Hi Rebecca – it was once common practice to encourage children who wet the bed at night to try and hold on to their ‘wees’ during the day, as this was believed to increase bladder capacity. While this will not do your son any harm, the danger with holding on is that it can lead to daytime accidents. The most important thing when it comes to developing a healthy bladder is to adopt a consistent drinking pattern throughout the day. It is not unusual for children once they start school (and have seen this with my own children) to not drink anything throughout the day then consume the majority of their daily intake in the afternoon and evening. At his age he should be drinking approximately 1 to 1.5 litres a day – at regular intervals (every 1 to 2 hours). It is fine to taper off in the evenings and certainly keep encouraging him to fully empty his bladder just before he goes to sleep. Given his age you should certainly have him checked by your GP just to rule out any underlying medical cause. All the best!

Regards,
Dr Cathrine

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