Dr. Robert Needlman
Specialist in pediatric behavior and development.
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 Ask Dr. Needlman
Daytime Wetting in a 2½-Year-Old | | | QUESTION | | | Dear Dr. Needlman,
Our 2½-year-old was wearing underwear and fully controlling his urine and bowel movements throughout the nights and daytime. Now while he controls his bowel movements he is urinating in his pants consistently, and while he generally gets upset, he sometimes says, "My pants are wet" gleefully. We are matter-of-factly telling him he has to use the toilet and to call us whenever he needs help. Should we do anything else? Put him into pull-ups?— Jonathan | | | ANSWER |
April 2, 2001 | | | Dear Jonathan,
It's very common for children when they have first mastered bowel and bladder control to have periods of backsliding and forgetting. Since your son is only 2½, it probably isn't many months since he learned about using the potty. So you can expect him to have some ambivalent feelings--sometimes he's upset that he lost control, at other times it's kind of nice to get the attention (and warm urine in the pants doesn't really feel all that uncomfortable).
That said, you can do a couple of things. If you're patient and you don't mind doing a lot of laundry, you can simply praise your son when he's dry and change him when he's wet. A sticker chart is one way to strengthen his motivation. Whenever he remembers to pee in the potty (before peeing in his pants) you can add a sticker to the chart. See how many he can get in a day.
The other alternative is to put him in pull-ups. If you do this, it's best to be upbeat and nonchalant about it. "Here are some pull-ups, so you wont have to worry about getting your pants wet. You'll be ready for underpants pretty soon."
One of the possible causes of daytime wetting after a period of dryness is urinary tract (bladder or kidney) infection. Left untreated, urinary tract infections can lead to permanent kidney damage, so it makes sense to talk with your child's doctor or nurse practitioner about your son's problem.
For more, see the Bedwetting section of our site (a new article on daytime wetting should be appearing soon).— by Robert Needlman, M.D., F.A.A.P. |
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