Why is my child wetting the bed again? Possible causes and solutions

Why your child is wetting the bed again cannot be answered with one explanation. In this article, we explain why children can start wetting the bed again after a long period of dryness and what you can do about it.

As a parent, it can be quite frustrating and perhaps even worrying: Your child was dry at night for a long time and suddenly starts wetting the bed again. This phenomenon, also known as relapse or secondary enuresis, is more common than you think and has various possible causes.

Possible causes of recurring bedwetting

If your child starts wetting the bed again after years of being dry, there is often an underlying cause. There are several possible reasons, and below we discuss the most common causes:

Psychological causes

• Stress or anxiety: Major changes such as a new school, moving, divorce, or family tensions can lead to bedwetting.
• Trauma or emotional events: A significant experience, such as the loss of a loved one, can affect urination behavior.
• Lack of self-confidence: Children with performance anxiety or low self-esteem may unconsciously start bedwetting again.

Physical causes

• Growth and hormonal changes: During growth spurts, the body may temporarily struggle to regulate urine production at night.
• Hormonal imbalance: A (temporary) deficiency of the antidiuretic hormone (ADH) can lead to higher urine production at night. If your child never had to urinate at night and suddenly does, bedwetting may be the result.
• Bladder problems: An overactive bladder can cause a child to hold urine for a shorter period.
• Urinary tract infection: Pain during urination and frequent urges can indicate a bladder infection, increasing the likelihood of bedwetting.
• Constipation: A full bowel can put pressure on the bladder, causing it to function less effectively.

Sleep-related causes

• (Very) deep sleeper: Your child's sleep pattern may change, and some children sleep so deeply that they no longer recognize the signals of a full bladder in time during sleep.
• Sleep apnea: Breathing problems such as sleep apnea can affect bladder control.

External factors

• Changes in routine: Vacations, sleepovers, or a different sleep schedule can have a temporary impact.
• Fatigue: Children who are overtired have less control over their bladder at night.
• Changed drinking pattern: For example, due to sports or very hot weather, the drinking pattern may change. If your child drinks too little during the day and compensates at the end of the day, this can cause the bladder to fill more frequently at night.

What can you do?

Fortunately, there are several ways to tackle bedwetting:

• Stay patient and understanding: It is important to remain calm and not punish your child. They are not wetting the bed on purpose, and punishment can have the opposite effect.
• Encourage good drinking habits: Encourage your child to drink enough during the day (especially in the morning) and limit it in the early evening. Avoid caffeinated drinks, such as cola and tea.
• Encourage good toilet habits: Have your child go to the toilet frequently during the day, for example, every 2 hours. This prevents the bladder from becoming tense.
• Create a regular sleep routine: Ensure a regular sleep schedule and have your child go to the toilet one more time before bed.
• Keep a bedwetting diary: Note when bedwetting occurs and whether certain patterns can be recognized. This can help identify the cause.
• Consult a doctor for persistent bedwetting: If bedwetting persists or is accompanied by other symptoms such as excessive thirst, abdominal pain, or fever, it is wise to consult a doctor.
• Start with bedwetting alarm training: With bedwetting alarm training, your child learns to develop a wake-up reflex to the signals of a full bladder during sleep.

What is important in good bedwetting alarm training?

Good bedwetting alarm training meets the following 4 points:

1. Your child wakes up quickly from the alarm. At that moment, very little has been urinated, and the bladder is still almost full.
2. Your child wakes up well from the alarm. If your child wakes up well from the alarm, they will also feel the almost full bladder. This feeling of needing to urinate must be recognized during sleep.
3. Avoid unnecessary urination moments (read: alarm moments) during the night. This makes the training less tiring and much more sustainable for everyone involved (child, parents, and any siblings who may also be woken by the alarm at first).
4. Ensure good coaching or guidance during bedwetting alarm training. Who can you turn to for expert advice if (one of) the previous 3 points do not (succeed)/succeed?

If your child does not wake up quickly and well from the alarm, the bedwetting alarm has little effect. If your child wakes up too slowly, too much urine has already been passed, so the feeling of a full bladder is gone. And if your child does not wake up well, they are not aware of what is happening and do not feel the full bladder. The feeling they need to learn to recognize.

As a result, the learning effect is minimal, and the broken nights take their toll. The likelihood is very high that the training will be stopped prematurely in this situation.

Uriflex is the only supplier of bedwetting alarms that coach you and your child during the use of the bedwetting alarm. We help your child with playful and targeted exercises to wake up quickly and well from the alarm. This makes progress visible quickly, which is, of course, very motivating. With targeted advice on drinking and urinating during the day, we also ensure that the alarm does not go off unnecessarily often at night. This makes our bedwetting alarm training less tiring than when you use a random bedwetting alarm on your own.

With our approach, we offer the highest success rate for your child to quickly overcome bedwetting. If your child has previously trained with a bedwetting alarm, using the bedwetting alarm again for a short period during a relapse is often very effective. Your child just needed a little support to recognize the urge to urinate in time again.

Conclusion

Bedwetting after a long period of dryness can have various causes, such as stress, physical changes, or sleep problems. It is important to remain patient and work with your child to find a solution. With the right approach, bedwetting can often be effectively addressed.

Do you have questions about our bedwetting alarm training or want to know more about bedwetting and the possible solutions we can offer? Let us know, and we will be happy to help!