Bed-wetting in teenager and adults: causes

Producing a lot of urine at night. You may be producing a lot of urine, because the mechanisms that reduce urine production at night have not developed. Again, if you are a teenager, the problem may solve itself in time.

 

Urine infection. A urine infection can irritate the bladder, and make it more difficult to hold urine.

 

Alcohol, coffee or diuretic medicines. Diuretics are medications that are used to treat high blood pressure and some heart problems. They encourage the kidney to make more urine. It is best not to take a diuretic at bedtime, because you will need to pass urine in the night and, if your bladder control is poor, this could cause bed-wetting. Alcohol and coffee have a similar effect, so avoid them within 3 hours of bedtime.

 

Sleeping tablets can make you sleep so soundly that you do not wake up when your bladder is full. If you take sleeping tablets, discuss with your doctor whether you really need them, or try reducing the dose.

 

Diabetes is a disease in which the blood sugar is too high. The kidneys try to lower the sugar by making lots of sugary urine, so you pass more urine in the day and during the night (you are also thirsty). If your bladder control is poor, this could cause bed-wetting. The problem goes away when the diabetes is treated.

 

Stress and anxiety can cause bed-wetting.

 

Other conditions, such as expansion of the prostate gland, neurological problems and sleep apnoea can result in bed-wetting.
 

Written by: Dr Margaret Stearn
Edited by: Dr Margaret Stearn
Last updated: Friday, February 26th 2010

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Comments on this article

Posted by Optional on 24/07/2010 at 04:56:33 am

I have a terrible bed wetting problem, cant meet a man, as wouldnt wish my problem at night on anyone, think its so sad that i have read so many people have the same problem and we are so scared to get help. i wish i was normal.

Posted by Optional on 16/06/2010 at 02:24:11 am

It is not an every day occurence, but it is very embarrassing. I don't know what to do about it.

Posted by Optional on 05/06/2010 at 01:55:29 pm

I have a client who is 50 years old who wets the bed. he has muscular dystrophy and fears his gaurdians...which one causes bed wetting more?

Posted by Optional on 21/05/2010 at 01:05:14 am

i hav left masterbation now..bcoz it leads to weakness in my arms..so..but now when i hava sex chat wid anyone..my penis got wet..so can u plz give me a a solution to resolve dis problem. thanks.

Posted by PK on 12/05/2010 at 02:19:16 pm

I have had many health problems Such as cerebral pulsy and epilepsy. about a year and a half ago I started urinating every time i would have a siezure so I started wearing diapers too Cover the Leaks I was siezing every day all day long the abulance came too the house once a day, and now i barley have siezures, thier was some brain damage done so i am still using diapers, but i am doing better then i was. If you have Urinary inconietence You should consult you GP right away and use diapers too prevent a imbaracening accident. They even have light pads if you a leaker or Pull ups in adult size's, and talk too your family about your Urinary issues so They understand the Use of diaper. Happy trails PK

Posted by Lovelyn on 01/05/2010 at 04:48:35 am

My sister is sixteen years,l have tried every thing to stop her from bedwetting but is not working out.what am i going to do

Posted by LUMU JAMES on 28/04/2010 at 06:19:48 am

I HAVE WETTED MY BED SINCE AGE 14.BEFORE I NEVER USED TO.WHAT COULD HAVE HAPPENED.NOWDAYS IT NOLONGER OCCURS FREQUENTLY,COULD I BE HEALING?HELP ME PLEASE

Posted by Optional on 27/04/2010 at 08:11:01 pm

I began bedwetting aged 12. It continued until I was 21. A scholarship winner in England I had a difficult schooling there and in NZ. Bullying was a feature of my first year at shool here.My parents had me physically (internally) examined and I had to use an electric device that delivered a shock to my penis should urine emerge during sleep. It didn't work. I volunteered into the army concealing my problem from barrack mates. It stopped on arrival overseas where we had servants and I could no longer conceal it. Just stopped. There were 'one off' incidents, usually after boozing. As I get older I think I'm verging on incontinence, often wetting myself inside the toilet. I think my problem is psychological. Probably sexual abuse but I can't put my finger on a particular incident. I'm making these comments in the hope they may help someone

Posted by Optional on 21/04/2010 at 08:18:51 am

does grief cause bedwetting

Posted by Anonymous on 06/02/2010 at 04:04:00 pm

I started wetting my bed every since i became an adult and it only happens 1-2 times every 3-4 months. and im embarrased and its very frustrating i need help

Posted by Anonymous on 13/01/2010 at 10:24:00 am

i've been wetting my bed since God knows when...sometimes it happens everyday and sometimes 2-3 times a week, its very frustrating, i need help

Posted by caddie on 12/01/2010 at 02:50:00 am

i have wet all my life i cant tell anyone im so embarrased

Posted by stressed teen on 29/11/2009 at 08:39:00 am

i've been wetting my bed since God knows when...sometimes it happens everyday and sometimes 2-3 times a week, its very frustrating, i need help

Posted by Anonymous on 23/11/2009 at 08:59:00 pm

You can get over this, it can disappear, I found contentment and after 20 years stopped bed wetting. I had all the anxieties and could not go out and stay over at friends, once I was in my own place, set the alarm to wake up it suddenly went away. Good luck and sleep well.

Posted by me on 26/10/2009 at 02:15:00 pm

We married for 10 years, and have experience bedwetting once or twice in a year

Posted by Sarah on 13/10/2009 at 05:42:00 am

I have a practical suggestion for Paul regarding wearing protection at night as he has yet to find a pad which works. As a nurse we use an alternative to catheterisation for incontinent men, it is a device called a 'CONVEEN' although I expect there are different names depending on the manufacturer. It is basically like a very strong condom which is rolled over the penis to the base and held on using a double-sided adhesive band (wrapped around the base of the penis, the conveen is then rolled over the top of the adhesive strip. Unlike a condom, the end of the conveen is open and you attach it to a drainage bag which can be supported on the floor beside your bed, using a custom made stand. If you wet yourself during the night the urine flows out of the conveen and through a narrow tube about 1 centimetre wide, into the drainage bag which can hold about two lites. The drainage bag even has a tap on the end to empty it and can be washed through with tapwater and washing up liquid, ready to use again. There are even 'leg bags' available, which are smaller and strap onto your leg at thigh or calve length although there is a risk with these of you squashing them in your sleep by rolling on them so a night drainage bag with a longer connection tube so it sits on the floor on its stand is wiser. These 'conveens' and drainage bags are available on prescription through your g.p. They even come in different sizes, small, medium and large and are an amazing invention which should give you peace of mind, just make sure that the end is not twisted like a corkscrew once the connection tubing and bag is applied or else the urine will not be able to flow freely out of it and the conveen will blow up like a balloon and come off under the pressure! I heard a funny story about a group of medical students who stole some from work so they could wear them on a long minibus trip to a rugby match and drink loads of beer without worrying about toilet breaks, they all used leg bags unde

Posted by Sarah on 13/10/2009 at 05:19:00 am

I wet the bed almost every night well into my late teens which caused an indescribable amount of anxiety and shame. I could never stay over at friends houses for fear of it. I was even worried about leaving home for university it was that bad. Unfortunately my parents did all the wrong things, they never took me to see a doctor or (as far as I know) sought any help or advice whatsoever concerning my problem. My father used to avoid the subject as he was embarrassed and my mother would shout at me and rage about how she was struggling to cope with all the 'stinking sheets' laundrywise - she even said this within earshot of a visiting schoolfriend when I was about 14 even though I begged and pleaded with her to keep her voice down! I was desperate and would go to bed as late as possible having avoided drinking after 6-7pm. I would then try to stay awake and sleep on top of a thick towel or even my dressing gown to soak up the urine if I did wet the bed and then get up very early to wash it and iron it dry as we had no tumbledryer before anyone else woke up. My parents didn't even bother buying a mattress protector or any of the devices such as alarms, they just ignored the problem - apart from telling me off when my mother found out, so my mattress was permanently damp and smelly, it was just a living nightmare which I thought would never end. I regularly fell asleep during lessons through exhaustion and failed most of my O levels it was truly awful and I didn't know who to turn to. However eventually it did improve by the time I was seventeen and I was able to leave home to study nursing. I never found out if it was a physiological problem as I always asumed that it was entirely due to the fact that I lived in a very unhappy home, with parents who hated eachother and dysfunctional sisters with behavioural problems who regularly abused drugs and alcohol...which is probably why my parents regarded their 16 year old daughter wetting the bed as the least of their

Posted by traveled the world and back again on 25/09/2009 at 08:39:00 am

im a ordinary lad play football go clubbing have fun with my mate's but one thing has always held me back. i have for all my life wet the bed nearly every night apart from the odd night off untill i was 19 then i got the odd month off and when i was 21 it was maybe once every 3 month. i found i was very tired before going to bed, to cold in bed or drank to close to bed time on these occations. So i decided sod it im off i packed my bags went to moscow africa and stayed in australia for 8 months had no problems at all i found a new confidence in myself fell in love for the first time in my life cause i actually let people close to me instead of keeping people at a distance. I came home it was a matter of a month and i was wet the shock i have been home 6 months now and this is the 5th time im keeping any girls i meet at a distance now again going back into my old routine i dont know what to do i am a bit lost

Posted by PaulJ on 21/09/2009 at 10:09:00 am

I have suffered from this condition all my life but a recent operation for Peyronie's Disease has made it worse. I have been back to the doctor several times and all the usual underlying causes have been ruled out. Looks like I am destined to spend the rest of my life wearing protection to bed at night. The problem is that I have yet to find anything which is guaranteed leak proof. Most pads, etc, seem to work when I sleep on my back but mostly I sleep on my side and that is when the leaks occur. Any suggestions?

Posted by sorrygirl on 07/09/2009 at 02:15:00 am

i been bed wetting since i was 12 it would stop then start agian i was always afriad to go to the doctor once i did the doctor was like WHAT!! she didnt help me it was a free clinic i took cranbreey pills they work but now i think its something i am doing to myself but just now everyone elese seem to have the same problem so iam not that embrass about anymore it runs in my family

Posted by Tennage Girl in Stress! on 12/08/2009 at 08:04:00 pm

My wetting the bed just started a few years ago, it comes and goes for months but when it comes its rapid and heavy..i tend towet the bed at night without knowing..when sleeping ive tryed so many things and visited the doctor all the time ..plus at my age i feel uncomfortable in my room becsue of the smell and i tend to get upset anfy self..plus my family gets worried and it is also embarissing plus i share a room with my older sister ;( I JUST WISH IT WASNT ME!!

Posted by Martin on 30/07/2009 at 10:16:00 pm

I wet the bed mostly after drinking beer. It doesn't happen everytime. Sometimes I can drink 4 pints and wet the bed, other times I can drink 12 pints and be alright. This can also happen with soft drinks.

Posted by Annie on 06/07/2009 at 09:36:00 pm

to all of you who r suffering bed wetting.Please see your Doctor.My son has been suffering from this for years. he was prescribed medication and after a short period it began to improve.Also had an alarm.Although it lasted around 5mnths,it was great to see him dry.It has started again and will have to go on medication again, please don't suffer in silence.

Posted by Anonymous on 26/06/2009 at 11:54:00 am

I dont know what to do, my boyfriend has wet the bed twice now when he has stayed over, he wont talk about it, could there be something wrong with him? and how do i deal with it??

Posted by Anonymous on 23/06/2009 at 12:13:00 am

Can panic ataks cause bedweting

Posted by Stressed on 30/03/2009 at 09:20:00 am

I've been dating a very wonderful man for the past 6 months, and I'm loving every moment with him.This past weekend he woke up in a flood and it was my fault. I don't know what to do/say to him. He confronted me over the phone but I'm so frustrated as to how our next meeting is going to be. I love him and don't want to loose him but this problem in my family seems to heritary and I guess nobody would like to grow old with someone that would forever wet their bed. I'm very stressed HELP!

Posted by Anonymous on 25/03/2009 at 11:50:00 pm

I have this problem and i don't know what to do. It's driving me crazy