Deep Sleep and Bedwetting
Can deep sleep cause bedwetting?

Many parents believe that bedwetting in children is due to their inability to wake from deep sleep. Indeed, waking a child who wets the bed can be so challenging that some may not stir even for a loud bedwetting alarm, often leaving the rest of the family awake and bewildered. However, it’s important to note that not all children who are deep sleepers wet the bed.
Many bedwetters are difficult to wake up!
Bedwetting happens at different times of the night for different children. Some may wet the bed early in the night, whilst others may do so in the early morning. For many chronic bedwetters, they wet the bed more than once a night.
Children, like adults, cycle between different types of sleep during the night. Understanding these sleep stages can help both kids and adults, as the nature of our sleep, and ability to awaken varies across different stages. Many parents say their bedwetting child also seems to be a deep sleeper, indicating that bedwetting could mostly happen during the deep sleep stages. Let’s take a closer look at sleep cycles to find out if there is a specific phase during sleep when bedwetting is more common.
About Sleep Cycles
Non-Rapid Eye Movement (NREM) Sleep
Stage One (N1): As you begin to fall asleep, you enter stage one of the sleep cycle. It’s easy to wake up from this stage, and if you were to be woken up, you might not realize you had been asleep.
Stage Two (N2): Upon entering stage two of the sleep cycle, you’re still in a state of ‘light sleep.’ Depending on how far you’ve progressed into stage two, you can be easily awakened. Your body starts to relax more, your heart rate slows, and your body temperature decreases. It is in stages one or two of NREM sleep where we sometimes experience the hypnagogic startle, a sudden jerk of your whole body that wakes you momentarily, and that is quite normal.
Deep Sleep
Stage Three (N3): Next comes stage three of non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep which is ‘deep sleep’ (formerly divided into stages three and four). Your brainwaves slow down and it becomes more difficult to wake up. In fact, someone calling your name would not necessarily wake you up. If you take your child to the toilet in this sleep stage, he or she may stay in a semi-sleep state and fall straight back to sleep with no recollection of going to the toilet in the morning.
This deep sleep stage is crucial for your body to go through restorative processes, including tissue repair, muscle growth, and boosting the immune system.
According to Dr Ferber, author of Solve Your Child’s Sleep Problems, young kids tend to spend more time in deep sleep during early in the night. And early morning, children typically have a period of very deep sleep before awakening.
REM Sleep
Finally, there is REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep when most of your dreams occur. Your eyes move rapidly, heart rate goes up, and your breathing becomes irregular. Although your muscles are very relaxed, waking up from this stage can be easier. REM sleep is believed to be crucial for cognitive function, memory, emotions, and creative problem-solving.
Sleep cycles repeat throughout the night, with each cycle lasts approximately 90 minutes for adults and around 50 minutes for children. However, the length and order of each stage can be different for everyone.
At the beginning of each sleep cycle, there’s usually a short moment when you wake up a little. This is when you might notice you are too hot or cold, maybe move around to get more comfortable, glance at the clock, grab the sheets, or realize you need to go to the toilet.

So When Does Bedwetting Occur?
Research gives mixed answers about when bedwetting happens, suggesting it can happen during any sleep stage. However, recent studies show it’s mostly during stage two (N2) of sleep, and then during deep sleep. It’s less common during the first stage (N1) and REM sleep.
Interestingly, research carried out by the Institute of Experimental Clinical Research in Denmark reveals that kids who wet the bed are ‘normal sleepers’. So why do so many parents of kids who often wet the bed think their child is a really deep sleeper?

Senior lecturer Tryggve Neveus at Uppsala University in Sweden suggests it is because waking up these kids is challenging. Their sleep is ‘normal’ but their ability to wake up from sleep is more problematic. They don’t wake up from the sensations of needing to go, and can’t wake up to get to the toilet in time. He also states that even if the sleep is “deep” it doesn’t necessarily mean that it is good, in fact, he suggests that sleep quality in bedwetting children may be poor.
Other studies have found that kids who wet the bed have more fragmented and disturbed sleep and move around a lot in their sleep.
So, making sure these kids aren’t too tired and get plenty of good quality and quantity sleep could really help them wake up easier when they need to go to the bathroom.
How To Improve Sleep Quality
- In some children, it may help to limit eating for two hours before bed.
- Sugar, soft drinks, and caffeine before bed may hinder good quality sleep and can increase bedwetting.
- Milk can also increase the tendency for some children to wet the bed.
- Less screen time before bed helps. The light from the screen, especially from smaller devices such as phones and tablets, has been found to significantly reduce levels of the hormone melatonin, which regulates our internal clocks and plays a role in the sleep cycle.
How To Improve Sleep Quantity
- Set a regular time for bed and to wake up in the morning. Melatonin levels begin to increase approximately two hours before bedtime, so keeping a regular sleep schedule will aid the sleep cycle.
- Set a regular and calm routine at bedtime so your child’s body knows what activities lead to sleep.
- Ensure your child is getting enough sleep. Although children vary in the amount of sleep they need, parents often underestimate how much they should be getting for their age.
- Lifestyle is also important to take into consideration. If your child has started school, is undertaking tests, has various activities during the week or is close to the end of term, he or she may need more sleep. Likewise, if your child wakes up tired most mornings, this can also indicate insufficient sleep.
- Ideally, the bedroom should be dark (and your child has no light coming in from the windows). Equally important, a bright night light can hinder going to sleep and also affect the quality of sleep.
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Conclusion
Kids can wet the bed during any sleep stage, but it mostly happens in stage two and deep sleep. There’s no real evidence to back up the idea that bedwetting happens only during deep sleep, which is pretty surprising given how tough it can be to wake up some of these kids.
Considering bedwetting children often experience poor sleep, it stands to reason that they may need more sleep to make up for it. So, while deep sleep might not be the direct cause of bedwetting, making sure your child gets plenty of good quality sleep could certainly help their ability to wake up to go, and improve their emotional well-being.
If you are waking up your child to wee in the night this could disrupt their sleep cycle and could be counterproductive. Learn more about the dilemma that some parents face: should you wake your child up to pee at night?
It can be helpful to explain to your child that they naturally wake up slightly from deep sleep several times a night. Encourage them to notice moments when they might wake up feeling too hot or cold, or when they might reach for the blanket. This awareness can prompt them to check in with their bladder to see if they need to go to the toilet. Since they’re already partially awake, it might be easier for them to get out of bed.
While this approach may not completely stop bedwetting, it can significantly boost their confidence and help them become more aware of their need to use the toilet at night.
Is your child a deep sleeper? Does your child move around a lot when sleeping? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!
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References
Dhondt, K., Van Herzeele, C., Roels, S. P., Raes, A., Groen, L. A., Hoebeke, P., & Walle, J. V. (2015). Sleep fragmentation and periodic limb movements in children with monosymptomatic nocturnal enuresis and polyuria. Pediatric Nephrology, 30(7), 1157-1162. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00467-015-3044-3
Ferber, R. (2006). Solve Your Child’s Sleep Problems. Vermilion London.
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Learning while you sleep: Dream or reality? (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/learning-while-you-sleep-dream-or-reality
National Sleep Foundation. (n.d.). REM sleep. Retrieved from https://www.sleepfoundation.org/stages-of-sleep/rem-sleep
National Sleep Foundation. (n.d.). Children and sleep. Retrieved from https://www.sleepfoundation.org/children-and-sleep
Nevéus, T., Enuretic sleep: deep, disturbed or just wet? (2008). Pediatric Nephrology, 23(8), 1201-1202. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00467-008-0859-1
Nevéus, T., Stenberg, A., Läckgren, G., Tuvemo, T., & Hetta, J. (1999). Sleep of children with enuresis: A polysomnographic study. Pediatrics, 103(6), 1193-1197. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.103.6.1193
Pedersen, M. J., Rittig, S., Jennum, P. J., & Kamperis, K. (2020). The role of sleep in the pathophysiology of nocturnal enuresis. Sleep Medicine Reviews, 49, 101228. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.smrv.2019.101228
10 Things You Didn’t Know About The Sleep Hormone: Melatonin. (2014, August 26). Retrieved from http://blog.withings.com/2014/08/26/10-things-you-didnt-know-about-the-sleep-hormone-melatonin/