Incontinence is the medical term for sudden loss of bladder control. It can happen at night or during the day. If daytime incontinence is not treated for a long time, it can lead to other health problems. If your child is suffering from incontinence, read on to learn how to manage this frustrating problem.
Steps
Method 1 of 4: Knowing the Bladder
Step 1. Learn how the bladder works
It is essentially a muscular storage bag for urine. Normally, the muscular sac in the bladder can remain relaxed and expand to accommodate urine for many hours (a good thing, because otherwise you'll spend all day in the bathroom). The muscle that forms the bladder sac is called the detrusor muscle; it is also responsible for emptying the bladder. The other major muscle in the bladder is the sphincter. This is a ring of muscle that surrounds the bladder's exit tube.
There are actually two sphincters: one involuntary (you can't control it) and the other usually under our control (voluntary) - the second is the muscle you can use to hold urine until you go to the bathroom
Step 2. Learn about bladder control
There are nerves in our body that tell us when the bladder is full - this is the first warning that the bladder is ready to be emptied. When you urinate, the nerves in the detrusor muscle communicate a contraction while, at the same time, the nerves in the involuntary sphincter cause it to relax.
- All you have to do at that point is to relax the voluntary sphincter to be able to urinate.
- Almost all children, around the age of two, begin to understand that the feeling they feel "down" is the need to empty the bladder. This allows them to tell when they should go to the bathroom.
- After about a year, they develop the ability to "hold" it until they reach the bathroom.
Step 3. Learn about possible problems when a child learns to "hold" her
Although most children develop the ability to "hold" urine and go to the bathroom when they have the opportunity to do so, in some cases there are problems that can interfere with a child's ability to control a child's bladder. These childhood incontinence related problems can include:
- A bladder unable to hold the normal amount of urine.
- Weakness of the detrusor muscle or sphincter.
- Structural abnormalities of the urinary tract.
- The body produces more urine than normal.
- Bladder irritation due to infections or other irritants.
- The bladder receives premature and unexpected signals to release.
- Something in the bladder area prevents it from filling completely, such as other excrement caused by constipation.
- Excessive delay in urinating ("holding" it too long).
- Chronic constipation.
Step 4. Dispel some myths about incontinence
If your child has been suffering from incontinence for a long time, he is probably just not too lazy to go to the bathroom. Many parents have a tendency to believe that incontinence is a sign of laziness, but it is important to remember that other problems may be causing it. Common misconceptions parents should avoid before reading this article include:
- Babies who get dressed are just too lazy to go to the bathroom.
- Babies who get dressed are too busy playing or watching TV.
- Babies who get dressed do not want to go to the bathroom and purposely urinate.
- Children who get dressed wait for the last minute.
- Peeing does not bother children.
Method 2 of 4: Treating incontinence
Step 1. Look for signs that indicate underfilling problems
These signs include:
- Your child runs to the bathroom, crosses his legs and shivers or gets down, sitting on his heels.
- When asked, your child admits that he often "leaks" a little urine before he gets to the bathroom.
- You notice differences in urine volumes; many children will also admit that, in some cases, they run to the bathroom but excrete very little urine, even if they felt the urge to go.
Step 2. Some children simply go through a phase where they feel a "sudden urge to urinate"
Growing up, some children go through a phase in which, without warning, they need to go to the bathroom right away. This is underdeveloped control, which presents with incontinence due to too much stimulation and often resolves as the child grows.
This can also be a symptom of a small blister. There are some drugs that can increase the storage capacity of the bladder. You should speak to a doctor about options for dealing with a small blister
Step 3. Overfilling of the bladder can also lead to incontinence
This is a rarer condition. It occurs when the baby is unable to empty the bladder, and the bladder has a large capacity. Symptoms of an over-capacity bladder include:
- Expulsion of large volumes of urine during the day. This can happen if the kidneys produce a large amount of urine. You should take your child to the doctor if you notice that he urinates a lot every time he goes to the bathroom.
- Infrequent urination (less than 2 or 3 times a day). This can be a sign of spinal nerve problems, such as spina bifida or cerebral palsy, but if your child has not been diagnosed with spinal nerve problems, this is unlikely to be the cause of your child's incontinence.
Step 4. Notice if the child holds urine for too long
Holding urine for too long and too often can lead to overfilling of the bladder. Your child's bladder can enlarge if she is always holding urine (i.e. avoid going to the bathroom even when the urge is strong).
- If this habit goes on for a long time, the urinating muscles become "overworked", which means they will not be able to relax effectively, leading to bladder malfunctions such as incontinence.
- This often happens when a child does not want to use the toilet in the school or other public places.
Step 5. Consider behavioral therapy to help your child with incontinence
Many experts nowadays prefer this therapy to the use of drugs as the first line of treatment for incontinence of any kind. Behavior modification is a training method that allows you to relearn a skill, such as bladder control. Therapy must be followed assiduously to achieve the desired results. Child psychologists can give you good advice on how to create a program.
- Behavior therapy generally works best for children who are over five or six years of age. This is because younger children often lack the discipline to stick to the therapy schedule. However, each child should be analyzed as a single case.
- Child psychologists can give you a lot of good advice on how to create an effective program.
Step 6. Create a schedule for a child with an underfilled bladder
After your child goes to the bathroom in the morning, you will need to start giving him a strict urination schedule. Stops to the bathroom are usually chosen every two hours. Your child will have to go to the bathroom every two hours, even if he says he doesn't need to. That's exactly the point - making him go to the bathroom before his bladder spasms.
- If you wait for the bladder spasm, you will reinforce the lack of control. If your child goes to the bathroom and tries to urinate, even a little, his control will improve.
- If the child has an overfilling bladder, you should create the same previous schedule (one visit to the bathroom every two hours) with an additional step. Your child should wait 4-5 minutes after going to the bathroom and then try to urinate again, in an attempt to reduce the volume of urine left in the bladder. The goal is to change urination habits and allow the bladder to hold a normal volume of urine.
Step 7. Use an alarm system to help your child remember when to go to the bathroom
It can be difficult to remember to go to the bathroom every two hours. For this, it is important to create an alarm system. When your child is at home or visiting relatives (for example at grandma's house), set an alarm to go off every two hours.
- You can use a real alarm clock or a smartphone. You can also buy your child a watch that beeps or vibrates silently every two hours to remind him to go to the bathroom even when he is at school.
- You may also want to consider using an audible alarm that warns you when your child wets the bed at night.
Step 8. Increase the interval between bathroom visits after 4-6 weeks
Normally, you will see improvements after this period. However, this does not mean that you should stop the program. What you can do is increase the interval between urinations, for example to 3-4 hours.
Method 3 of 4: Treating Urinary Tract Infections
Step 1. Remember that incontinence due to insufficient bladder filling can be caused by urinary tract infections
These infections are more common in girls who have started school. They can cause incontinence and frequent urination, as well as pain in the lower abdomen. UTIs can be treated with antibiotics.
Some children who often suffer from infections of this type have a condition termed asymptomatic bacteriuria. These children, most often girls, have a colony of bacteria in their bladder. This causes an increase in bacteria in the urine, which can lead to frequent infections
Step 2. Minimize irritation
Many children, especially girls, develop irritation and inflammation in the area of the urethral and vaginal openings when they have a urinary tract infection. You can use some creams to relieve your child's irritation. In particular, creams with zinc oxide are very useful.
You can buy these creams at the pharmacy. Follow the directions on the package for dosing
Step 3. Change your baby's clothes when he gets them wet
Bacteria that cause urinary tract infections proliferate in wet areas. If your child gets wet clothes due to incontinence, it is important to put dry clothes on them.
You can explain this concept to him by changing himself or by telling you when he needs to be changed
Step 4. Treat recurring cases of infections with low doses of antibiotics
If your child has recurring urinary tract infections, you should speak to his doctor to get a prescription for antibiotics. Your child's doctor will be able to tell you if antibiotics are the right treatment for them.
The most commonly used antibiotics for prophylaxis are nitrofurantoin and co-trimoxazole. They are usually given once a day (before bed) at a dosage reduced to a quarter of normal
Method 4 of 4: Treating Constipation
Step 1. Consider constipation
Underfilling incontinence can also be caused by constipation. When large amounts of stool remain in the body instead of being expelled, they can limit the space available for the bladder to expand and cause unpredictable bladder contractions, two aspects that lead to incontinence. Constipation, for the purposes of this discussion, indicates infrequent (for more than 3 days) bowel movements, hard pebble-like stools, very heavy stools, or pain during defecation.
Step 2. Ask a doctor to determine if your child has a lot of stool in the intestines
He can do this with an x-ray or with a physical exam.
Knowing for certain that your child is constipated will help them overcome incontinence problems
Step 3. Ask your child to drink plenty of fluids throughout the day
Many children with incontinence problems tend to drink little, which makes their constipation worse. Try to get your child to drink at least 8 glasses of water a day to stay hydrated.
If your child doesn't like regular water, you can give him fruit juices, milk (no more than 2-3 cups a day) and energy drinks
Step 4. Increase your child's fiber intake to combat constipation
Fiber is one of the best ways to get your child's gut working right. There are many high-fiber foods - try to get some into your diet. These foods include:
- Fresh fruits and vegetables, including raspberries, blueberries, peas, spinach, acorn squash, kale, and broccoli (among many others).
- Wholemeal bread (with at least 3-4 grams of fiber per serving).
- High-fiber cereals.
- Beans, including black beans, lima, garbanzo, and pinto. Lentils and popcorn are also high in fiber.
Step 5. Give your child laxatives
Adding high-fiber foods to your child's diet will probably not be enough. For this, you should also try baby-friendly laxatives. A safe and often used one is glycolic propylene.
- This drug causes the transport of water in the intestines, softening the stool and promoting movement.
- You may want to get advice from your child's doctor - most children require half a capsule to two capsules a day, and the dosage should be specifically adjusted.
Advice
Some children complain of a sudden need to go to the bathroom after drinking citrus or carbonated drinks. While there is no evidence to confirm the relationship between these drinks and incontinence, you may still want to avoid letting your child drink them
Warnings
- To better understand what your child is going through, take him to a pediatrician who can help you unravel the mystery of his incontinence.
- Although in the past oxybutynin was used to treat incontinence, this remedy is avoided due to the side effects it can create.
- Talk to a therapist if your child's pelvic muscles are overtrained. The therapist will work with your child and teach him how to relax his muscles for trouble-free toileting.
