Would re-introducing naps help out 5 yo's bedwetting...?

[Anonymous]

So DS has always been a somewhat infrequent bedwetter since he potty trained in the daytime a few years ago. Typically it kind of comes and goes, with one month being more dry than the next. Lately though, it's been an every night occurance. He had been wearing pull-ups, but is now back to wearing actual overnight diapers each night, because he was soaking through the pull-ups nightly.

Anyways, my question had to do with something DH and I were brainstorming on last night:

DS has always been an incredibly deep sleeper, and regularly will sleep 12 hours or more a night. He used to LOVE naps, but hasn't taken them regularly since he was about 3-4 yrs old. What DH and I were wondering... would nudging DS to start taking regular naps in the daytime potentially help out with the constant wet night diapers? We're currently doing homeschooling for our two youngest, so a midday nap wouldn't be at all a problem to make happen.

Greatly appreciate any suggestions!

[Anonymous]

I would wake him up for a dream pee before you go to bed. Just walk him to the toilet and stay with him to make sure he’s aiming well, then hopefully he’ll go right back to sleep. It worked for our son.

[Anonymous]

Dream pee was a NIGHTMARE for my deep sleeper. It was so much work to wake him enough to get him to the bathroom and then he was wide awake and couldn’t fall back asleep. So then he was overtired and wet more.

If you don’t mind if he is awake later at night, try it.

[Anonymous]

We also had to switch back to overnight diapers recently and for the same reason. Is he good about remembering to go to the bathroom right before bed and is he good about getting up first thing in the morning and going to the bathroom?

[Anonymous]

Barring a special reason (staying up late the night before, being sick, etc) my 5 year old is not tired enough during the day to warrant a nap. You also risk the chance that it could disturb night sleep, ie, a kid awake from 2am-4am.

[Anonymous]

Honestly it’s a perfectly normal part of growing up. Sleep is more important than whether he makes it to the bathroom in time. As long as he’s healthy and fine in every other area I would just let things go for now and not stress over it

[Anonymous]

It's physiological. And it's developmental. He's in such a deep sleep that he can't hear his body's signal to get up and pee.

By age 6, 90% of kids are not wetting at night. Your son is not 6 yet. For now, I'd let it ride and wear the pull-ups.

[Anonymous]

No big deal. Just remind him he’s still a big kid and he should try to go to the potty as much as he can. Does he wake up on his own in the morning or do you have to wake him up?

[Anonymous]

I don't think that would fix it. My daughter didn't end up night training until age 7 when we introduced the alarm and that was only because she requested it-and at that point it took her less than 2 weeks. But we never pushed it at all, because it's biological. Just let him wear the pull-up/diaper until he gets it on his own, or your pediatrician recommends doing something.

[Anonymous]

You mentioned he's wearing diapers now? Has the wetting increased since you made that switch?

It might be worth trying a couple nights of him wearing underwear, just to check. It may be that his body knows - even unconsciously - that "hey, I have a diaper on, I don't need to hold it!"

Are you limiting drinks before bedtime?

[Anonymous]

You may be onto something here about the naps. My 6yo has always been a heavy sleeper and is currently a frequent night wetter (he wears Goodnites and we wake him once to pee). But the night wetting has become more frequent since he stopped napping. He napped roughly half the time last year, but he’s in kindergarten now and never naps. His pull ups were dry a lot more often last year. Thanks for giving me something to think about!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Dream pee was a NIGHTMARE for my deep sleeper. It was so much work to wake him enough to get him to the bathroom and then he was wide awake and couldn’t fall back asleep. So then he was overtired and wet more.

If you don’t mind if he is awake later at night, try it.

I was about to suggest the OP try this, but reconsidered when she said he's a sound sleeper and is already in diapers. I'd just let him sleep, and make sure you're using a diaper that can hold up to that amount of time. It's probably just a growth spurt.

[Anonymous]

We do a dream pee with our 5-year-old. It's kind of a pain but not the worst. You just have to really direct him, or he'll bump into walls and stuff. He just recently became too big, but we used to just pick him up and carry him over, put him on the toilet, and carry him back. Not perfect, but it has worked most of the time.

I don't know how you would institute naps -- is he in school or daycare? Also, even if he starts, he is not going to be able to nap in kindergarten/1st grade next year. I really don't see the napping as related. Perhaps is could go to bed a little earlier to avoid being overtired if you think that is the issue?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You mentioned he's wearing diapers now? Has the wetting increased since you made that switch?

It might be worth trying a couple nights of him wearing underwear, just to check. It may be that his body knows - even unconsciously - that "hey, I have a diaper on, I don't need to hold it!"

Are you limiting drinks before bedtime?

Trust me, taking them away is only going to make him feel bad and a lot of extra laundry. He can’t control what happens when he’s sleeping. I’ve heard people who say that a child needs to feel wet in order to learn and that is completely untrue. You can’t teach a child to stay dry overnight. It’s a phase and he’ll outgrow it on his own as his body grows. For now just stick with the diapers and be patient.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We do a dream pee with our 5-year-old. It's kind of a pain but not the worst. You just have to really direct him, or he'll bump into walls and stuff. He just recently became too big, but we used to just pick him up and carry him over, put him on the toilet, and carry him back. Not perfect, but it has worked most of the time.

I don't know how you would institute naps -- is he in school or daycare? Also, even if he starts, he is not going to be able to nap in kindergarten/1st grade next year. I really don't see the napping as related. Perhaps is could go to bed a little earlier to avoid being overtired if you think that is the issue?

Bad idea to disrupt a child’s sleep like that. He’s not going to be properly rested the next day and that’s only going to cause more problems.