Dr Catherine
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Boy
8-15 years

My child is a deep sleeper, he is seeing a specialist on bedwetting. We have been working on his constipation with much success but he still sleeps really deep. What can I do to help him handle bedwetting?

It is not unusual for parents to comment on how soundly their child sleeps (even not waking when they wet); while deep sleeping is not a direct cause of bedwetting it certainly makes it more difficult for children to wake in response to a full bladder. It is not unusual for children who are deep sleepers to experience difficulty in responding to bedwetting alarms. It may be helpful to practice setting the alarm off during the day (with a drop of water) so that your son will become familiar to the sound of the alarm. Some alarms have different settings that allow you to vary the sound – sometimes a louder alarm will raise a particularly deep sleeper. Others include a vibration option, which he may respond to more easily. It is important that you discuss this with your doctor who will be able to discuss how best to move forward. All the best, Dr Cathrine