While children have conscious control over their bladder during the day this is not necessarily the case at nighttime which is why many children continue to wet at night even after they have been toilet trained. The time between achieving daytime continence and nighttime continence is quite variable. For some children this may be a matter of weeks for others it may take months or occasionally years. The reassuring news is that most children do become dry at night by the time they reach 6 years of age. Generally children who wet the bed do so as they are unable to wake in response to the signals sent from the bladder to the brain telling it to wake-up and and prepare for emptying – so while a night light will certainly make it easier for your children to make their way to the toilet once awake, it is unlikely to be of any use until they are able to wake on their own. At this young age patience is the key. Reassure your sons that you understand that this is not their fault and with time their bodies will become much better at either storing their wee overnight or learning to wake in response to a full-bladder. Until then I would recommend keeping them in absorbent pants as these will help reduce any stress involved in dealing with constant wet sheets and changing of beds.

Regards,
Dr Cathrine

Ask Dr Cathrine a question