Why is my six year old still wetting the bed?
Bedwetting at age six can involve frequent nighttime accidents that lead to intense outside pressure and harsh shaming from family members. This criticism often unfairly blames the child, causing deep embarrassment while families try to handle the ongoing accidents.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Using pull-ups or washable underwear-style pull-upsDid this help you?
- 2Reducing drinks before bedDid this help you?
- 3Making the child use the bathroom right before bedtimeDid this help you?
- 4Using a vibrating watch to wake the child up for the toiletDid this help you?
- 5taking the child potty in the middle of the nightDid this help you?
- 6changing bedding and doing extra laundryDid this help you?
- 7shifting the focus and praising them for stopping mid-streamDid this help you?
- 8doing a quick wipe-down, change of clothes and sheets, and giving big hugsDid this help you?
- 9acting like it didn't happen or avoiding making a huge deal out of itDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“our 5 year old still wets the bed at night, despite taking him potty in the middle of the night.”source ↗
“when he does, he deliberately won’t leave his bed and will just pee in then to avoid getting up so we don’t think he’s actually learning anything about avoiding accidents.”source ↗
“still at my ripe age of 25 i still have nighttime accidents at random.”source ↗
“i think he should still wear pull ups but am nervous that it’ll make the hormone not develop for him.”source ↗
“My daughter is almost 6 and she just had accidents in bed 3 nights in a row.”source ↗
“My mom was shaming me because my daughter was still wearing a pull-up.”source ↗
“I had accidents until 12/13 years old. It wasn’t because I was lazy, it was never on purpose. But my mom shamed me constantly and embarrassed me in front of anyone possible about it.”source ↗
“I still had no idea how to handle the situation given, for context, he has been potty trained since 2yo and had less accidents than I can count on one hand.”source ↗
“Looking for feedback on how I handled + advice for follow-up. Should I have said more/less? Do I mention it to him in the morning or just act like it didn’t even happen?”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 2How to handle bedwetting during sleepovers and trips
- 6Why does my potty trained child have accidents only at home?
- 6How to snap a toddler out of night terrors?
- 16How do I start potty training when I don't have a yard?
- 19Why is my older child having panic attacks at bedtime?
- 5Kindergarteners coming to school not potty trained