BEDWETTING BLUES! PLEASE HELP!!

[kcd78]

The hubby and I are having troubles with our 3 year old son.  I mean he has been potty trained for a while now. Its just that he has been having trouble peeing to bed.  I don't understand it either.  He just started wetting the bed one day.  We haven't had any major changes or anyting like that, just wetness.  I wake him up in the middle of the night every night to go to the bathroom but that doesn't work either.  No drinks 2 hours before bed time, but then i feel like that is bad too because he has to go to bed with the cotton mouth. I don't want to buy him any more overnight pull-ups because I feel like i would be saying that this is okay.  I could really use some advice on this one ladies! Anybody have some?

[MSugarKane]

Oct. 22, 2008 at 8:38 PM

You might want to consult his pediatrician if he has been trained for awhile now , he might have an infection

[debra_benge]

Oct. 22, 2008 at 8:44 PM

My daughter started sleeping so hard at that age, that she didn't/couldn't feel when she needed to go and would wet her bed, too.

I just bought a rubber sheet to cover her mattress with, several more fitted sheets and went to the Goodwill store for extra blankets to use until she grew out of it.  I would change her sheets and blankets in the middle of the night, and she'd go right back to bed.

It took nearly a year, but she grew out of it, and we rarely have an accident.  (I know on days when she's really active and really tired when she goes to bed, we might have one, and just get everything ready, just in case.)

[RaiderMommy]

Oct. 22, 2008 at 9:35 PM

He may have an underdeveloped bladder and suffer from deep REM sleep. The sleep disorder is what causes the underdeveloped bladder. What happens is unlike most people who experience REM sleep towards the end of sleep and for a fairly short period of time (20-40 mins),  he may experience it as soon as he goes to sleep and for much longer. This is the very heavy sleep where the only neurological thing working is the brain telling the lungs to breathe and heart to pump. All else is disarmed, if you will.

So the brain isnt telling the bladder to hold nor stop making urine. When the bladder fills up it emptys. That's why limiting fluids, waking the child up, and even those bed alarms dont work. It is believed to be hereditary and more common in boys. They do have pills you can take but its a crap shot on if it will help. They do grow out of it, some sooner than others.

A good way to see if this is the case is if he is a heavy sleeper. Or when he first goes to sleep he is unwakeable. My son has this condition and just stopped a year or so ago at the age of 12 though the frequency decreased as he aged. All my uncles had the same thing and they stopped at 13. It's frustrating for us and them but it is not their fault nor yours. It took a really good pedi to tell me about this and then talking to my grandmother. Pullups and good nights will be your friend. Or  laundry detergent and bleach.

[kcd78]

Oct. 23, 2008 at 1:04 PM

thanks everybody!  I took him to the doctor's office this morning and they ran a few tests and I will know what is going on with my little guy shortly.

(Original Poster)