Should you 'lift' your child to prevent bedwetting?
It’s common for parents of bedwetting children to receive advice about ‘lifting’ their children when trying to get them dry at night.
This involves taking the child to the bathroom for one final visit, just before mum and dad go to bed themselves. On the face of it, it sounds like a good idea and if it achieves the aim of keeping the bed dry, then what harm can it do?
‘Lifting’ may not help your child’s bedwetting
My concern is that, not only is it an unpleasant experience for your child – after all, would you like to be woken in the middle of the night and dragged off to the loo? – but by doing this, parents are actively encouraging their children to wee in the night. It’s important to remember what the real goal of this exercise is – the aim is to help the child achieve night-time dryness.
By ‘lifting’, parents are actually training their bedwetting children to release urine in the middle of the night when half asleep, for let’s face it, how many children that get carried to the bathroom in this way, are fully awake and conscious?
I also worry that this type of training is actually encouraging the child’s bladder to develop a need to empty, not only in the middle of the night, but perhaps when it’s only half full. It’s common to suffer from a ‘twitchy’ bladder that gets into the habit of emptying far too often and bear in mind too, that the bladder is similar to a muscle that will grow and stretch the more it holds.
So however well intentioned the idea of “lifting” is, I would recommend parents avoid doing it as it’s simply not helpful to the process.
About the author
Alicia Eaton is a Behaviour Change Psychotherapist based in London's Harley Street for over 20 years, working with families, supporting both adults and children, helping to tackle difficult problems such as anxiety, bedwetting, eating and weight issues. She also offers advice and training to schools, teachers, clinicians and professionals working with children.
Alicia is the author of several best-selling books including ‘Stop Bedwetting in 7 Days’, recommended by NHS hospital clinics and ‘First Aid for your Child’s Mind', now published around the world in seven different languages.
Her latest book ‘Mind How your Kids Eat’ gives psychological insights into how our children learn to eat and what to do about food fussiness, sensory sensitivities, ARFID, junk food cravings and weight issues.
