It’s normal for kids in this age group to wet the bed.
If they’re bedwetting it may be because their bladder isn’t yet big enough to store all the wee they produce at night time. Or it may be because the connection between their bladder and their brain is not yet fully developed. In short, they’re too young to be expected to stay dry throughout the night.
Try not to compare your child with other children in your family, mother’s group or social circle. As with most developmental milestones they all get there in the end and it’s clear that the time between achieving daytime dryness and night time control is different for every child. While some two to four-year-olds achieve dry nights in a matter of weeks, others take months or even years to get there.
HOW TO ENCOURAGE NIGHT TIME DRYNESS
- Encourage your child to drink regularly throughout the day. About 1 to 1.5 litres is recommended for two to four-year-olds. Taper off in the evening, but don’t restrict fluids altogether in children of this age
- Limit sweet and bubbly drinks, especially ones containing caffeine, such as cola
- Make sure your child sits on the toilet or potty and fully empties their bladder just before bedtime
- Stop ‘just in case’ visits to the toilet (i.e. before going out). Contrary to popular belief, it is good for children to ‘hold on’ so the bladder learns to store larger amounts of wee
- Increase dietary fibre in the form of whole-meal foods, vegetables and fruits to prevent constipation: a full bowel puts pressure on the bladder, triggering the urge to wee
- Don’t lift sleeping children to take them to the toilet during the night as this reinforces to the child that it’s ok to wee in their sleep and does not give their bladder a chance to learn to store urine overnight
Time is often the best course of action. Most children of this age will outgrow bedwetting on their own.
In the meantime, keep your son or daughter in DryNites® Pants as these keep your child dry and comfortable even if they do pee at least once in their sleep. What’s more, staying dry will help their self-esteem and confidence while reducing the washing workload for mum and dad.
