet trained. Young childr...
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My nearly 6yo still wets the bed every night. what can I do? She's so embarrassed about it.
When children experience daytime incontinence after 4 years of age you need to consult with a GP to check if there is an underlying medical conditi...
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My son is 7.5yo. He sleeps very well, which means he doesn't wake up to do his wees. How can I help him to stop wetting the bed? Please help
dealing with constant wet sheets can be incredibly frustrating – I find just keeping up with the standard daily load is difficult enough let alone ...
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My 6.5 yo has never had more tham 3 dry nights in a row. I have tried the alarm and I consulted my doctor. I feel very alone and not sure what to do next.
Even though it is the child who wets the bed, I often find it’s the parents who need the most support. Coping with bedwetting can be overwhelming f...
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My 6yo is disheartened when his younger siblings have dry nappies which is quite often. Please do not say that he will grow out of it as it is affecting his self esteem.
If your child’s bedwetting starts to impact on their self-confidence or self-esteem then it is time to think about treatment – regardless of how ol...
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I have heard about the use of hypnosis or some way of stimulating neural pathways. I am wondering if there are any other things that you would recommend?
Increasingly parents are turning to alternative treatments in an attempt to help their child stay dry at night – the success of these is really dep...
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Can having ear infections or sickness make a child re-wet his pants and bed at nite?
It is not unusual for children to experience a regression in their development if they have experienced an ongoing illness – particularly if this o...
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My son was toilet trained at the start of school this year. Recently he has started having a few wee accidents and wetting his bed. Is this normal to take two steps forward one back? How long does this take?
It is very common to fluctuate between wet and dry nights as children move toward nighttime continence – thankfully as time goes on the periods whe...
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what kind of food or drinks should my 6yo son avoid
if you think food sensitivities are contributing to his night wetting he may benefit from eliminating foods such as citrus and dairy from his diet....
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My 6yo son is still wetting- should I be going to see a doctor now?
Many doctors recommend holding off until children are at least 6-years of age before seeking treatment due to the high spontaneous cure rate up unt...
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6yo still bed wetting- should we try an alarm? My doctor said they didn't recommend trying anything till after 7 years but not sure why
doctors typically recommend holding off on treatment until children turn 7 years of age due to the high spontaneous cure rate up until then. Also t...
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I was a bedwetter, and my 6yo son is too. Do you have any suggestions on how I can assist the process in any way?
Given the strong genetic link it is not unusual for parents who wet the bed to have children who also wet the bed. Often one of the best predictors...
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My daughter is 10 and is still wetting the bed almost every night. Should we be taking her to the doctor?
Unfortunately when it comes to bedwetting many parents and children suffer in silence, too embarrassed to discuss their situation with anyone while...
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I am 14 and still wet the bed. I have tried the alarm mats but the lack of sleep affected my grades. I'm now having problems with burning with peeing.
this must be very frustrating for you. Firstly, I would recommend that you make an appointment with your GP to discuss your daytime urination as it...
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My 12 yr old daughter has just started wetting the bed again. Wondering if it could be related to puberty?
this must be very distressing for both you and your daughter. It is not unusual for a child who has experienced some difficulty achieving nighttime...
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My daughter is 15 and still wets the bed is something wrong she's been on all the tablets and nothing worked. What should I do?
when bedwetting continues over many years it becomes increasingly frustrating for both the parents and the child. It must feel at times that this w...
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My daughter is 8 yrs old , its embarrassing for her, so she doesn't get to sleep at her friends place.
unfortunately not all children outgrow bedwetting – with some requiring more than just the basic measures we can implement at home. If you are conc...
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Have been told I can get tablets for my daughter, Why hasn't my doctor prescribed them for my daughter?
Children wet the bed for a number of reasons, some do so because they produce double the amount of urine overnight, others do so as they are unable...
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My niece is 11years old and has had bladder problems since she started school aged 5. She has been using a catheter for about a year, which has helped a little but she still gets infections and has been on all different antibiotics.
it sounds like your niece’s urinary incontinence is due to underlying medical causes, something I am unable to comment on. I would recommend your s...
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I have a 15 year old daughter who has an 'over-active sensitive bladder'. Have tried everything, including operations. She wets the bed on average 3-4 times a night. Would you have any other ideas?
This must be very distressing for your daughter and your family. As I am not a surgeon I am unable to comment on the efficacy of surgical intervent...
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My teenage sister is wetting the bed.
there are a number of treatments available for teenagers who wet the bed – the long-term success of these depends to a large extent on the frequenc...
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Still concerned about my son, he has a very weak bladder
I generally recommend that if children experience frequent accidents during the day after age 5 or they start wetting the bed again after a period ...
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5 year old son still wetting the bed after using alarms and everything!
feelings of frustration and desperation are common among parents of children who wet the bed – particularly if they are like you and have to deal w...
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5 year old son shows no sign of stopping bed wetting
The first thing to keep in mind is that bedwetting is quite common among 5-year-old children with about 17% continuing to wet the bed at night – at...
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Four year old boy, too early for alarms?
typically we recommend that parents wait until their child has turned 6 years of age before they consider bedwetting treatments. The reason for doi...
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My four year old son wets the bed several times a night
While it is perfectly normal for your son to be still wetting the bed at age 4 - the decision of whether or not to see a doctor is ultimately up to...
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7 year old boy still wetting bed. Is it time for a continence specialist?
while it may not be medically necessary to treat bedwetting after the age of 6 years – some children due to social and emotional reasons benefit fr...
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Why has my 5 year old only recently started wetting the bed?
your son’s type of bedwetting would be considered secondary enuresis (SE) – this is less common and has different underlying causes. When children ...
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5 out of 7 nights my boys have accidents. Help!
if you are concerned that the bedwetting has been going on too long or there seems to be significant amounts of urine produced overnight then you n...
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Seven year old son wets the bed, we've visited the hospital and tried the alarms. What next?
it can be extremely frustrating when a bedwetting treatment does not seem to work for your child. While the conditioning alarms currently have the ...
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Should my five year old visit the doctor?
It is not unusual for children to experience accidents during the day for a number of years after they have been toilet trained – this typically oc...
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8 year old getting worse, time for alarms?
I completely understand your frustration. The tricky thing about bedwetting is that there are so many possible causes that it can be difficult to t...
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Any suggestions to convince teenage boys to use Drynites?
Due to the strong family history it is not unusual for a number of siblings to experience bedwetting. Current statistics suggest about 8 in 10 chil...
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I am sixteen and have type 1 diabetes. I know it shouldn't be causing the bedwetting but I'm frustrated.
This must be really frustrating for you. If your diabetes is being effectively managed it should not be the cause of your bedwetting. There are a n...
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My 9 year old son wets the bed most nights, can you recommend an alarm we could use with the pants and sensor?
There are a number of bell and pad alarms currently on the market - some of these allow you to use a recording (which can be your voice) instead of...
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My son is 10 years old and still wetting the bed. I have used the alarm for quite a few months, but this has not worked.
I would recommend that you get a referral to meet with a continence advisor who can help tailor at treatment that best suits your son’s individual ...
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My son age 12 is wetting since birth, please advice how to control as he will be going to high school next year.
as frustrating as this may be let me reassure you that you are not alone – it’s highly likely that there’s at least one other mother of a child in ...
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Son 9, saturates his Drynites pants everynight.
a lots of patience and understanding are needed in the management of bedwetting and thatâs not just for your son but for you too! A small bladder...
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I have a 14 year old son who has continually wet the bed over the years. Minirin not helping much.
probably the most suitable treatment would be a conditioning alarm – these currently experience the best outcomes with about a 75% cure rate. A sen...
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Why do children wet the bed? How old are the when they stop? Concerned about my son as he is going on camps.
Children wet the bed for a number of reasons, some do so because they produce double the amount of urine overnight, others do so as they are unable...
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How should my son manage his bed wetting at school camp?
Bedwetting has a genetic link so it is not usual to find a number of children in the same family wetting the bed – siblings typically outgrow bedwe...
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9 year old son has seen doctors and paediatricians but he's normal. So how can we help him stop wetting the bed?
Most children who wet the bed have no underlying medical condition and many of these are able to outgrow it on their own. However if your child’s b...
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My 11 year old son used minirin in the past, but no effect now. Could his severe anxiety be overriding the effects?
We would still consider your son to be experiencing primary enuresis, even though he did experience a short period of dryness. While there are alwa...
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My son is 8 and his bedwetting is getting worse. Is there any medical intervention?
a delay in achieving nighttime continence is typically due to a delay in maturation of your child’s nervous system. There are two main reasons he c...
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6yo still bed wetting at night - is it time to see a doctor about this?
Firstly, let me reassure you that what is happening is perfectly normal - almost 1 in 5 children your daughter’s age wake-up wet on a regular basis...
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I have a 4yo girl, and her urine has quite a potent smell. Could this be a UTI?
The first course of action when children start wetting the bed at night or experience incontinence during the day after a period of dryness is to t...
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6yo girl dry until 4, and then wet the bed every night since. Is this something we should be seeking medical treatment for?
this type of bedwetting is called secondary enuresis (SE) – this occurs when children have developed control over their bladder during the night fo...
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My grandson is almost 6 and has high function autism. He's been toiled trained during the day for couple of years now, but still wears nappy at night. His mum tried couple of times to put him to bed without nappy because he kept saying that he was a big
Unfortunately nighttime continence does not work in the same way as daytime training – nighttime wetting typically happens when children are asleep...
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Hi Doctor, My daughter is 2 years and 2 months old and will not poo on the potty or the toilet. She has now started to refuse even sitting on the toilet for wee even though she has been weeing on the toilet for the past 3 months. My question is should I
Hi Belinda – this is incredibly frustrating but not that uncommon. The average time it takes children to become toilet trained is anywhere between ...
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Hi my 5 year old son wets heavily every night - usually through a dry nite and onto the sheets. Recently he was prescribed antibiotics for an ear infection. For the week that he was on the antibiotics he was dry every night. The last night he took the
Hi Amanda – bladder infections are certainly one cause of nighttime wetting so I would definitely have your son checked by your GP. I would also d...
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hi my name is kerrry i have 3 kids 2 boys and 1 girl my first boy fred is 3 and has started to wet the bed and my second boy bob has started to get up in the night and poo on the floor in the bed room he is 2 and is clean and has been for a few months. me
Hi Kerry – divorce can be incredibly stressful for all involved, especially young children. It is not uncommon for children to experience toiletin...
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Is bowel incontinence linked at all with bed wetting? My 5 1/2 year old has never been out of night nappies as he wets every night but over the past few months he has also been pooing in the bath or shower. This only happens occasionally as he says it c
Hi Christine - Faecal incontinence in children is typically a sign that your child is suffering from constipation. If left untreated, constipation ...
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My children have kidney reflux. Does this make them have less bladder control? i.e. more likely to take longer to have bladder control at night?
Children diagnosed with kidney reflux can experience bedwetting as a symptom of this condition. Depending on your daughters diagnosis, children wi...
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my son wet himself day and night at night he will were drynites but he will where them to school what can i do
Given his age and the regularity of his wetting it is very important that you make an appointment with your GP so that they can investigate the c...
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my son is going to be 6 next month. he wets his pants during the day. Sometimes he is really wet and sometimes its just a little spot. Some days he can be dry the whole day. The same thing happens at night. Some nights he will get up and go too the toilet
While it is quite common for children to continue to experience nighttime incontinence at age 6, regular daytime accidents are less common and shou...
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twin 4yo girls, and one is wetting her pants. When is it time to worry about this?
we usually do not consider daytime wetting to be a problem until after children have turned 4 years of age or reach a developmental age of 4 - this...
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Hi my daughtter has been toilet trained for over a year. when playing outside she will tell me she needs to go and i tell her just to go if she needs to but instead of going to the toilet she will piss herself on her bed. At school she will just stand the
Hi Daphne – it is not unusual for children to experience some regression in their toileting skills at times of stress and certainly the pending bi...
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Its really weird? Please help me. Please
Hi Elise, it is certainly fine for you to wear DryNites both during the day and night. If you do wear them to school you should make sure you chan...
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Wetting
Hi Britney – nice to hear from you again! Leakage often results from improper fit, which can occur if your DryNites are too small. Check that the...
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My 7 year old son can go for weeks at a time with a dry bed and then all of a sudden we will have a run of wet nights, He tells me he doesn't know it is happening until it is too late. He gets upset at the mention of "drynights" can you give me some advic
While perfectly normal, this must be incredibly frustrating for both you and him! Reassure him that it is very common for children as they move tow...
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At what age should my wife and I start to encourage our 4 and a half year old boy out of pull-ups at night. It seems when he wears a pull up at night he will wet them. When I have him in undies I get mixed results. Some night dry, some nights wet. I g
When it comes to parenting, consistency is certainly the key, whether we are talking about managing challenging behaviours or bedwetting. The good...
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Hi my son will be 14 in October and is still wetting his bed every night. He has done so since he was a toddler. He gets very embarrassed when he has friends over. We have tried bed alarms and nasal sprays but it hasn't helped. I was a bed wetter unti
Hi D.T. - there are a number of causes to bedwetting and genetics certainly has a role to play. We typically say that if one parent wet the bed as...
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I'm 15 and i've been wetting the bed for some time now, it gets frustrating at times but i've been thinking of buying DryNites to help with this problem, i've never used them before so i need to know if they are discrete and how much they absorb? Thanks f
DryNites fit like an underpant and can be worn comfortably under pyjamas or boxer shorts at night – some individuals choose to wear underpants over...
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Hi there, ive recently turned 14 and bought a pack of DryNites out of curiousty to try them on. I do still sometimes wet the bed but hardly ever. Ive found that i like to wear them all day and night and have started wetting more at night. Is this normal?
It is not unusual for teenagers to experience a return to bedwetting at times of stress or emotional upheaval. Although this may seem incredibly e...
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about i like to wear drynites
Unfortunately I do not reside in Auckland. I would recommend that you contact the New Zealand Psychological Society (http://www.psychology.org.nz)...
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im 15 and 175 lds. what is a good night time diaper for me to use. because all the other diapers for kids and teen are to small for me. should i just use adult diapers?
Hi D.S – given your age and weight you need to look into purchasing a product designed for adults – it is important that these fit properly around ...
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I start wetting the bed when i was 11i am now 15. the drynites dont fit me can you recomend a place where i can go get a product that will fit me.
If you have outgrown the largest DryNites I would recommend that you look into some of the incontinence products designed for adults – you can pu...
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My daughter has always wet the bed and has a small bladder capacity. How can we thoroughly investigate the cause, it doesn't seem that she will just grow out of it. Please help!!!!!
It is not unusual for chldren who have been diagnosed with a small bladder capacity to experience nocturnal enuresis. This form of incontinence of...
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Ask a question now...Hi my son is 3 .5 years old. My friends children are sleeping throughout the night wearing undies. I cannot imagine my son doing this. He is only just fully toilet trained with a few accidents here and there. The issue for us is that
Hi Chantell, it is perfectly normal for your son to be still wetting the bed at night so there is absolutely no cause for concern. Many children, ...
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my near 5 yr old son sees a pediatrician i have him in drynights each night and he completely wets through them when they fit comfortably.he goes to the tiolet alot and had thyrorid checked. what can cause his constant urination during the day every 20 m
Regular urination throughout the day can be a result of a number of different factors. The fact that he also wets through his DryNites at night m...
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My daughter is 11 and has wet the bed every night of her life. I have taken her to the Dr who sent her for scans but couldnt find a medical reason for the bed wetting. She showers every morning but i hate the thought of kids being able to smell urine on
Hi – there are a number of treatments available to help your daughter to become dry at night. While conditioning alarms experience the best outcom...
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My daughter is 11 years and wets the bed most nights - took her to a doctor and they told me not to worry when will she grow out of this i feel it is effecting her self esteem.
Hi Lisa, while it is certainly true that many children outgrow bedwetting on their own, this is not the case for everyone. The important thing to ...
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Ask a question now... nappies and pull-ups arn't working my son is still wetting through these.
Hi Rachael, firstly I would recommend trying DryNites rather than Pull-Ups, these are specifically designed for nighttime use and are much more abs...
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Hi My little man is 4.5 years old and i am wondering when he will be able to stop wearing a nappy at night
Hi Sarah – unfortunately unlike daytime continence the road to achieving nighttime continence is less direct, with many a speed bump! Unlike toile...
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Hi my 11 year old girl wore drynites till she was about 7 then I administered a nasal spray that solved the problem within 1 month, in that she did not need to continue to wear the drynites. Now, she wakes, gets up and wets herself on the way to the toile
Hi Natasha, parents of children who wet the bed often comment on how ‘heavy a sleeper’ their child is. Researchers have shown that while deep sleep...
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My 9 yr old boy is on Ditropan for day time enuresis. He has never been dry at night but doesn't wake up at all even when extremely wet. Our doctor says to do nothing until he is 11. Does this sound right?
Hi T.L – symptoms of Neuronal Intestinal Dysplasia (NID) can include constipation, abnormal sleeping patterns as well as incontinence of the bladde...
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hi im 26 and i wet the bed still i have been told i only have half the size of a blader for my age the doctors have trird nose spray and my mum and dad have tried waking me but i still wet the bed when something is worring me i have been with my partner n
This must very challenging for you. In a very small percentage of cases bedwetting can extend right through to our adult years. The fact that y...
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hi cathrine i am 14 and i still wet the bed are their any ways i can stop wetting the bed
Hi Nikole – it can be incredibly frustrating when you continue to wet the bed at night despite a strong motivation to stop. It is unlikely that yo...
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Hi Doctor: Our (almost) 4 year old son has started wetting his bed on most night of the week for the last few weeks. He is totally dry during the day and until this started a few weeks ago, he had only wet his bed a handful of times in the previous year
Hi David – while I’m not aware of any research directly linking testosterone with bedwetting in boys, there may be an indirect link in that increas...
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My son is 3 and a half years old, he is toilet trained during the day but he is still wetting the bed. Is there any tips you can give to help get him night trained?
The time between being daytime trained and achieving nighttime continence is quite variable. Unlike toilet training, which is conscious and delibe...
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Hi my son is 10, hes been wetting around 3 times a week for two months. Which was a real shock for me because it's never happened to him before. So i put him in drynites, But the other night he told me that he woke up just as he was wetting but couldn't h
Hi Kerry, many children prefer to wear DryNites as it gives them confidence they need in order to go to sleep at night and reduces the anxiety asso...
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Hi, I am in the process of night training my 4 yr old boy. We are going pretty well, although he is not yet waking himself up. I've come online to see if there were any tips i could use and notice some advice states not to deprive of drinks of an evening
Hi Brooke - while we no longer recommend restricting fluids completely before bedtime it is perfectly fine to reduce the amount he drinks in the ev...
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Hi, I have a 6 1/2 year old daughter who has been wearing pullups for the past year before that she was wearing nappies at night. When she was in nappies she had not had a dry night. A year ago, I started getting her up at 10pm and putting her on the toi
Hi Vicki, in order for your daughter to become dry at night she either needs to learn to wake in response to a full-bladder or her bladder needs to...
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my son is only going to be turning 3 in April, but i am concerned cause he has been in undies for about 6 months at night and i have had no problems until recently he is wetting the bed about every 2nd night, he does like to drink water before he goes to
Dear H.M., It is not unusual for children to waiver between periods of dryness and return to wetting as they move toward achieving permanent nightt...
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Hi. My son just turned 5, he stopped wearing nappies during the day when he was 3 but he has always used nappies at night until now. And the nappy would be really heavy in the morning. He's not just wetting the bed, he just basically releases everything.
Hi Charlene, the time it takes between achieving daytime control and nighttime continence is quite variable. Some children achieve this in a matte...
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Hi there, My 6 & a 1/2 yr old was dry for about 2 years and then about 8 months ago started wetting the bed every night. It was near the end of her first year of school and I thought it was just tiredness but it is still going.We have tried the alarm with
Hi Louise, given your daughter was dry for over two years it would be a good idea to first have her checked by your GP just to make sure there is n...
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Ask my 12 year old son wets the bed most nights
In must be incredibly frustrating and disheartening when you feel like you have tried it all and still your son continues to wet at night. While m...
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Hi, My son has just turned 5 and is wetting the bed. I have tried rewards etc but he is just lazy, I know that might sound harsh but its the attitude of his 5 year old mind at the moment. He doesnt seem to wet in the night, its as soon as he starts to wak
Hi Emily, in the vast majority of cases children are completely unaware that they are wetting or have wet the bed. Unfortunately there are a lot ...
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Ask my name is natasha, my daughter is 4 yrs old soon to be 5 in august, she has been daytime toilet trained shortly after 2yrs of age & seemed to be ready for no nappies. for about 18mths shes had no nite nappies but she still seems to wet the bed she c
Hi Natasha, you are not alone here with many parents experiencing similar patterns of nighttime wetting with their young children. It is quite c...
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Hi there, my daughter is 4.5 yrs old, she is toilet trained throughout the day and I have found that the 15kg nappies at night are leaking, just about every night. I'm getting some samples for Drynites, in the meantime when is a good time to start doing
Firstly, let me reassure you that it is perfectly normal for children to continue to wet the bed at night up until around age 6 years. I generally ...
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We have taken over care of a 10 yr old girl who bedwets. Unsure if it's medical or something else. Using Drynites. Should we be waiting for the hormone to kick in or see her GP now? Tricky family situation. Giving love, praise and support but unsure if th
As I am sure you are aware, bedwetting has a number of different causes, with low hormone levels being just one possible factor. Without knowing...
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My 4 year old has never once woken up dry
Hi Cathy, it is not unusual for children your daughters age to still be wetting the bed at night with around 1 in 7 children continuing to do so by...
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Hi, my son is turning 5 soon. When he was 3 - 3.5 he was dry about 60% of nights, now he is never dry. Is there a reason for this and will he return to dry nights easily? Thanks,
Hi B.H., unfortunately there are no simple answers when it comes to understanding children’s bedwetting. The most common causes of bedwetting incl...
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My son is 4 and a half, I have him in nappies at night as he wets the bed every night (and its cheaper than pull ups). I am absolutely fine with this and think he'll get it in his own time but he is putting pressure on himself. He desperately wants to be
Hi A. H., given the frequency of his wetting it is unlikely that he is ready to go to bed without the use of an absorbent pant of some other absorb...
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My son is 4 and a half years old, he has been dry all summer now with winter he wets the bed twice everynight. Firstly at 9pm then again at 11.30pm after that he is dry all night until 7am. I have made sure he is kept warm also I take him to the toilet b
It is not unusual for parents to comment on an increase in bedwetting during the winter months and then find their children stop wetting again ...
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My son has been out of pullups for 1 1/2 years he use to be fine at first and stay dry but has been a year of wetting nearly every night sometimes 2-3 times a night,i limit his intake 2 hours before bed and he'll soak it by midnight if i dont take him,he
Hi S. B. – while you are correct in saying it is perfectly normal for a child your sons age to be still wetting at night if you are at all concerne...
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Thank you very much Dr Catherine.
Dear R.M., that is wonderful to hear - thank you so much for sharing that with us! Regards, Dr Cathrine
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Ask a question now...Hello Cathrine, my son is 6 years old and earlier in the year we had a great run of weeks of dry nights with only the odd wet one. Then he developed a slight cough and we were back to wet every night.
Hi S.C. – as children move toward achieving permanent nighttime continence it is not unusual for them to waiver between periods of dryness than r...
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My son is nearly 7 and has probably only had about 10 dry nights in his life and those only with us waking him before we go to bed. He wets himself 2 or 3 times in the night. We tried the alarm about 4 months ago but after 2 weeks I was chronically sleep
Given his daytime wetting it is a very wise decision to have him checked by your GP. Your doctor will want to know things like how often he wets t...
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Ask a question now... My 11 year old son wears a nappy everynight and many times he is wet, perhaps 1 night a week the nappy is dry. He says that he does not wake up at all, we have tried the no liquids 2hrs before bed, as well as going to toilet before b
One of the most common concerns for children who wet the bed is attending social events like school-camps. Their biggest fear typically revolves ar...
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My son is 12 years old and has been wetting his bed since the age of 8 He has been using drynites 7 days a week and wets the bed 3-4 times per week. He is worried he will wet his bed into adult years. Any suggestions would be great
Hi R. P., when bedwetting continues for many years it is completely understandable that children start to believe that it will never stop! Have yo...
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My 9 year old daughter wets the bed every night. She's a very deep sleeper and just don't wake up at night. Do you have ANY suggestions?
Hi Liezle – the frustrating and challenging part of bedwetting is that we often do not know what is causing it to occur – this also presents a numb...
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My 7 year old still wets bed every night. We have tried everything including taking him to toilet every 2 hours,but its too lake, the bed it wet.
Bedwetting can be incredibly challenging to manage, particularly when it occurs on a regular basis. There are a number of reasons as to why childre...
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can i use bedwetting alarm for my daughter whose age 3yrs only?is it ok or there might be side effect?
Hi Razan – bedwetting treatments are generally not recommend for children under 6 years of age, this is largely due to the fact that it is consider...
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Hey, my daughter is almost 5 and we are in the process of toilet training her, we get her up in the night to go toilet and then in the morning she is dry. She hates getting up but if we don't get her up she wets the bed. There must be an easier way? Am I
It is not unusual for children your daughters age to still be wetting the bed at night with around 1 in 7 children continuing to do so by school-ag...
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Hi, our girl is almost 8 & still wets every night. She doesnt drink much, & wees before bed, but wets within 30 mins. She is a VERY deep sleeper.
While research certainly shows links between deep sleeping patterns and bedwetting, it is not the primary cause of why it happens in the first plac...
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Bedwetting - 6 year old daughter. 2-3 times per night.
Hi Michelle - Happy New Year to you too! It can be incredibly frustrating for parents when you feel you have done all the right things and your chi...
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my son is 5 & wets the bed 3 - 4 times a night. we restrict what he drinks before bed & he goes to the toilet before bed & still soaks the sheets 3 - 4 times a night. we try 2 get him up 3 - 4 times a night but this is very hit & miss as he doesnt wet at
Hi Aleisha – firstly, please be reassured that it is perfectly normal for a 5-year-old boy to still wet at night. If you are however concerned abo...
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My nearly 9 year old daughter is still wetting the bed
While it is true that some children are able to outgrow bedwetting on their own, others do benefit from some form of treatment. When the bedwettin...
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My son is 7yrs, wears two drynites and still wets that bed most nights.
Hi Helen, while it is true that some children are able to outgrow bedwetting on their own, others do benefit from some form of treatment. When the...
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I have a bright 5 1/2 year old who i love dearly. I am however frustrated each day at another wet bed, saturated usually. My son used to be dry during the night around 4, however it was around the same time i left my husband (his dad), he then became an o
Trying to manage our children’s bedwetting can be quite the juggling act. We try and hide our frustration and exhaustion at coping with the consta...
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Hi Dr Catherine, My daughter is nearly 9 & had stage 3 kidney reflux at 7mths. She still wet's the bed now & then. Can you please help?
Hi K. C. – your daughter has very little control over her bladder while asleep, so while rewards can be very motivating during the day, they will d...
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Hi Dr Catherine, I have a 9 year old daughter who has never been completely dry, day or night. We have been seeing a urologist and physiotherapist for 4 years now. She has been taking Ditropan twice a day for the last 3. She hasn't had a tablet for oveer
This is a very challenging situation. While you can certainly use reward systems to encourage her to drink regularly throughout the day, this is i...
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Ask a question now...my girl is seven years old, she soaks her pullups. we have never made a big deal out of it. She has had several uti's. our doctor has said don't worry she will grow out of it. my concern is that she has started early development(breas
Hi Dianne, one of the trickiest things for parents when it comes to managing our children’s bedwetting is ensuring that it does not impact advers...
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I have a 7 yr old daughter who toilet trained herself before the age of two! but sadly is still soaking a night nappy. Her Aunt wet bed until her teens. Not a big issue at all for me, but should we be trying harder? GP said go without nappy for a month!
Hi Delia, due to the underlying genetic link it is not unusual to find a number of children in the one family experiencing nighttime wetting. Whil...
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my daughter is 13 years of age and is still wetting the bed.
It can be incredibly frustrating when it seems like you’ve tried it all yet met with little success! While conditioning alarms continue to experien...
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Hi, I don't know what to try to help my daughters bed wetting?
Dealing with bedwetting can be incredibly challenging and failure to respond to treatment only adds to our stress. If you have not done so already ...
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my 6 year old daughter wets the bed every night, we have tried limiting drinks after 6 and certain foods however this has not helped. She has moved house a few times in the last 2 years however she seems to have no problems with that. She also doesnt real
Hi Fiona, the most frustrating thing about bedwetting is that there are so many potential underlying causes that it can be difficult to treat. T...
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Hi. I have 2 girls ages 12 and 9 who have both been bed wetters since birth. They are both being seen to by the bladder clinic at Westmead Childrens Hospital suites. It has been established that the 12 year old has bowel problems and was placed on movicol
Even though it is our children who wet the bed, it’s often the parents who need the most support (and often don’t receive any!). Coping with bedwe...
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do the drynights hold runny number 2 and a hevy flow of number 1
DryNites work in much the same way as a nappy, and can hold both fecal matter and urine. Parents of older children with significant developmental d...
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i have tried the alarm and mirinin nasal srpay and still wet the bed every night what do i do now
It can be very frustrating and disheartening when treatments do not result in the desired outcome! Nasal sprays are generally seen as a form of man...
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my daughter is almost 9 and still wets most nights, she is a heavy sleeper, are there natural remedies worth trying without the expense
While there is less scientific support for natural remedies, some parents and children have reported improvements in bedwetting following the use o...
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Hi.My 51/2yr old daughter still wets the bed everynight, we have had a few rare occassions where she has had a dry night, which we praise her,ring Daddy at work to tell him etc.She has water regularly during the day, some with dinner and a mouthfull after
Hi Ruth – it really sounds like you are doing all the right things. As I’m sure you are fully aware, the tricky and often frustrating thing about ...
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My 6 year old daughter has never had a dry night in her life.
Continence issues are often an indicator of stress in young children, which explains why your daughter returned to wetting during the day after you...
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My 4 yr old boy, has never been dry at night, but wants to be, I have tried dry nite nappies but they are to big for him and leak so he is still wearing nappies, he is a deep sleeper, any suggestions, thanks Miranda
Hi Miranda, It is quite common for parents of children who wet the bed to comment on how heavy a sleeper their child is. Researchers have shown tha...
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Ask a question now...my 12 year old son wets the bed every night but i cant wake him up at night because he is a very heavy sleeper and diets and bladder training isnt working either what can i do
It can be incredibly frustrating when you feel like you’ve tried it all and yet met with little success. When it comes to the more traditional m...
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i have a 6 year old daughter that wets the bed every night and it doesnt faze her 1 bit, i wake her up twice a night to go to the toilet and she still wets please help me
Hi Jenayah – while it’s great that your daughter is not upset by the fact that she wets at night, I see how frustrating this must be for you given ...
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Hi Dr, i have 3 boys my eldest is 13 and he still wets the bed and is attending boarding school so i took him to the Dr's and they prescribed him endep 25mg it seems to work but if he happens to miss just one tablet wets the bed!. My middlechild is 11 and
Hi Rachael, due to the strong genetic link it is not unusual to find a number of children in the same family experiencing bedwetting. When genet...
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Our 6 year old son has been on and off successfully training at night time for the last 6 months. The washing of pjs and mattresses is quite constant now- do we put him back in dry nights- or will this allow him to become lazy?
It really is a personal decision as to whether or not to use DryNites. Many parents (and children) choose to use DryNites to reduce the stress asso...
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my 5 year old keeps wetting the bed , we have tried to take the nappy off him but i found my self changing the sheets to many times in the middle of the night . he wakes up in the morning wet right threw , and he is so embrassed he hides his cloths and na
Hi Kelly, when bedwetting starts to impact on a child’s self-esteem then it is time to think about treatment regardless of how old they are! Fir...
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hi Catherine, our girl (fosterchild) wich is 7 has been wetting the bed from day one since we got her. she is been with us for 18 months now and first thing we did was take her off the ditropan as that is what they gave her but did not do a thing for her
Hi Jack – first let me say what a wonderful thing you are doing. I have a number of colleagues who foster children and I understand how challe...
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Hello, our daughter is 16 and wets the bed every night, sometimes twice a night. We have tried minirin and alarms but neither with success as she is a very deep sleeper, we are all at our wits end, can you offer any help?
In can be incredibly frustrating and disheartening when you feel like you have tried it all and still your child continues to wet at night. While ...
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Hello. My Son is going on 14, yet still wet's the bed. We have tried many, many thins - the smell is strong, and its his 6th matress. What can i do?
It can be incredibly frustrating when it seems like you’ve tried it all yet met with little success! The best forms of treatment are conditionin...
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my son is 11 and still wets the bed it smells bad what can i do to stop this
Bedwetting can be incredibly distressing for the whole family. If you have not done so already the first step is to make an appointment with your ...
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my son is 7 and wets the bed most nights. he wears pull ups but he wees so much he wets the bed anyway. im so worried, is it time to take him to the doctors?
It is not uncommon for children your son’s age to still be wetting the bed on a regular basis; bedwetting is far more common among boys than gi...
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Hi there, my daughter is nearly 8 years old and she has been wetting the bed from since I can remember, we have been to doctors, etc and no one has really explained or helped us with it. She doesn't just wet herself once but a few times a night, she says
Hi K.W. – the majority of children who wet the bed have nothing medically wrong with them. While doctors and researchers have been able to ident...
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My daughter is 6, 7 in Sept and we really want to get her off her Drynites - she never has a dry one during the night?
Hi Paula - Your first step is to meet with your GP just so he or she can run a few tests just to make sure your daughter’s nighttime wetting is not...
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Hi, my 9 year old girl was night time trained at 3 years of age, but since then, she's been having random bouts of wetting at night, worse when it gets colder, when she's gone to bed earlier than normal and when she's unwell. She doesn't have any stresso
It’s great that you’ve been able to identify a pattern to your daughter’s nighttime wetting. From what you have written it appears that you daught...
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my daughter is 6 wets her bed on average once a week but this week 3 days in a row. We usually take her to the toilet about 2 hours after she goes to bed but sometimes she is already wet. On the plus side, once she has wet she stays dry the rest of the ni
Once upon a time parents used to be encouraged to carry their child to the toilet during the night to help avoid a wet bed. While waking or lifting...
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..My son is turning 11 this year and really has never been out of dry nights. He has been on movicol, he has had an ultrasound on his bladder,(normal size) he's been told by doctors he is lazy and we have been told to eat healthy and do a journal and sti
Hi Vanessa (and Jye) – I am so sorry to hear that your son was made to feel responsible for his bedwetting. As I am sure you are fully aware, chil...
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Ask a question now...My Daughter is 5 and never been dry unless I get her up in the night and thats not effective either. Isthere anything ican do to help?
Hi Emily – you are spot in describing waking or lifting as being an ineffective means of managing children’s bedwetting. Children who have achi...
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My 5 and a half year old son really wants to wear "jocks" to bed, but he has only ever had 3 or so dry nights.
Hi M. B., the way parents manage children’s bedwetting can often make or break a delicate situation. It really is a personal decision as to whether...
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6 year old daughter is still wetting the bed i have tried everything
Hi Cassie, given the frequency of your daughter’s bedwetting I would certainly recommend that you make an appointment to discuss this with your GP....
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Ask a question now... Hi my son is 7yrs old and wets the bed every night. He wears pull-ups each night, and usually requires two as his urine is so strong. His pull-ups are soaked through in the morning when he wakes and he usually needs his sheets cha
Hi Gina – firstly in the short-term I would recommend trying DryNites rather than Pull-Ups, these are specifically designed for nighttime use and a...
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We really gave the alarm a good, long try but it didn't work for us and we're over it. What next?
Hi H. C. – it can be incredibly frustrating when you feel you have given your all to a treatment and it still doesn’t result in a positive outcome....
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what exactly needs to be done to help bedwetters except using doctors medication
Hi Antoinette, firstly, my apologies for the delay in responding … The most successful form of bedwetting treatment is the conditioning or bedwet...
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hi my daughter still wets the bed at the age of 10 and we have tried every medication She finds it extreamly frustraing that she constantly has to say no to sleepovers.is it normal for a ten year old girl to still wet the bed?
Unfortunately while medications are helpful in the short-term they generally do not help children to achieve permanent nighttime continence. Abou...
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1. Can I get my daughter tested to see if she has excess hormone? 2. If she doesnt have excess hormone, will it help to let her have a wet bed, ie no nappy to stimulate the brain / bladder communication? it seems waking her doesnt achieve anything from th
Hi Claudia – given your concerns I would certainly recommend that you speak with your GP and organise a full physical examination which may inclu...
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Hi, my son is eight years old, he's a chronic bed wetter, and he is about to go on his first camp. We are both worried about that he might have an accident while going to camp, on the bus, as it is a six hour journey. This would cause him great embarrass
Hi Jane, Sleepovers, slumber parties and school camps are common sources of stress for children who wet the bed. It is important that your son is...
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I have been told that if i continue to put a nappy on my son (nearly 8 years old) he will continue to wet it?? I have been waiting for more of a consistent pattern before i stop. At the moment its just one dry nappy every now and again? Thank you, Lisa-An
Hi Lisa, while there has certainly been some debate about the use of absorbent pants in the management of children’s bedwetting there is no resea...
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Hi Catherine Why the frequency of wetting throughout the night?
Hi Michelle, it’s lovely to hear from you. Bedwetting has a number of underlying causes. The most common cause of bedwetting is a neurological-de...
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My 26 mth old son fills his nappy & maternity pad inside nappy full to the brim. It is like a brick in the morning. Is this normal?
Hi P.C, it is perfectly normal for your son to be still using nappies throughout the day. The average age for boys to achieve daytime continence i...
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Hi Dr. Cathrine, my son is 6yrs old and has Asperger's Syndrome, he is still wetting the bed at night and is the middle child of three boys, they were both night trained by 3yrs. I'm wondering what the expectancy is for a child with a developmental delay
Hi Melissa, the age at which children achieve nighttime continence is quite variable with many boys not becoming dry at night until 8 years of age....
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My son is 3.5yrs old and wants to wear undies to bed at night, we have tried a couple of times but he just wets the bed and does not wake up when he does, i don't understand why ??
Hi Rebecca, it is perfectly normal for your son to still be wetting the bed at night. The time between achieving daytime continence and nighttime ...
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My son has just turned 8yrs, he wants to stop wetting the bed but still wets it if he doesnt wear a dry night should i seek medical help?
Hi L.T. - Not surprisingly, bedwetting becomes more of an issue as children get older and want to start attending sleepovers or school camps. Give...
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hi Doc C, both myself and my son are at wits end.. he is 14.5 yrs old and still wets the bed most nights, he does not know if he has until he wakes in the morn. we have done the measure drinks, the reward, the no drinks after 6pm, the alarm sheet. eveythi
Dear Karen and Ben, it must be incredibly frustrating and disheartening when you feel like you’ve tried it all and still no success. There are a f...
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4 and a half year old son is still in a nappy @ nite and seems no where near ready to go without one, he just doesnt wake.
Hi K.J., this is perfectly normal behaviour, in fact some medical professionals argue that bedwetting, particularly among boys, is developmentally ...
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My son is 4.5 and wets the bed every night. To avoid having to wash sheets every day, I've asked him to wear 'night undies' (pull ups) which he is happy to do. The problem we have is instead of getting up to go to the toilet in the morning, he thinks it's
Hi Kristy, while reward systems are generally discouraged in the management of children’s bedwetting you could certainly adopt this approach to try...
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Hi my son is nearlly 6 years old and he still wets the bed. I have tried a few times putting him to bed without a pull up. but he will sleep all night in a wet bed and he will not wake up.
Hi Tiffany, while bedwetting can be incredibly distressing for parents please be reassured that it is perfectly normal for your son to still wet th...
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My son just turned two on the 24th Feb. He constantly wakes 2-3 times at night and has really started to escalate in his screams for me to entre his room. Finally last night he said wee's, I took him to the toilet but it was too late. Could he be waking t
Hi D. B., It sounds like your son is experiencing night tremors, a common occurrence among toddlers and preschoolers. Night tremors differ from nig...
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my nearly 10 year old boy still wets has never really been dry and we have tried alarms and nasal sprays neither worked what can i do Rochelle
Hi Rochelle - Unfortunately when it comes to treating children’s bedwetting, what works for one does not necessarily work for others. How old was ...
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I am a mother of two who is at wits end, my 7 yr old son has bowel problems and is having trouble toileting through the night and during the day help! also my 5 yr old daughter has become lazy due to her brothers problems and wakes with her pullup complet
Hi Leisa, the first thing you need to do is seek medical advice – any form of daytime incontinence after the age of 5 years needs to be investiga...
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We are trying to get our 3.5year old son dry every night of the week. He has few dry nights and a few wet nights during the week so we would just like some ways to help our son out as he feels really bad in the mornning if he does wet himsels. Any advice?
Hi Velika, the time it takes between achieving daytime control and nighttime continence is quite variable. Some children achieve this in a matter ...
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HI, My son is 14.5 and is wetting the bed with the dry nites on. He is upset by this as now we have to get him into adult pants and this is extremly upsetting for him. We have tried the bladder control, alarm, drinking lots of water during the day, medica
Hi Karolyn, this must be incredibly distressing for you all. Certainly when it comes to the more traditional measures, conditioning alarms continue...
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Hi, I wet my pants alot and my GP said that I would have to be put back into nappies with powder to prevent nappy rash on a 24/hr a day basis. I am quite embarrased about this and I wasa wondering if you could give me some advice..... Can I wear these nap
Thank you for submitting your question to Dr Cathrine. It has come to our attention that you have submitted 18 questions to Dr Cathrine. We und...
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My son is 4.5 - he is completely toilet trained during the day but is nowhere near dry at night. While I am not overly concerned about this fact, knowing that a lot of children are not dry at night at this age, what is frustrating me is that although he
Children’s overnight urine output can be quite variable – parents of children who seem to pass a lot of urine overnight sometimes find it easier to...
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do you think it is better for my 4and a half year old boys self esteme to wear drynights or to allow him to wet the bed. Is there any difference to how long it will take to become dry at night?
There is little evidence to suggest that wearing absorbent pants either extends or shortens the bedwetting process. The main purpose of DryNites i...
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i have a 3 year old son and he wears pull ups to bed and he is wet sometime dueing the day and he is allmost toilet training now
Hi M. A. – It is quite common for 3-year-old children to be wetting the bed at night. While some children become dry at night a few weeks or month...
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what age do boys stop wetting bed..
Hi Kim - the age at which children stop wetting the bed is quite variable. Given the strong genetic link it is not unusual for a number of children...
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No matter what I do my five year old son stills wets through his pull up, pjs and sheets. What else can I try?
Hi Pauline, given the strong genetic link it is not unusual to find a number of children in the one family who wet the bed – however, if neither yo...
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Can you help with a 7yr. old boy who poo's in his pants rather than use the toilet?
Children with special needs often take longer to attain bladder and bowel control, with many parents sighting toileting issues as one of the bigges...
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My son 4 next mouth has just started wetting in his DryNights again, what can I do? should I look at a star chart or something to help him become dry again?
Hi Michelle, you do not mention in your question how long your son had been dry at night for. If it has been for a period of 6 months or more then...
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Ask a question now...Hi Dr Cathrine,my son just turned 5 and he wets his bad once a fortnight, but thats if i don't give him anything to drink 1 hour before bed and take him him to toilet a few times just before he goes to bed. As soon as he has a drink b
Hi Angela, you seem to be completely on top of the situation. While we no longer recommend restricting fluids completely before bedtime it is a go...
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My 4.5 yo son has been day trained for 2 years but no-where near night trained. Recently he has started wetting during his day sleeps to. Not everyday but at least once a week. Any suggestions on how to get back on track?
Hi Sharyn, the first thing you need to do is rule out any underlying medical cause. Sometimes a return to daytime wetting may be a sign of a urina...
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My almost 5yrs old son told me 2 weeks ago that he didn't want to wear drynites. Thinking he was ready I haven't used them but he has wet the bed every night.
Hi Maria - It is not uncommon for parents of children who wet the bed to comment on how heavy a sleeper their child is. Children who are particular...
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My son started wetting his bed around 3 1/2 occasionally. Then around 4 it increased to 4 times a week. Now at 5 1/2 it is about once a week but he might go for 3 weeks dry then wet 3 nights in a row. What can I do to help him stop?
Hi A.K. - The tricky (and frustrating!) thing about bedwetting is that we do not always know why it happens – which means that it is not simple and...
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My 4 year old son has been toilet trained and out of nappies at night for well over a year but recently has started wetting the bed about once a week. Is this part of his physical development or should I be concerned?
Hi Dianne - Secondary Nocturnal Enuresis (SNE) is the term used to describe a situation where children have been previously dry for six or more mon...
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My son is 7 1/2 he only has one kidney. He wets the bed every night. We have tried many things. Is his single kidney to blame?
Hi Carmen - if your son’s kidney is healthy and completely normal it may not be the cause of his bedwetting. Bedwetting can be the result of a num...
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Hi. My 5 1/2 year old is still in Dry Nites and is nowhere near dry at night - the nappy is still full every morning. I am not particularly concerned about this - he is the youngest of 3 and I realise it just takes some kids longer than others to become
Hi K.T. – firstly, let me congratulate you on making the distinction between accidental and deliberate wetting, this is not always easily done espe...
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My 5 (nearly 6) year old son wets the bed every night. He doesn't wake up and seems to see nothing wrong with lying in bed wet.
Hi Kathleen - It is quite common for parents of children who wet the bed to comment on how heavy a sleeper their child is. Children who are particu...
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Hi, my 6 yr old son has never been dry at night; we use DryNites and he's started to ask when he won't need them any more.
Hi S.C. – bedwetting tends to become more of an issue as children get older and want to start attending sleepovers. One way you could reduce his an...
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Ask a question now...my 8 yr old son wets every night.he wets through his dry nights pants and saturates all the linen as well. He has tried bladder training and can hold 350ml. he has tried chiropractic care, and an alarm system which sounded like a smok
This is certainly a challenging situation. Alarms are generally the most effective means of treating bedwetting, although it is true that they do ...
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My son was staying dry at night with the odd accident here or there up to 4 weeks ago. We then came home from a holiday and he has started wetting the bed almost every night? i make sure he goes to the toliet before bed as usual so what could the proble
Sometimes a change in environment can contribute to children’s bedwetting. It is also quite common for children to experience an increase in bedwe...
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My four year old boy still wets his bed at night. We use dri-nites and change them in the middle of the night but they are not absorbent enough and still overflow. Can I try the larger 8kg+ drinites or will they be too big?
Absorbency levels are the same for both sizes so the only reason to change would be if the small size were too small. It is important that the DryN...
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Hi. I have a 7 yr old boy who has worn dri nites to bed since he got out of nappies and usually wets through those. I have tried everything I have been advised to do. He has been on Minirin Melt Wafers for 3 1/2 months with little to no change. The most i
Hi Jodie – one of the most frustrating things for parents of children who wet the bed is that we don’t always understand why it is happening. W...
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Hi, my son is nearly 4 years of age and wets the bed every night , when we have spoken to him about it, he says that being wet in bed doesn't bother him, he will sleep with wet pants, how can I get him to over come him to wake up to go to the toilet at ni
Firstly, let me reassure you that what your son is experiencing is perfectly normal for someone his age. There are a number of possible reasons why...
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Hi, i've been dry for several years now yet i still wear drynites almost every night.
Given you are not aware that you are wetting at night, I would not necessarily describe this behaviour as deliberate. If your wetting were uncontr...
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my son is eight years old . he still wets the bed. i had a troubled marriage and now i am separated from my husband. i loose my temper very often and shout at my son for the slighest thing though i love him so much from the time he is 2 years old.please t
Hi D. K. – parenting can be both incredibly challenging and equally rewarding. As parents, we can become frustrated or angry with our children esp...
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I have recently had a baby (8weeks ago) and my 4 year old son has just started wetting the bed again after a year of being dry. How can I help him to be dry again?
Hi Anna, your son is experiencing what is commonly referred to as secondary nocturnal enuresis – a term which is used to describe the condition w...
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Ask a question now...
Hi Sue – Parents of children who wet the bed often comment on the fact that their child sleeps through unaware of the fact that they have wet. Thi...
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hi, my son his 4 years old and his been trained during the day since he was 2 but nothing seems to work at nights. we tried training him for 2 weeks during the night and that was waking him up at 11pm and the 5:30 am and still he would manage to wet the b
Hi Christine, as frustrating as this behaviour may be please be reassured that it is perfectly normal and has very little to do with anything you o...
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Ask a question now...transition from nappy at bedtime to no nappy at all??
Hi Hilary, the time between achieving daytime continence and nighttime control is different for every child. While some achieve this in a matter o...
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Ask a question now...My son is nearly 9 and still wets the bed ,my daughter also was late to be trained at night.He does,nt seem to want to go to the toliet at night.My son has has ADHD and autism. What can I do to encourage him to go and stop him wetting
There are a number of possible contributing factors at play here. Firstly, there is a much higher incidence of bedwetting among children with autis...
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Hi Cathrine, I'm sure you're sick of the same questions, but I would love to hear your opinion even if it's just for reassurance. My 4 year old son wets his nappy most nights, and probably half the time during day sleeps (he naps up to 3 hours). He also
It’s always lovely to hear from another parent! It is certainly true that many a daytime accident occurs as a result of children holding on for to...
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Hi Dr Catherine, I have a six year old son who wets the bed and has worn night nappies continuously. He used to have great control during the day but that changed when he went to school. Since starting last year he now wets during the day. My husband
Starting school can be an incredibly stressful time for young children; there are new routines that they need to become familiar with, new rules, n...
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My son is now 8 year old. He was born with grade 3-4 kidney reflux but has never had issues with bladder infections. However since he was 3 has been having issues with excessive urination during the day and remains a bed wetter (we use Dry Nites). Doct
Hi Lyndamarie, this is certainly a challenging and complex situation. In these situations I generally recommend that you adhere to your doctors su...
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Ask a question now... My 12 y/o has daytime "accidents"
Hi John, there are a number of possible explanations for why your son continues to wet himself throughout the day. Given his age and the frequency...
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Hi, When do I know if it is the right time for us to try to get my son (4yrs) to stop wearing a nappy to bed (at night only - no issues during the day). He is a heavy sleeper and can't get up, however doesn't want to wear a nappy or pull up. Thanks Diana
Hi Diana, the best indicator that your son is moving toward achieving nighttime continence is an increase in the number of mornings he wakes-up dry...
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My Son Is 10 Years old. And he is still wetting the bed. What should i do ?
If you have not done so already the first thing you need to do is schedule an appointment with your GP for a full medical assessment. Bedwetting m...
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My son is 6 yrs old he is being wearing dry nights and most of the time he is dry I just recently took of the Dry nigths and let him sleepy in his pjs and he is weting the bad every night what sholud I do?
It is very common for children as they move toward achieving permanent nighttime continence to oscillate between periods of dryness and times when ...
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I have a 7yr old boy. He wears drynights and often overflows. For now he would prefer not to take any action, just see if he grows out of it. Fine with me but I was told we should seek help once he reached 7 is it ok if we don't seek help?
In order for your son to become dry at night he either needs to learn to wake in response to a full-bladder or his bladder needs to develop to a po...
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m y son is nearly 16 he has always wet the bed and still does he had in the past slowed down but lately has wet the bed six nights in a row i worry grately for this as the smell is strong where it hard to coverup from visiting family members and others h
Bedwetting among teenagers can really impact on their self-esteem and can lead to isolation and alienation. Having a teenager who wets the bed can ...
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Hi. My son is 4 years old. He has been day trained for just over a year. It was a long process as he doesn't seem to care if he is wet or not. He still has accidents some days and always blames being to busy to remember, though he has only once had an
Hi Cherie, firstly, let me reassure you that your son’s behaviour is perfectly normal. It is quite common for children to experience daytime acc...
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hello, i have 2 sons, 9 and 8 years old. both of them wear dry nites as they wet every night. what can i do or should i be worried? thankyou
Bedwetting can be incredibly worrying especially when children continue to wet at night beyond the age most people think it should stop. The reass...
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My 4 year old is wearing drynights but it leaks most nights. We stopped giving him too much to drink after 5pm (his bedtime is 7pm) and we get him to go to the toilet just before bedtime. Should we move to a bigger Drynights to stop the leaking?
Hi Sarah, in terms of management it sounds like you are doing everything right! The amount of urine children produce overnight is quite variable. ...
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My son is 14 yrs and his bed wetting stops and starts. he can be dry for a few weeks, or even a month and then relapse back. He is a healthy active teenager. We have tried many methods over the years: alarms, chiro, diet etc but we cant seem to find a pat
Hi V.S. – It is not unusual for children to waiver between periods of dryness and wetting as they move toward achieving permanent nighttime conti...
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My son is 7 1/2. We stoppped using nappies 5 months ago even though his nappies were still very wet and have used the brolly sheets since then. We also get him up at 11pm eery night to go to the toilet. However, he still wets the bed significantly, 3-5 ti
Hi M.L – there are a number of possible reasons why children wet the bed. Some do so because their nervous system is slow to process the feeling...
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My 4yr old son, was difficult to toilet train. He has been fine through the day for over a yr now but nights are another story, I think he is just a really heavy sleeper and doesnt wake to pee. He is too big for nappies (and doesnt want them) so we tried
Hi Nelly, nappy rash typically results from skin contact with a wet or dirty nappy. Mositure plus friction resulting from his DryNites moving again...
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Ask a question now... I have son 5yrs 7 months...i took his nappy nearly 2 months and since then he wet the bed 2 times. At night, i wake him to wee when i was awake to toilet
Waking or lifting children to the toilet during the night is typically seen as a practical approach to managing children’s bedwetting in the short-...
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How do you know when to stop the night time pyjama pants? My son is 4 and has a full nappy most days!!
One of the best indicators that your son is moving toward achieving nighttime continence is an increase in the number of mornings he wakes up dry. ...
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Hi there, my 7 year old son wets the bed twice a night, we did see hes doctor about it and see gave him nasel spray, which worked for a while but has stopped working for him and the other thing is he is a deep sleeper too.. Thanks Danielle
Hi Danielle, it can be very frustrating when treatments do not result in the desired outcome! Nasal sprays are generally seen as a form of manageme...
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my son is 5 since he got out of nappies at the age of 2 he was dry for the hole year till he was about 3 then every since then he has been wetting the bed every night i have made him stop drinking at least 2 hours before he goes to bed and have been wakin
Hi Jacqueline, it is not particularly unusual for boys your son’s age to be still wetting the bed at night on a regular basis. However, given th...
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my 4 year old son is toilet trained during the day but at night wears a drynite but still the bed is wet most mornings he drinks a moderate amount during the day why is he still this wet?
Hi Alice, it is perfectly normal for your 4-year-old son to still be wetting the bed at night with many children continuing to do so right up to sc...
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Ask a question now...Hi my son is 7 years old and wets the bed often. We have not gone down the GP path yet but I will after reading your advise, my question is do you believe that holding on is a problem, my son holds on regularly and I am not sure if h
Hi Rebecca – it was once common practice to encourage children who wet the bed at night to try and hold on to their ‘wees’ during the day, as thi...
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Bed wetting for 7 year old boy with Asperger's and ADHD medicated during the day and on melatonin at night.
Regardless of what other issues you have to deal with, coping with bedwetting can be incredibly testing and if not managed effectively can exacerba...
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Advice for 9 year old boy who wets the bed around 4 times a week.
Hi Christine – managing children’s bedwetting can be incredibly challenging and this is partly due to the fact that we do not always know what is c...
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My son is 4 years old. He has been toilet trained for about a year and a half, however at night he still wears DryNites and does not wake up to go to the toilet. Is there anything that you recommend me to do?
Hi N. C. as challenging as this may be please be reassured this is perfectly normal behaviour for a 4-year-old boy. If you are at all concerned abo...
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my son has just recently had a couple of accidents. he is four and never wet the bed before even when toilet training but my partner has just started a new job with early morning starts
Hi Rebecca - While stress can certainly be a contributing factor in secondary bedwetting it would be worthwhile having your son checked by his GP j...
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Hi, my name is james, i'm 15. I sometimes wet at night but my parents don't know about it, but the boys drynite leaks sometimes, and i'm worried my parents will find wet spots on my sheets. Should i try the girls drynite?
Hi James - it is preferrable that you use the DryNites designed for boys as the aborbancy patterns differ and a change to girls DryNites may in fac...
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My son is 3 and a half he still wears nappies to bed as he wet 3 times in one nite when he wore undies and never woke up. He has also only just stopped wetting at his afternoon sleep. Is it to early to think there is a problem.
Hi R. M., please be reassured it is perfectly normal for your son to still be wetting the bed at night with many children (especially boys) conti...
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My son is nearly 6 and still wears a nappy to bed. He actually wets so much that he regularly wets right through his nappy and wets the bed. He has a drink with his tea, and nothing after that. He also goes to the toilet before going to bed. We have
Hi A.R., firstly, let me reassure you that it is not uncommon for 6-year-old boys to be still wetting at night, with some doctors suggesting it i...
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Hi, my 6 year old son wears 2 pull ups to bed every night and sometimes still wets the bed as it soaks right through. He sometimes has small leaks during the day from "holding on" to long. What can you suggest we do to get keep him dry through out the n
It is not uncommon for children your son’s age to still be wetting the bed on a regular basis; bedwetting is far more common among boys than girls,...
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My son is turning 6 in December and wets the bed everynight. He wears a pullup/night nappy but he wets so much it leaks through. What should I be doing to get him to have a dry night?
Hi Helen – children generally become dry at night when their body has matured to the point where it can store the amount of urine their kidneys p...
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Hi There, My son who is 7 yrs old next month has wet dry nite pull ups 7 days a week only at night. He is asking me 'mum why dod I wet the bed? how come I dont have a dry bed? then he says 'im learning' but when mum? I feels embrassed and hides his pull-u
Hi Y. J., bedwetting can be incredibly frustrating especially when there seems to be no obvious cause. As a parent, the most important thing is to...
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Our 4 year old son is toilet trained totally during the day and I really want to get him out of nappies at night. Everytime I mention to him about not wearing a nappy to bed he gets very upset. I have reasured him that if he wets the bed that its no big d
Hi Alison – the way parents manage children’s bedwetting can often make or break a delicate situation. The first thing you need to do is reassure ...
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My son is 5 1/2 and usually has a dry nappy most of the night then just before he wakes up/gets out of bed he does a wee.
Hi Jacquelene, it is very unusual (but not unheard of) for children to wet the bed out of laziness. Developing nighttime continence is not dissimil...
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My 5year old son was dry at night up till Jan this year (after having a 3 week holiday with his father) has been now wetting the bed all most every night since he got back, I have found that it is because he is to lazy to get out of bed and go to the loo
Hi Michelle, your son’s wetting would be considered secondary nocturnal enuresis, which describes the condition where a child returns to nightt...
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5 year old boy wetting bed even with dry nites
Dear Brooke, while it is not unusual for 5-year-olds to experience the occasional daytime accident it is probably worth having your son asses...
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Hi there, our son is 4 (nearly 5), and stays dry overnight when he wears DryNights, but as soon as we take them off, he wets the bed.
Hi Jane – as frustrating as this is, it really is a very encouraging sign that your son is moving toward achieving nighttime continence. While som...
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My 4 year old wets through his Drynites twice a night? We change him, he goes to the toliet and by the morning he is soaked again?
Hi Carina, this must be incredibly frustrating. Children’s nighttime urine output is quite variable. A small number of children who wet the bed do...
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Hi Dr Catherine, I am having trouble getting my son to use the toilet. He is 3 and he was diagnosed with Autism last year. He is fine with wearing undies but he has not learnt to read the signals for needed to go to the toilet. I try to get time to sit on
Hi Dianna, it is not unusual for children with additional support needs to take a little longer to attain both daytime and nighttime continence. A...
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Help, five year old likes to wet his bed because its warm!
It is completely normal for parents to feel tense or frustrated and at a loss when it comes to dealing with bedwetting – you are not alone! It help...
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Both my children are bedwetters. Is it because my life is based around sports and late night trainings and my kids are with me at all times. Could that be the problem.?
It is not unusual for bedwetting to run in families with studies showing an underlying genetic link. There is still a great deal of debate surround...
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7yr old son wets at night and getting worse
bedwetting can be a source of great embarrassment and if allowed to can significantly interfere with your son’s social life. It is not unusual for ...
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I have a 7yo daughter who still wets her bed. Do you have any suggestions?
it is not unusual for your daughter to be wetting the bed at night – with about 10% of 7-year-old children continuing to do so. Most children her a...
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5yo who stays dry only when we wake him to pee - does this mean he is not ready for toilet training?
it’s not unusual for 5-year-old children to still be wetting the bed at night with approximately 1 in 5 children continuing to do so and the majori...
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What age should a child be out of diapers and in under pants?
There is no magic age to toilet train your child. While some children may show signs of readiness as young as 18 months others will not be ready to...
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My 4 year old son doesn't wet when wearing DryNites, only when wearing undies. How do I train him?
The reduction in the number of times children wet the bed is a very good indication that they are well on their way to achieving nighttime continen...
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Family history of wetting the bed, so should I try and do something with our four year old son or not?
the decision of whether or not to seek professional help is really up to you, your husband and your son – keeping in mind that your son’s bedwettin...
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My five year old and I are being pressured by the grandmothers. Help!
Unfortunately there is a lot of misinformation and ignorance about bedwetting and although as well meaning as it may be much of the advice given to...
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My uncle still wets the bed and hes 61. Im scared this will happen with my 12 year old son.
many parents feel overwhelmed and helpless when dealing with their child’s bedwetting and in your case this is only exacerbated by the fact that yo...
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what sort of foods and drinks should you avoid to help stop bedwetting
Hi Jacinta – it is true that some children who wet the bed benefit from restricting certain foods from their diet. It is important to keep in mind...
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I have a 7 nearly 8 year boy who wets the bed every night. We have tried tablets. Do you think it is worth trying an alarm, as this worked for me when I was younger
Hi – my apologies for the delay in responding to you. Conditioning alarms are certainly the preferred approach to treating children’s bedwetting, ...
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7 year old boy wets the bed every night
Children wet the bed for a number of reasons, some do so because they produce double the amount of urine overnight, others do so as they are unable...
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5 year old still wets bed, even having peed before bed
there are lots of other mothers out there asking the very same question. Many of us feel that once our child has achieved daytime control nighttime...
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5 year old daughter is on and off with wet and dry nights
It is not unusual for your daughter to be wetting the bed at age 5 with about 15% of children still doing so by the time they start school. Typical...
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5 year old son is such a deep sleeper, he doesn't wake up
The first thing to keep in mind is that bedwetting is quite common among 5-year-old children with about 10-15% waking up wet at least once a week o...
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Are we creating bad habits with our 5 year old boy?
waking your son at night to take them to the toilet may help in reducing the number of wet beds, however this should only be done if it does not re...
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Will my 6 year old ever stop wetting his pants at night?
bedwetting is much more common than you think. About 10% of children wet the bed at age 6 and most of these are boys. As with many other areas of d...
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Should my son learn the hard way about wetting the bed and not wearing his drynites?
there is some debate surrounding the use of rewards for achieving nighttime dryness. One of the main reasons a reward system doesn't work is that t...
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Should I wake my son to go to the toilet at night?
Lifting or waking children is generally not recommended as it results in broken sleep and while it may lead to a dry bed in the morning it will not...
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Should my son learn the hard way about wetting the bed and not wearing his drynites?
there is some debate surrounding the use of rewards for achieving nighttime dryness. One of the main reasons a reward system doesn’t work is that t...
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4 1/2 yo girl still wets bed - can you suggest any strategies?
firstly let me reassure you that this is perfectly normal behaviour, with at least 1 in 5 children age between 4 and 5 still wetting the bed on a r...
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My daughter is nearly 6yo. How do we increase bladder function so it triggers the brain? Do you have any other ideas?
Conditioning alarms seem to be the best option in treating bedwetting in children with about 75% experiencing permanent dryness after their use. Th...
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my daughter is 7 and still wets the bed. I have tried stopping drinks before bed- what else can I do?
firstly, let me apologise for the delay in getting back to you I have had an overwhelming number of questions to answer over the past two weeks. Ch...
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3 year old goes to the toilet before bed, but still wets the bed
It is perfectly normal for your 3-year-old daughter to be wetting at night. In fact many professionals do not even consider bedwetting to be an iss...
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3 year old was waking up to go to toilet, but for two months has now wet the bed
It is perfectly normal for a 3-year-old to be still wetting the bed at night – as children move toward achieving nighttime continence they often ex...
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my daughter is 7 and still wets the bed. I have tried stopping drinks before bed- what else can I do?
Feelings of helplessness and frustration are common among parents with children who wet the bed – you are not alone! Given her age I would recommen...
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How do you teach your child to hold it until they wake up?
Unfortunately – unlike toilet training, nighttime continence is not something that can be taught. While you may be able to reduce the number of wet...
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After being toilet trained, my four year old has been wetting the bed for a year
It is perfectly normal for your daughter to be wetting the bed at age 4. While it is true that some children do achieve nighttime dryness within a ...
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Are DryNites more absorbent than regular nappies?
DryNites and Huggies nappies have not been compared on levels of absorbency as they are designed for and marketed to different age groups. Huggies ...
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My son is 5 years old and still wets the bed.
Hi Aly – nighttime wetting is considered to be completely normal until the age of 7 years – particularly when it comes to boys. Most parents and c...
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My son is 16mths he is 16 kgs and tall,we use Huggies at night but he continues to wet through?What else could we use?
Hi Sonya – the first thing to check is that they are fitting correctly as improper fit can contribute to leakage. From personal experience I found...
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every time my son goes to put on a drynite he gets an erection, how can he stop this ??
Dear Parent, Unfortunately this is really beyond my area of expertise. If this behaviour continues, I would strongly recommend that you speak with...
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how can i stop my three year old from wetting the bed
Hi Naomi, nappies with tabs can certainly be more easily removed by children than absorbent pants. You could try him in DryNItes at night. If you...
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Hi my son is only 2 and sleeps from 7pm to 6 am and overfills his nappy every night. he hates being woken up to be changed, but cries when his sheets get wet. we dont like to limit his fluid intake as we live in the tropics, and his last drink is at 6pm.
Hi Kate, firstly, my apologies for the delay in responding to your question. The first thing to check is that his nappy is fitting correctly as imp...
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my toddler soaks through the nappy at night onto his clothes
Hi Melanie, firstly, my apologies for the delay in responding to your question. The first thing to check is that his nappy is fitting correctly as ...
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Hi there, help! are daughter (21mths)has just started probably three weeks ago to wet the bed everynight through her nappies and it is even at the stage now when we go out she is going through her nappy too! last night out at dinner we went through three
Hi C.M. - The first thing you need to do is check that her nappy is fitting correctly as improper fit can contribute to leakage. From personal ex...
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I am just wondering if waking children up to go to the toilet because they dont want to wear anything is damaging to them since at their mums they have to wear them?
Supporting children through the bedwetting process can be very challenging, especially when you are trying to negotiate two sets of rules. While n...
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Ask a question now... Hi I have a four year old Daughter who will be five in a few days. But I do not know what to do? Is it because she has a baby who wears nappys?
It is perfectly normal for your daughter to still be wetting the bed at night with almost 1 in 10 4-year-olds continuing to wet the bed on a regula...