BED WETTING|
Bed wetting child and solutions to help.
Bed Wetting
By Vanessa Rasmussen, © 2006-2008, All rights reserved.
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The
medical name for bedwetting is Enuresis, which means 'the involuntary voiding
of urine beyond the age of anticipated control'. This is a common condition
prevalent in children. While most children are toilet trained by the time
they are three to four years old, wetting the bed at night is still a familiar
problem for many six to eight year old children. Statistics show that it affects
about 8% of eight year olds. It is more common in boys and in families in
which one or both parents wet the bed as a child.
Bedwetting is defined into two categories,
primary in which children who have never had dry nights, and secondary where
children who have recently started wetting the bed, but who had previously
been dry for 3-6 months.
Some of the common reasons why a child wets
bed at night are:
- His / Her bladder is not yet developed enough
to hold urine for a full night, or an unknown substance is offered, teach
your child to refuse it.
- He / She is not yet able to recognize when
his bladder is full, wake up, and use the toilet.
Very rarely is bedwetting caused by a disease
or physical problem. If your child wets the bed after having been dry at night
in the past, your doctor should do an evaluation. Bed-wetting may be a sign
that stress is causing the problem.
Most young children get embarrassed by their
condition and tend to withdraw and feel isolated. They do not participate
in social activities that require them to sleep outside their home, like overnight
picnics or sleeping over at a friend's place. Children often suffer from low
self-image. Parents may also feel frustrated, embarrassed and annoyed at their
children's bedwetting problem. Their attitude might have an adverse effect
on the children. As a parent, you can help your child reduce negative feelings
about his/her bed-wetting condition and speed up the process of overcoming
it, by offering positive support, understanding and encouragement.
About fifteen percent of children who wet the
bed will mature out of this problem every year, but until your child does,
here are some steps you can take to try and increase the number of dry nights
that he/she has:
- Do not let your child drink large quantities
of fluid two hours before bedtime.
- Make sure that your child goes to the toilet
before retiring for the night.
- There are bedwetting alarm devices available,
which you can use if your child is 7 or 8 years old and has not yet developed
bladder control. These devices set off an alarm if it senses wetness so
that your child can wake up and use the toilet.
- Protect the bed with a plastic cover between
the sheets and mattress.
- Let your child help change the wet sheets.
However, not as a punishment, but out of sense of responsibility. It also
saves him/her from embarrassment from having family members know every time
he/she wets the bed.
- Some recommend practicing bladder stretching
exercises. With these, your child gradually increases the time between daytime
urinations so that the bladder can slowly stretch to hold more urine.
- Wake up your child at night, during specific
intervals so that he/she can go and empty the bladder.
Copyright 2001, 2006-2008. All rights reserved. Any reproduction of this article in
whole or in part without written or verbal permission is strictly prohibited.
For information about reprinting this article, contact the copyright owner:
Vanessa Rasmussen, Ph.D,
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