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If your child is still having ‘little accidents’ in the middle of the night you may be relieved to know that you’re not alone. In fact, it’s more common than you think with one in six children aged five wetting the bed two or more times a week.

Part of the journey

Despite being as widespread as eczema or asthma, affecting nearly 800,000 children across the UK, bedwetting is still one of those taboo subjects which people don’t talk about. In fact it’s a very natural stage in your child’s journey and something both you and your child should not be embarrassed about.

Why my child?

You may be asking “why is my child wetting the bed?” In truth, there is no simple answer – perhaps it runs in the family, maybe they have a small bladder or it could just be a speed-bump which will pass in time … the list of potential reasons is endless. As parents find it difficult to talk about, there are a lot of misconceptions and misunderstandings about bedwetting. Here are some facts about bedwetting that you might not know:

1. There are two types of bedwetting: primary bedwetting means your child has never been dry at night and is the most common. Secondary bedwetting means your child has started wetting the bed after being dry for around 6 months.
2. Secondary enuresis is when a child begins to wet the bed after a lengthy period of being dry. This can be triggered by emotional reasons like starting school or family problems although sometimes there is no explanation at all.
3. There is no normal age when a child becomes dry at night. It differs between children. Generally, though, girls tend to be reliably dry at night earlier than boys.
4. Bedwetting is very common: every week, 1 in 6 five year olds, and 1 in 15 eight year olds wet the bed. Every year, over half a million 5-12 year olds wet the bed.
5. Bedwetting runs in the family: if one parent used to wet the bed, there’s a 40% chance your child will, too. If both parents did, there’s a 70% chance.
6. Most children who wet the bed will grow out of it – if you are worried, see your GP

Help coping

Using absorbent sleepwear such as DryNites is one way to help you and your child through bedwetting. Although it doesn’t offer a cure, it can help you to cope with bedwetting, keeping clothing and sheets dry so you and your child can sleep with confidence.