firstly let me reassure you that this is perfectly normal behaviour, with at least 1 in 5 children age between 4 and 5 still wetting the bed on a regular basis. At this early stage the most important thing to think about is how to best manage the situation so that it doesn’t result in high levels of frustration (for you) and upset. I would definitely recommend that you continue using DryNites at night – this will neither prolong nor speed up the process and will definitely make things easier for both you and her. Treatment typically isn’t recommended until children are at least 6-years of age due to the high spontaneous cure rate up until then. There are a few simple strategies you can try in the meantime. Monitor her eating and drinking patterns, avoid any foods or drinks high in caffeine (this includes chocolate) as these can stimulate the kidneys to produce larger quantities of urine. Encourage her to drink plenty of fluids throughout the day tapering off in the evening – although it is important that you do not restrict fluids completely as this can lead to constipation. Sometimes it is useful to keep an eye on her daytime toileting habits; does she go to the toilet often? Some children have bladders that need to be emptied more frequently – regular drinking throughout the day can help train a bladder to learn to hold on to larger amounts of urine. You also want to avoid those ‘just in case’ visits to the toilet as this can condition her bladder into emptying more frequently. Make sure she goes to the toilet before going to bed and that she doesn’t get overtired as it will be harder for her to wake in response to a full bladder. It is generally not recommended that you wake children during the night, if this works for you and you want to continue try varying the times you do so to avoid conditioning the bladder into emptying at the same time each night. Good luck and please be rest assured this will stop!

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