Nightime Peeing in 4 Year Old

Updated on November 07, 2012
A.W. asks from Baltimore, MD
14 answers

Hi all,
My son turned 4 at the end of September. When he was about 3 1/2 or so, he was almost completely dry during naptime and night maybe only about once a week. I kept him in pullups at night and took them off for the nap which was only about an hour. Now he is not taking a nap anymore but he is peeing through his pullup 95% of nights. He's only 38 pounds so pullups are not too big and I have tried the nighttime underwear with no luck. Any advice or experience with this. I mentioned to pediatrician at a checkup and she said it was nothing to worry about yet.

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S.H.

answers from Des Moines on

Those who have 4 year olds night time potty trained are lucky in my eyes.

Thanks to a major family history of bed wetting....my 13 and my 10 year olds wet the bed. Tried all the tricks and visited the doctors...had ultrasound done...just not medicating them (which I won't so because there is nothing wrong with them). Unfortunately, it will be around puberty when their bodies will be ready to stay dry.

Now my 7 year old has been dry since 4. And my 4 year old occasionally wakes up dry.

It is nothing to worry about.....it just Sucks to keep having to buy pull ups.

2 moms found this helpful

More Answers

G.W.

answers from Dallas on

I can't really add anything more than all the other mamas who have so far responded, I just want to say how happy I am to see such positive comments about nighttime bedwetting. There have been times I have absolutely wanted to reach through my computer and thump people on the nose regarding this issue LOL I have twin seven year old twin boys, one is dry at night and one still has accidents (and wears PullUps) every night. I know he will outgrow it one day so I just go with the flow until it stops. Having nearly lost this little boy four years ago to a terrible illness, I am thankful to have a nighttime peeing little boy that I can buy Pullups for :-)

1 mom found this helpful
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☆.A.

answers from Pittsburgh on

He's growing. His bladder holds more.
Don't worry. When his body matures, he'll be dry all night.
In the meantime, you can layer sheet/pad/shyer/pad for quick changes to the bed.
And make sure he pees before bed.
I wouldn't limit liquids.
Good luck!

1 mom found this helpful
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K.B.

answers from San Francisco on

My pediatrician told me that when their bodies are ready they will stop wetting the bed at night. And she pointed out that it's amazing that we even learn that skill. If you think about it, we are zonked out, asleep, totally relaxed, and we are supposed to engage the muscles that keep us from wetting the bed.

My kids (twins) turn 4 in a couple of weeks. We have just switched to underwear at night and after 4 nights of no diapers, we have been fortunate and haven't had any accidents so far. But I am expecting that we will get those nights where we are awoken to someone wetting the bed.

I just hope it's not me having the accident....those dreams where I'm going to the bathroom can seem kind of real. :-)

1 mom found this helpful
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A.R.

answers from Dallas on

Bedwetting is totally normal into the tween years. Most drs won't do anything about it until the kids are at least 8-9 years old. My son wet the bed till 9. When he was ready (this is key) we bought an alarm....and it still took 8+ weeks till he was dry every night. If he's wetting through try a bigger pull-up or different brand of nighttime underwear, or get a pad for the bed. www.bedwettingstore.com

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L.O.

answers from Detroit on

when youo go to bed.. take him the bathroom..(he will likely sleep through this..) then put him back to bed with a dry pull up.

he will be dry at night when his brain wakes him up before he is wet.

my daughter almost 7 is still wet at night.

my son was dry at 3.

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H.M.

answers from Dallas on

Try the night time pullups. My son is 10 and wets the bed and he wears good nights. They work really well for him. But at 4 you don't need to worry.

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L.R.

answers from Washington DC on

I think enuresis (night time urinating) is really common in boys and probably wouldn't need to be treated. Having said that, my oldest son had this problem and it started interfering with sleepovers and such because it continued until he was about 7. I'm a doctor and I knew about all the medical treatment options and did NOT want those, so I tried something different that worked beautifully! It was essentially a sensor that was clipped to the tip of the underwear right where it should be peed on first. That sensor was connected to a small alarm that was pinned to his shoulder. When the sensor detected wetness the alarm would go off and wake the child (and you) up. I guess these kids just haven't learned to wake up to the sensation of urination. We only did this for about 5 nights and he was completely cured. It worked wonderfully! I would highly recommend it.

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E.E.

answers from Washington DC on

Have you tried taking him to the bathroom before you go to bed at night? That's what we do with our 3 year old and now she is dry most of the time when she wakes up in the morning. And if she does pee, it's not too much that it leaks out of the diaper. I was worried when I started it since she often has trouble sleeping but she stays asleep through the whole process.
Good luck!

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❤.M.

answers from Los Angeles on

Totally normal.
They say to limit their fluid intake before bed but I'm not goiing to let him
be thirsty.
He won't be having accidents forever.
Their bodies will tell the when they are truly ready.
Boys mature slower than girls.
I, also, make my life easier by putting a cover over his mattress under the
fitted sheet so if he leaks it doesn't get to the mattress.
They sell these specifically for this reason. Don't get plastic though. Too
noisy & not as warm.
Make sure he pees before right before bed, too.

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S.H.

answers from Richmond on

My son turned 4 in September as well. He still wets the bed on most nights. Sometimes he goes 3-4 nights being dry, sometimes not. I talked to his pediatrician and read up about it. 1/3 of kids (esp. boys) are not dry through the night until 1st grade. Most doctors don't get concerned until they are 8 or 9 years old. I put Pull Ups on him at night and make sure not to make a big deal out of it. If he doesn't outgrow it in a year or two, I will mention it again to his pediatrician. I talked to several of my friends about if their kids are dry and if there was any "trick" to it. All of their kids are dry but only if they limit their liquids at night. For a variety of reasons, I refuse to do that. I mention it only to tell you that clearly those kids would also be wetting the bed if liquids weren't withheld. Give him some more time.

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P.G.

answers from Dallas on

He's growing and his body is changing. From what I've heard, it's typical for nighttime wetting to go on till 6-7 years old or later, depending on the kid, how deep they sleep, etc.

D.S.

answers from Norfolk on

Hi, A:

Take your child to an atlas specific chiropractor and see if
his spine is out of an alignment.

These incidents causes your child shame so handle them with care.

Good luck.
D.

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E.F.

answers from Kalamazoo on

Have you tried carrying him to the bathroom when you go to bed? We carry our 3 year old to the bathroom at around 10:30 and now that he's used to it, he only half wakes up and there haven't been any accidents (yet).

Good luck!

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