Enuresis is a technical term for bed-wetting, a problem that affects many children, sometimes into the teen years. Roughly 10 percent of 6-year-olds and 3 percent of 14-year-olds suffer from some form of enuresis, says the Child Development Institute. Most doctors give a diagnosis of enuresis to a boy over 5 or girl over 4 who still wets the bed.
Types
Enuresis is usually considered either primary or secondary. Primary enuresis is when a child has never had a dry night, and secondary enuresis is when a child has had dry nights for some time, but still wets the bed occasionally. Secondary enuresis usually occurs from an outside stress such as the birth of a new sibling, starting a new school or a hospital stay.
Night Exercises
A couple of different methods used during sleep may help keep your child dry through the night. Night lifting is an exercise where you wake your child as he sleeps and walk him to the bathroom to urinate, then return him to bed. Night lifting helps train a child to wake and empty his bladder during the night. Another night method is the use of a moisture alarm. According to the University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine, a moisture alarm has a sensor that clips onto your child's pajamas and sounds when she urinates. The child will then wake up, urinate in the bathroom and return to sleep.
Other Exercises
During the day, children with enuresis can practice retention control. This involves purposely holding back urination for a few minutes, gradually increasing the time. Retention control will help expand the capacity of the bladder and strengthen the muscles that hold urine in. One simple way of helping to control the problem is for your child to consume less fluids before bed.
Benefits
The benefits of enuresis exercises include a more restful sleep for both you and your child. Waking each night to a wet bed can be upsetting and tiring as times goes on. Getting a bed-wetting problem under control can also enhance a child's social life, as he won't be reluctant to sleep away from home.
Considerations
Schedule an appointment with your doctor if enuresis exercises fail to improve the situation. You may also want to see your doctor if you or your child are regularly upset by the bed-wetting or if you have conquered the problem only to have it return.
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