Six Signs Your Child Needs Help with Bedwetting

Bedwetting often occurs at night with children who can usually control their bladder in the daytime. There is nothing rare about it, and it can be because of many things. The older your children get, the less likely they’ll be to wet the bed, especially when handled properly. Read on to understand the six signs your child needs help with bedwetting.

Sometimes, however, bedwetting poses a serious problem. It could be because of an undiagnosed medical condition, or it may even be because of psychological effects. That’s why we felt we should introduce these set of posts to help parents of kids who are bedwetting. It tackles the various parts of bedwetting and their solutions in a six-part series of post. Whichever it is, your job as a parent is to find out what is the cause and stop it.

Child sleeping after solving bedwetting problem

Bedwetting stresses out the entire family and could cause tensions. Having to do the extra laundry, drying off the mattress and the reassurances that are required after it happens could tire you as a parent. Your child could also suffer from fear, low self-esteem, and other problems. So, when it gets to this stage, it becomes imperative that a solution be found.

Medically, bedwetting is known as Enuresis. Many medical conditions including, urinary tract infections, allergies, diabetes, cell anemia, and sleep disorders could cause it. Bedwetting is usually one of the first symptoms of these problems, so it’s usually best to rule them out before you get started.

The problem then lies in knowing when it’s time to be worried about bedwetting seriously. Most times, it’s a phase that passes without upsetting things too much. At other times, take actions to help solve the underlying problem or give your child succor while it passes. So how do you know which to do? Here are six signs that your child needs help with their bedwetting and that you should seek help.

Six Signs That Your Child Needs Help with Bedwetting

Your child asks you for help. If your child thinks their bedwetting is serious enough to ask for your help, then it’s time to find a solution.
Your child suddenly has a consistent case of bedwetting when they didn’t use to before.
Your child is being affected psychologically, and it’s causing them to act out. It could be because their other siblings are teasing them for the bedwetting.
Your child stops wanting to go out or go camping and actively avoids them.
Your child is older than eight and is distressed because they keep wetting the bed.
The entire family is under strain because of the bedwetting.
If your family and your child fall into any of the above six categories, it’s time to do something and to do it fast. Here are 14 steps you can take to make things better.

14 Steps Immediate Things to Do About Bedwetting

Be sensitive to what your child is going through. This is the first step in the right direction. Make sure everyone in your family is sensitive too and avoids teasing your child or making them feel terrible. The more your child is teased about bedwetting, the harder it will be for them to overcome it.
Check yourself especially. It’s not just about making sure others treat your child right, you could do the same by mistake. It’s possible to react because of the stress of having to do extra laundry because of your child’s bedwetting. But losing your temper and having an outburst will cause your child trauma, which will only worsen the problem. So find ways to not let yourself be stressed by the situation. If doing the laundry of a child who has wet the bed during the early morning rush will get to you, strip the sheets and leave them for much later.
Be open to learning about the situation. Let everyone in your household learn too. If you have many children and you know they’ll tease their sibling, let them know about Enuresis as a medical condition. That could make them kinder towards their sibling.
Teach your child, too. Sharing some facts about bedwetting with your child can go a long way. It’ll help dispel any misconceptions your child might have heard and is nursing. Let them know bedwetting is common and has solutions.
See a pediatrician. This will help you rule out medical conditions that could cause bedwetting. So, take your child to visit a doctor and let them check. If you can find an Enuresis specialist, the better. If a medical condition is the problem, finding a solution to that will also solve the bedwetting.
Observe how big a problem bedwetting is and how often it happens. The more frequent it is, the more serious you have to be with finding a treatment that works. This is as opposed to bedwetting that only happens once in a long time.
Know the difference. Enuresis is split into two categories: Primary Nocturnal Enuresis and Secondary Nocturnal Enuresis. Secondary Nocturnal Enuresis is when a child has already learnt to control their bladder and then has a relapse. It most often than not caused by a problem and once you diagnose properly, the solution leads to a stop in bedwetting.
Having a plan of action will make the situation less stressful for everyone involved. Let your child know they should come to you when it happens so that you can take cleaning steps. This is better than the child feeling ashamed and wondering how to get your attention. You can also do things like put special sheets on the bed so that cleanup is much faster. Especially if you’re all very busy in the mornings. This will help your child worry less about the shame that comes with bedwetting and focus more on the solution with you.
Be real about this situation. Children may seem to grow up really quickly these days, but some things will still keep them children. It is okay for a growing child to sometimes experience bedwetting until they are beyond three years old. Children of five could sometimes have a bedwetting accident. So, it shouldn’t be a cause of concern if your child is in this age range. Older children who do so regularly should be a greater cause of concern.
Dealing with this problem in a level-headed way will make it so much easier on your family. Did you know that besides divorce and family conflict, bedwetting is the most stressful situation for families? Rather than wait for the problem to go away on its own, make things better for yourselves by dealing with it.
Bedwetting doesn’t mean something is wrong with your child. In your quest to help, try to avoid traumatizing your child. Bedwetting is not a rare condition, and you don’t want to give your child the impression that something is wrong with them.
Let your child know bedwetting is not their fault and keep things as low key as possible. Let your child know that this is a normal part of growing up and that all it means is that they should keep growing. It could also help to share with your child that other family members experienced the same thing. Any treatment you use should also be as low key as possible. There is no need to use something that will keep reminding your kid about their bedwetting problem throughout the day.
Be approachable about this situation. Let your child be able to tell you when they have wet the bed. Don’t let other siblings be the first to report to you, shaming the kid in the process. A quiet time with each child is great so that your kid can tell you at that point. Another way to make this easier is to set up a calendar where the child marks dry and wet nights. This would make it easier for them to let you know, as it would be part of the routine.
Let your child help. They can fold the sheets while you take things to clean up and tidy up the pillow. This will help your child feel less babyish and like you can trust them with grownup chores. They’ll also feel like they can control a small part of their bedwetting which can improve things. Just remember to make it clear that the child is not being punished for bedwetting.

When Bedwetting Becomes a Bigger Problem and Seven things that can help

When you really consider growing up as a child, bed wetting is not such a big deal. In the grand scheme of things, it really isn’t a problem either. Your child is not in any serious harm if they occasionally can’t hold their pee at night. It doesn’t cause any injuries either.

The bigger problem lies in the psychological effect that bedwetting could have on your kid. You see while this looks like it’s not such a big deal to you, your kid might feel otherwise. You could find that your kid is so ashamed and worried that their regular life gets disrupted. If their school work becomes affected too, then their bedwetting could end up affecting their growth.

Sometimes children may also face bullying or teasing which could cause them to stop joining in for social activities. They could even feel so much stress that they go into depression. In cases like this you need to take action so that your kid can go back to feeling safe and happy.

But how do you know your kid is even struggling in the first place? To continue our series on bed wetting, here are a few signs that you should watch out for to know that your kids bed wetting has become a bigger problem.

They suddenly don’t eat the same. You’ll notice that your child eats more or less than they used to.
They’ve become withdrawn. Kids that loved to hangout out before suddenly stay indoors all the time.
They no longer show interest in their regular activities. From sports to TV, your kid is not even motivated to try.
They start to spend time with themselves alone.
Child gets angry very easily or become very quiet and have frequent mood swings.
They can’t sleep properly and keep waking up.
Loss of bladder control during the day too.
You notice unusual injuries and bruises or discover that some of their toys are broken indicating aggression.

Once you notice these things, it’s time to seek treatment. Schedule a visit with a doctor or counselor to help. Check out some of the methods that could help to deal with this in part one of this and do the following seven things in addition.

Make Sure Medication is Not the Cause of your Childs Bedwetting

Check any recent medication your child is taking. Does any of them have side effects that could cause your child to pee more or do they make your child tired? This could be the reason why your child finds it hard to stand up in time to go to the bathroom. If you find this is the case then talk to your doctor about how important the medication is. Sometimes, alternatives could be found that do not have the same side effects. They could also change the dosage in other to prevent this from continuing. Then you’ll find that your child’s bedwetting problem is solved.

Make the Bathroom Easy to Reach

The problem could be that your child is finding it difficult to get to the bathroom at night! In that case, providing a night light or moving their rooms or bed to make it possible for them to reach the bathroom quickly at night could help.

Sleeping Earlier

Helping your child get to bed earlier could be the answer here. That way they’ll be less tired and can easily get up when it’s time to pee. Their level of tiredness also has to be low for them to recognize that their bladder is full and they need to get up in time.

Check for Triggers

Sometimes your child’s emotional state can trigger bedwetting. If your child is upset and going through something hard like dealing with a divorce, death in the family, or even moving it could trigger and contribute to bed wetting. In cases like this, waiting for the child to adjust could solve the problem. You could also have your child speak to a therapist to help with their emotions.

Let You Child Help

We mentioned a bit about this in our earlier post. Help your child develop a system for dealing with bedwetting. Things like creating a routine where they can mark on a calendar which nights were dry or which nights were wet will keep them involved. It’ll give your kid more confidence, helping them feel like they can control a bit of their bed wetting. Any improvement noticed, like two dry nights in a row will encourage your kid to try harder and overcome.

Care for Their Skin

Bedwetting has some side effects and one of those is physical discomfort that comes as a result of skin problems. Urine is a fluid with waste chemicals from the body and when left in contact with skin for a while could irritate. Although not particularly dangerous, it could be painful for the child. So do your best to reduce this by making sure your child washes each morning using a mild and moisturizing soap. Applying petroleum ointment to the affected area could also help. If severe, talk to your doctor about it. They could prescribe a medicated cream to help soothe the skin. This will keep your child safe until bedwetting stops.

Work with Your Child

It’s best to work with your child to solve bedwetting. Try not to force anything on them. The stress of forcing something could even lead to more bedwetting. Rather you need your child to be enthusiastic and participate by themselves. So, try going about it in a comfortable way. Tell them how any remedies you thinking of trying would help.

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Disclaimer: The information provided on this website and any related links are for general informational purposes only and should not be considered a substitute for professional advice. Please, do not use the information on this website for diagnosing or treating any kind of medical or health condition. If you have or suspect you have a medical problem, seek out advice from a professional healthcare provider.