Sudden bedwetting in 12 year old- AIBU to think this is worrying?

[Sandalgrinder]

Shamelessly posting here for traffic, I apologise but really trying to get a sense of how concerning this is.

DS 12 has never been a bedwetter. Since he was a toddler he has wet the bed a handful of times, it has just never been an issue with him at all.

In recent weeks he has had three episodes. He has no explanation for it, says it just happened and is a bit embarrassed so reluctant to discuss it.

So as not to drip feed, he is a young and innocent 12 so no possibility of substance use. He is definitely not under unusual stress and generally a happy and popular kid. No nightmares or worries at night. I cannot see any risk of abuse.

The only health issues he has had is recent mild hypothyroidism, but with a normal TSH so it doesn't fit the normal pattern. The GP and paediatrician just keep repeating these over the past months and they keep getting basically the same results. They're not sure how significant it is or whether he will need medication for it. He complains of low energy and doesn't have great stamina for sport.

I don't think it could be diabetes as he has had his blood sugar checked in the past and I checked it myself recently with a monitor belonging to his grandfather and it was normal.

Any ideas would be appreciated. He's due to see the paediatrician again but not until February.

He has had covid a few months back but nothing very recent. I’m going to check for uti and do blood sugar again this evening.

I’m worrying about epilepsy. He has these neck rolling tics but now I’m worried that they’re not tics. I’ve never looked at having him see anyone about them because I know there aren’t really many treatment options and I didn’t see the point. It hadn’t occurred to me that they could be some kind of seizure. I will try to get some recordings of them and maybe go back to the GP.

Epilepsy isn't always visible fits op. Dd's bf had episodes of 'blanks' literally a couple of seconds of 'stop'.. Then back to normal.
Hard to spot unless looking at him for ages!!

He needs an appointment at the doctor where you can discuss the concerns and get everything checked out.

I'd test his blood sugars again. A couple, 2 hours after a high carbohydrate meal. The same thing happened to my son and it turned out to be Type 1 diabetes. It can come on very suddenly or creep in very gradually and slowly, so I would check again regardless of previous blood tests.

How does the tics look like?

nocturnal seizures can lead to bed wetting but there are usually also other signs such as bruises or sore tongue. It is also common to feel very tired in the morning and experience muscle soreness as if theyve just done a workout.

Ask his teacher if he seems ok in school. Some kids mask very well. He may be being picked on , or having friendship issues , or falling behind and worrying unnecessarily

I have a bed wetting DD but she’s much younger than your DS and has never been dry. Much of the online advice seems to be for kids who have never been dry.

I’ve only one thing to add to the advice above. To help him retain a bit of dignity and minimise your laundry, buy some
DryNites pants from your local supermarket. They’re in the nappies section but they don’t look like nappies. They’re specifically for bed wetting and there is an age 8-15 size.

I’d just leave a pack on his bed so he can use them if he wants to.

It won’t be laziness at his age given his history of not wetting since he was a toddler.

I have heard it said that it can suddenly come on in puberty because the hormones are all over the place and different parts of the body are growing at different rates.

Do get him checked for diabetes or any other health causes, but it may resolve on its own.

In the meantime give him the option to stay comfortable with DryNites or similar pants.

Sorry if overstepping but things you have mentioned are like my ds and he is awaiting ASD assessment. Bedwetting and tics can be associated with asd. Hormones control bladder control. Puberty can aid or hinder. Ds has an appointment with a urologist next month. Waited 10 months for the appointment...

Diabetes can come on quickly - over weeks or even days. It’s nothing something that takes a long time to change. Definitely get him tested again.

I wet the bed randomly when I was about 22 I wasn’t drunk or anything, I had a dream about a flowing river and when I woke up it had happened! Never happened again, but could it be a repetitive dream/nightmares etc?

Thank you for all the comments and suggestions. He definitely isn’t having bad dreams or nightmares, he tells me things like that. He’s very social so he hasn’t got ASD.

I’m going to check for UTI later, repeat the blood sugar and try to get some clips on my phone of the tics to show the doctor.

The tics involve him shrugging one shoulder and rolling his head to one side. It can happen a lot or very little it varies day to day. He doesn’t seem particularly aware of it or bothered by it.

My ds is very social.

I know a lot about ASD and he honestly hasn’t got it.

This sort of thing sounds like petit mal epilepsy. Someone with this can do odd movements, zone out briefly, drop things or stop talking mid sentence. It can develop into grand mal if not treated (major seizures) and it can co exist with other types of epilepsy.
It runs in my family it's normally really easily treated.
Please let us know how you get on I hope all is ok.

tics and seizures can be distinguished fairly easily. Usually tics are random and stops when they are asleep or relaxing- tends to occur more frequent when they are in a new situation or nervous/excited about something. Seizure like movements are very repetitive and usually occur on the same side of the body. Not one off and could be clusters of them. So if he has shoulder and head movement, pay attention to if this occur to the same side and if he also rolls his eyes along with it. They also tend to become more frequent when someone is getting tired.

Another thing can be diet.

Does he drink a lot of caffeinated soft drinks eg Coke or Pepsi?

That can sometimes be a cause.

Thanks again for all the comments and suggestions and I’ve come back with a half update. I retested his blood sugar on elderly relative’s glucose monitor and it was normal. I did a dip stick for UTI which was also negative. We’ve had one further wetting incident at night. DS can’t give an explanation other than that he woke up and he was already peeing.

I haven’t taken him to the GP for now as he is already under the Paediatrician due to ongoing issues with fatigue and his thyroid results. He’s had bloods for thyroid three times- January, April and August and each time his T4 has been around 10 but weirdly TSH on the low side at around 1. They haven’t been too concerned about this. He’s not due to see the Paediatrician again until February but after the most recent bloods he did say to repeat them yet again so we’re due to do that in two weeks time. I guess if his thyroid levels are still off I can request referral to an endocrinologist at that point?

I’ve also recorded a few examples of (what I think are) tics to show the Paediatrician to see what he thinks.

Any other suggestions/ thoughts about what I can do would be very welcome? I’m not sure if I should be pushing for him to be seen sooner or if going along with the wait and see approach is right.

When you say blood sugars are normal, when are you testing and what are the results? My DS started bed wetting a couple of months before his diabetes diagnosis.

Thanks for commenting and sorry to hear about your son’s diagnosis. I just did it in the evening a while after dinner I can’t remember the exact score but it was 5 point something. As far as I know that’s normal. Did your son have other signs leading up to diagnosis?

Yes that's a pretty perfect score. He was tired all the time, thirsty, lost weight. It went on for some time before he went into DKA.

I hope you get to the bottom of your sons problems.

I have epilepsy that's controlled I haven't had a seizure for donkeys years.
When mine first started I had these "tic" sort of episodes, just one offs where I would drop anything I was holding, or I'd do these twitch things or jump as if I'd gotten a fright. Next thing I knew I was in an ambulance and had to have my head stitched. Apparently it was petit mal that progressed to grand mal.
I think seizures come in all forms.

Thanks so much for sharing that. I have been reading up on different types of seizures and scaring myself a bit but I think all I can do is show the recording to the paediatrician at the next appointment. He shrugs one shoulder and rolls his neck/ head to that side.

Is it anxiety? You mentioned tics so could be related.

Don't let the thought of seizures frighten you, they're nearly always stopped by medication if it's needed.
That doesn't say it's what your son has but if it turns out to be that it's really nothing to worry about honestly. I've not had a seizure now in over 30 years and I know others who are fine too.
I just hope you get to the bottom of it soon and your mind is at rest 💐

Ok so you can show the paedatrician in 2 weeks time when they repeat the bloods? I wouldn’t sit on this until Feb

Thanks so much. The Paediatrician sent out another blood test form after the last results for them to be repeated so that’s happening in two weeks. I’m planning to wait and see what those results are then speak to him again. The next face to face appointment isn’t until February.