Does anyone else's DC deliberately wet the bed? Don't know how to stop it!!

[ForPetesSakeNotAgain]

This isn't my usual name (though I rather like it now I've chosen it). I am rather embarrassed by the problem I suppose and am embarrassed in case anyone guesses who my DS is (risk is I know miniscule)

Anyway like many 5 year olds DS1 very occasionally has a nighttime accident and we always treat it matter of factly. However recently he has started peeing in bed when he is wide awake and I can't find any way to stop him.

He sometimes finds it difficult to get to sleep at night and when that happens we do all the textbook stuff - taking him back to bed with no talk, no eye contact etc. When he can't sleep he normally stays in bed but we can hear him chatting or singing to himself. A couple of weeks ago he started wetting the bed before 9pm (accidents for him are usually at 2am). It took a while until we could be sure these weren't accidents but one night we heard him clearly wide awake just before he peed in bed. Then after we had changed the sheets etc he did it again 45 minutes later (rather smaller quantity this time of course). DH, who is normally exceptionally calm, lost his temper at this point and told DS that he couldn't go to a planned birthday party the next day (or to another family social event the same day). I felt this was rather draconian (particularly as I was looking forward to the social event but hoped it would at least put a stop to it.

We also had a family meeting that day (DH, me, DS1 + baby) to discuss what was happening. Upshot of that was small change to bedtime routine and pullups at bedtime (not sufficiently clear to us that DS really meant to change).

This morning DS1 woke up early (4am). Woke DH to go to the loo then went back to bed. DS tossed and turned with me popping in a couple of times to reassure, wipe sneezes etc. DH goes in at 5.30am, suggests DS1 reads until earliest get up time (6am). 15 minutes later DS1 arrives at our bedside looking rather pleased with himself having wet bed through pull up.

Can't get any sense from DS1 about why he is doing this. Nothing has changed in family or his life recently (our youngest is 16mths old). Google suggests these things are never deliberate but I'm not sure they are right. I have run out of ideas for how to stop him doing this. Anyone? Please?

Goodness, its hard. Could not try rewarding the dry nights if there are any. Maybe you could get some cloth pull ups. It would not be so comfortable for him.

Do you use bed mats. Its worth making the bed up double to minimise the work of changing the sheets in the night. Prehaps having a second duvet ready in a cupboard might help.

Do you involve him in changing the bedsheets. If you get fitted sheets. Supervising him, get him to strip his bed and at least help with taking the duvet cover off. Then get him to take the dirty sheets to the washing machine and put them in the washing machine.

I would take him to the GP so that a bladder infection or some such thing can be investigated/ruled out

If that's all clear I think personally that absolutely zero attention being paid to it would work, even if it took a while....I know that's not the easy answer.

Make his bed twice? As in rubber bed mat, sheet, rubber bed mat, sheet - so that all you have to do is whip the top ones off! I have not tried this by the way, it just sounds like it would save time in the middle of the night!!!

These are good ideas - thank you. We have a second bed in his bedroom made up ready so we move him across to the other bed when it happens. I find it hard not to strip his bed straight afterwards as I'm worried about seepage into the mattress though I am inclined to tell him that next time it happens he has to handle all the nighttime bed stripping and pyjama changing by himself.

I am a bit wary however as the previous time he did it (when DH blew a fuse) DS said with a wicked look on his face "What if it was poop?" I don't want to go down that route that's for sure