the most important thing to understand is that this is rarely a medical or psychological problem – many children continue to wet the bed at night for years after they have been day trained and the majority of these are boys. In fact, some experts have argued that bedwetting among boys should not be considered an issue until at least the age of 8! Many children who wet the bed do so because they are slower to develop physically; their kidneys produce more urine than their bladder can handle or they are unable to recognize signs that their bladder is full and needs to be emptied. Most of these children will eventually gain nighttime control as their body matures and they become better able to wake-up in response to a full bladder. We typically recommend that parents hold off on treatment until your child turns 6 years of age due to the high spontaneous cure rate up till then. In the meantime you can reduce your frustration and increase sleep by using DryNites at night. These are preferable to nappies as they are highly absorbent, reducing the chances of leakage, and encourage independence as children are able to put them on by themselves. You can help develop healthy bladder habits by encouraging your son to drink plenty of water throughout the day as well as making sure he fully empties his bladder each time he goes to the toilet, avoid those “just in case” visits as this can condition the bladder into needing to empty more frequently. If you are concerned about his bedwetting going on too long then you should consult with a doctor just to make sure there is nothing medically wrong.

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