Most children cannot control the urge to urinate at night, especially when they are sleeping. Therefore, children often wet the bed in bed. The key to stopping bedwetting (also known as sleep enuresis or night enuresis) is to reduce the chances of your child urinating at night. However, bedwetting is not just a child's problem. The bed bugs you or your child experience can be stopped with patience and dedication.
Step
Method 1 of 2: Stop Bed Wetting in Kids
Step 1. Don't panic
Nearly 15% of children still wet the bed by the time they reach 5 years of age. Although this number is starting to decrease, bed-wetting is normal in children up to the age of seven. Before age seven, children's bladder and control are still developing.
Step 2. Limit your child's drinking at night
Try to reduce the amount of water consumption before bedtime your child. Remember, this does not need to be done all day. Instead, give your child a drink of water in the morning and at noon to reduce thirst at night. If your child is thirsty at night, especially after exercising or doing other physical activities, give them something to drink.
Give your child a water bottle to take to school if allowed by the school so that the child does not consume excessive fluids in the afternoon and evening
Step 3. Don't give your child caffeine
Caffeine is a diuretic, which means it can trigger the urge to urinate. After all, in general, caffeine should not be given to children, especially if you want to stop the habit of bedwetting in children.
Step 4. Stop taking the bladder irritant
In addition to caffeine, you should also stop taking other bladder-disrupting substances that can cause bedwetting at night. Examples include orange juice, beverages with dyes (especially juices with red dye), sweeteners, and artificial flavours.
Step 5. Teach your child to use the toilet regularly
Teach your child to use the toilet approximately every two hours in the afternoon or early evening. This will help your child avoid the urge to pee at night.
Step 6. Use the Double Voiding technique before going to bed
Most children use the toilet at the beginning of their bedtime routine when getting ready to put on their pajamas, brush their teeth, etc. Double Voiding means getting your child used to using the bathroom at the beginning of the routine, then going back to the bathroom a second time before getting into bed.
Step 7. Treat constipation in children
Pressure from the rectum due to constipation can cause your child to wet the bed. The difficulty is, children often feel embarrassed to talk about their problems, and this is the cause of a third of bedwetting cases that occur.
If you're sure your child is constipated, try eating a fiber-rich diet for a few days. If nothing happens, take him to the doctor. There are many good options that can be done to treat constipation in children
Step 8. Don't punish your child
Even if you're frustrated by it, your child shouldn't be punished just for wetting the bed. Your child may also feel embarrassed and want to stop wetting the bed. Instead of being punished, try rewarding your child when he doesn't wet the bed.
The prizes that can be given vary, from playing games, stickers, to his favorite dinner. Give your child the things he likes
Step 9. Try using the bedwetting alarm if needed
Your child can be frustrated and tired if you wake them up to use the bathroom before you go to bed. The child should not be awakened if it is not necessary. Therefore, try using a bedwetting alarm. It attaches to underwear or mattress pads and makes a loud sound when it detects moisture, so your child wakes up and pees only when they are almost wet.
Step 10. Take your child to the doctor
In a minority of cases, bedwetting in children can be a serious problem. To ensure your child's safety, take him to the doctor for tests:
- Sleep apnea
- Bacterial infections of the urinary tract
- Diabetes
- Disorders of the urinary tract or nervous system
Step 11. Ask the doctor about your child's medication
Since children generally stop bedwetting on their own, treatment is usually not recommended by most doctors. However, there are several options available as your last resort, namely:
- Desmopressin (DDAVP), this drug can increase the natural antidiuretic hormone to reduce urine production at night. However, this medication has side effects and can also affect sodium levels, and you should continue to monitor your child's fluid intake while taking this medication.
- Oxybutynin (Ditropan XL), this drug can help decrease bladder contractions and expand their capacity.
Method 2 of 2: Stop Bed Wetting in Teens and Adults
Step 1. Limit your fluid intake at night
If you limit your water intake for a few hours before bed, your body will produce less urine, which will reduce the chances of wetting the bed.
This does not mean stopping your fluid intake completely. You still have to drink 8 glasses of water every day. So easy, just drink in the morning and evening. You must keep yourself hydrated because dehydration can also cause bedwetting in adulthood
Step 2. Avoid excessive consumption of caffeine and alcohol
Caffeine and alcohol are diuretics, which cause the body to produce more urine. Alcohol also dulls your body's ability to wake up when you need to urinate during sleep, causing you to urinate. Do not consume caffeinated and alcoholic beverages at night.
Step 3. Treat your constipation
Constipation can put pressure on your bladder, reducing bladder control at night. If the case of bedwetting occurs due to constipation, try adding fiber consumption, such as vegetables, beans, and other plant sources.
You can learn more about constipation treatment in one of the wikiHow articles
Step 4. Set the bedwetting alarm
It can also help train your body to react to the urge to urinate. Put an alarm on your underwear or mattress pad and it will sound when it detects moisture so you can get up and go pee before you have a chance to pee.
Step 5. Check for side effects of your medications
Some cases of bedwetting can occur due to drug side effects. Check to see if taking medication is causing you to wet your bed. However, you should consult with your doctor before changing the medication schedule prescribed to you. Some medications that can cause bedwetting include:
- Clozapine
- Risperidone
- Olanzapine
- Quetiapine
Step 6. Look for other symptoms of your sleep apnea
If you snore loudly and wake up in the morning with chest pain, headache, and symptoms of a sore throat, you may have sleep apnea. Bedwetting is one of the symptoms associated with sleep apnea for adults who previously had no bladder problems.
If you believe you have sleep apnea, then you should see a doctor for diagnosis and treatment
Step 7. Go to the doctor
If the case of bedwetting is not due to drinking too much or constipation, then you should see a doctor. Secondary enuresis (cases of bedwetting in people who previously had no bladder control problems) is usually a symptom of another problem. Your doctor will perform tests to rule out several conditions, including:
- Diabetes
- Nerve disorders
- Urinary tract infection
- Kidney stone
- Enlarged prostate/cancer
- Bladder cancer
- Anxiety or emotional disturbance
Step 8. Ask about the treatment
You can look for treatment options to help control bedwetting in adulthood. Ask your doctor the best treatment option for you during your consultation. Your options include:
- Desmopressin, this drug causes your kidneys to produce less urine.
- Imipramine, this drug has been shown to be effective in treating bed-wetting cases up to 40%.
- Anticholinergic drugs, these drugs treat detrusor muscle activity and include darifenacin, oxybutynin, and trospium chloride.
Step 9. Ask about surgery options
This option is limited to moderately severe cases of overactivity in your detrusor muscle, and may only apply if you have problems with incontinence during the day as well as bedwetting at night. Surgery is the last option. Your doctor may discuss:
- Clam cystoplasty. This surgery will increase the capacity of the bladder by placing a portion of the intestine in the bladder incision.
- Detrusor myectomy. This surgery will remove some of the detrusor muscle and strengthen and reduce the number of bladder contractions.
- Sacral nerve stimulation. This surgery reduces the activity of the detrusor muscle by changing the activity of the nerves that control the bladder area.
Tips
- Stick to a sleep schedule. If you go to bed at 7:30 p.m. and the next night at 1:00 a.m., your whole body (including your bladder) will be confused.
- Follow a routine to the bathroom. Try using the bathroom every time before bed.
- If you're trying to help your kids stop wetting their bed, make a note of what time they go to bed (which will come in handy later if there's a physical/medical reason). You can stay awake or sleep near the child. When wetting the child, the child will change sleeping position away from the wet area, or even leave the bed and go to a dry place that is more comfortable. Gently wake the child and then clean the bed together (have the children do most of the work when they are old enough). When you're done repeating your bedtime routine, go back to bed. This can happen more than once a night so don't leave your child unattended first! After a few nights, then you can leave the child unsupervised and the child will start to wake up on his own and ask for your help to clean the mattress, until finally the child can wake up on his own before he can wet the bed. Stay consistent and your child will smile happily every morning for having a good night's sleep!
- Sleep on a plastic or waterproof mattress or sheets on your bed. Thus, the mattress will not get wet.
- Don't force your child to wear diapers if they really don't want to. People often think diapers will help (if the child wants to wear them), but the child will get frustrated and make the problem worse.
- The GoodNite mattress is a new and popular preventive measure to prevent mattresses from getting wet with bedwetting. Use and replace regularly.
- If bedwetting is done by an adult, or if a diaper doesn't fit, larger sizes of disposable diapers and pants are available, which can help prevent the wearer from wetting his bed with wetting.
Warning
- Immediately see a doctor if bedwetting is accompanied by other symptoms, such as red urine or other color changes, pain when urinating, fever, vomiting, abdominal pain, and involuntary bowel movements.
- If your child has a rash from sleeping in a pool of urine, apply a rash cream or antibacterial cream, and see a doctor if the rash doesn't go away within a few days.
