Nocturnal enuresis commonly known as bedwetting, is the involuntary release of urine during sleep.
This has become common not only in children but is also affecting adults.
Those affected feel embarrassed to wake up to a wet patch on their beds.
But it's not your fault. It could be due to a medical condition, medication or a problem with your bladder or other underlying conditions.
It can be a symptom of bladder control problems like incontinence or overactive bladder or severe structural issues like enlarged prostate or bladder cancer.
Your kidneys might be making more urine than normal.
A hormone called ADH tells your kidneys to make less urine and usually it does at night.
So when it makes a lot of urine at night then your kidneys fail to respond well with the hormone ADH.
There are many other health causes of bedwetting, one of them is a form of diabetes called diabetes insipicus which also affects ADH levels making you to produce more urine.
There is also the overactive bladder, these muscles can squeeze too often or at the wrong time.
At times some drugs can irritate your bladder for example sleeping pills or antipsychotics.
Similarly, bladder cancers, prostrate cancers, Uterine Track Infection diseases like brain issues, spines, seizure disorders, paralysis problems and many others can cause bedwetting.
At times it's treatable with medicine depending with the cause.
It is advisable to seek professional advise for treatment. In some advanced levels we have continence nurse advisors and continence therapists.
Psychologists are also able to tell if the bedwetting is due to stress or another medical issue.
It is also important to exercise your bladder and pelvis in different ways as advised by specialists to tighten the muscles.
Bedwetting is not new, it affects from teenagers to adults. Although it is not homogeneous to one gender, most cases of those affected are males.
The writer is a psychologist at Home Rehabilitation Center Thika
-Edited by SKanyara
