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Home › Articles › Bedwetting › Bringing Up Bedwetting

Bringing Up Bedwetting

Talking to Your Doctor About Enuresis

By Melissa Granberry

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According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, only 1 percent of bedwetting cases are related to medical problems, but ruling these problems out may help you and your child feel better about the situation.

In addition, if your child's bedwetting is becoming a problem for your child (or you), a trip to the pediatrician may help put everyone's mind at ease.

Preparing for the Visit
If you decide a doctor's visit is in order, providing the following information to the pediatrician may assist with the evaluation:

  • Family history of bedwetting;
  • Frequency of bedwetting;
  • Any pattern of bedwetting, such as occurring only after drinking caffeine or when tired;
  • Daytime wetting in addition to nighttime accidents;
  • Anything unusual about the way your child urinates (such as straining or pain) or the way the urine appears (cloudy or pink);
  • Bedwetting that develops after six months or more of consistent dryness;
  • Medication your child is taking.

For a complete "Voiding History" questionnaire to help you prepare for the doctor's appointment, visit the National Kidney Foundation's Bedwetting Web page.

Kay Davidson*, a mother of one, decided to speak with her son's doctor about his bedwetting at his 5-year exam. "Our pediatrician wanted to wait and see if our son would outgrow the problem before starting any treatments," she says. And her doctor was right, as they eventually discovered that a prescription allergy medication was the culprit. In addition to wetting the bed, her son had also begun to fall behind in school, and when he stopped taking the medicine, his schoolwork began to improve and his sheets started staying dry. Now that he is 7, he is completely dry at night," says Davidson.

If you feel that medication may be contributing to your child's nighttime accidents or if your child is experiencing behavior problems in addition to bedwetting, be sure to discuss these situations with your pediatrician.

In the Meantime
If a trip to the doctor rules out all medical problems and your doctor recommends the wait-and-see approach, what can you do to help your child until that dry day?

Dr. Ritchey suggests letting your child wear an absorbent undergarment, such as GoodNites® Underpants, when sleeping. "Wearing [such a product] ... will not delay the time it will take for your child to outgrow bedwetting," he says.

Patience and empathy may be the best medicine during this difficult stage. "Parents can take the emphasis off of bedwetting, and place it on all the other good things the child does," says Dr. Kogan. "It is important that both the child and family realize that there are lots of good and successful things the child is accomplishing."

* Names have been changed to protect privacy.

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