I know how frustrating bed wetting is because my son had the same problem for many years. He is now 18 and of course hasn't wet the bed for years. The first thing I'm going to tell you is that he is not doing this on purpose so please don't punish him for it. There are many different reasons a child wets the bed. Our pediatrician informed us that some children mature faster than their bladder and they do grow out of it once their bladder catches up with them. Usually children grow out of it anywhere from 10-12 years of age. I used to change my son's bedsheets many times during the night. I never made a big deal about it or made him feel bad. Some children sleep very deep and don't feel their bladder telling them they have to go. We had him hooked up to a small belt at night that went around his waste. I wish I could remember exactly what it was called; but it worked like a miracle. It would buzz like an alarm clock when he started to urinate and it would wake him up so he could run to the bathroom. He used it for a few months and once his body got used to waking up when he had to urinate he stopped wetting his bed and never wet it again since. In my opinion the sudden wetting during the day sounds like anxiety from all the stress this has caused him. I hope this helps! It's very frustrating for both of you and it's horrible to have to get up in the middle of the night and change wet sheets.

You should take him to the doctor. He could have a UTI (regardless of his lack of pain), bladder infection, or kidney infection. I think the fact that he's having this happen during the day, too is enough reason to take him for a check-up. He's also a bit old for this to just be normal bed-wetting.

Yea, we have tried the whole monitor thing to wake him up at night. It didn't wake him up, but it did wake me up in enough time to show up for soaked sheets. We tried reprimanding him as a step, but stopped quickly after because that wasn't working either. I figured it couldn't have been an infection just because it has been happening for his entire life. I've scheduled a doctors appt. for this Friday, but just at our family doctor. I'm sure they'll tell me the same thing as the last time we took him in. That there is nothing wrong. I think my next step after that would be either a pediatrician or a specialist.

Yes, a urologist may be a good idea. Also, it's possible that it's psychological. Around the time his problem got worse, did anything happen? Has he had any trauma in his life before that? Any stress? Is your home low-stress or high-stress? Kids feel all of it and know what's going on, even if you don't talk about it in front of them. It doesn't even have to be about him.

I'm glad you don't scold him about it anymore. I'm sure he feels bad enough about it, already. Just make sure he knows it's not his fault and this happens to a lot of kids. If you or his father used to do this, tell him that (but don't lie). Make sure you find reasons to praise him when he does things well, so he can build some self-esteem outside of this issue.

When you go to the doctor, make a list of all the conditions that can cause this--do a little online research. Go down the list with the doctor and make him consider each one (UTI, diabetes, bladder infection, etc). Also, make a list of treatments--ask about medications that may help (especially to take just for sleep-overs). Your son can even be playing out in the play room when you're having this conversation, so as not to scare him. If you don't get any answers, then go to a pediatrician or a specialist (the doctor may be able to recommend someone).

Don't let the doctor dismiss this as just normal bed wetting. Remind the doctor that he's having problems during the day now, which shows that it's not just a problem of not waking up in time. Maybe he's not feeling his bladder like he should. Or maybe he has developed an infection. After all, kids who wet the bed can get infections, too, which may be dismissed as just normal for them.

Good luck. I really hope you can find a solution quickly.

Thanks everyone.

MyrahU,

You make some really good points about what to take to the doctor when I go. We do live in a pretty low-stress household. We try to always communicate everything with each other day in and day out. He doesn't seem to be embarrassed about it, but we still are discrete for his benefit. My mother did wet the bed until she was 12, but that really didn't matter to him at all. Whenever we have a major life change to go through, we always have him play a huge part in it and he has never acted out any other way. So hopefully it isn't anything serious, and hopefully we don't have to wait until he is 12 to wait for it to go away on its own.