my friend's son is 4 years old and in the past 5 weeks (since their cross-country move) has been needing to go to the bathroom every 5 minutes and it's driving both my friend and her son crazy. they've run all the medical tests that they can and everything comes back normal. when he's at school, he does tend to go less often but it makes going anywhere very exhausting. he sleeps through the night without wetting the bed and he says that nothing is hurting him. has anybody dealt with this? she had a crusty old doctor prescribe her son something and the pharmacist said 'you're giving this to your child? i wouldn't.' so she's hesitant to try it but is at the end of her rope. any advice?
turns out he was pretty constipated, altho he didn't complain of pain, and the pressure made him need to go to the bathroom all the time. mom figured this out herself as she didn't want to use the gnarly medication the urologist prescribed. and of course when she'd asked the urologist if it there was a possibility that constipation would be causing it, he said no. moms know best! thanks to everyone for your input.
I would get another doctors opinion. I don't knwo what other symptoms he may be having, but my brother has type 1 (child onset and insulin dependent) diabetis and having to pee all the time can be one of the symptoms. If there is no other symptoms, i wouldn't worry about it, but I would definately get a second doctors opinion about what may be causing the problem, especially after what the pharmacist said about the medication. Good luck!
I would try changing his diet. Maybe cutting out all sugar.
Good luck!
Hi Nicole,
In regards to your friend's child...I would have him tested for diabetis. Moving is very stressful and can make a pre-existing illness like diabetis rear it's ugly head. A simple urine test first could give them the answer and if the sugars weren't so high that he was throwing the sugar in his urine then blood tests would have to be done. I would get him to a pedatrician who is not old and crusty or a pediatric endocrinologist. Sounds like juvinile diabetis to me especailly if he is drinking more. Good luck to your friend. Please let us know what happened.
It sounds like he's having some anxiety from the move.
I know that when I'm anxious I have the urge to void constantly but when I go to the bathroom little to nothing comes out.
My daughter who is now 9 actually went through the same thing a few years ago.
I took her to the doctor thinking she had a UTI but there was nothing wrong with her. She finally told the doctor that she felt like she was "leaking". So the doctor suggested that she wear little carefree type mini pads. I started having her wear those and after about 2 or 3 months she told me she didn't feel like she was leaking anymore and she wasn't going to the bathroom nearly as often and she stopprd wearing the mini pads. She has been fine ever since. I think it was just an anxiexty about something.
Maybe it's not that he has to void so much, maybe he could feel like he's "leaking" also from not letting himself drain out all the way from the last time he went to the bathroom. Just a thought.
Good Luck to your friend!
Steph
My daughter Eliza is almost 4. I swear this child uses the bathroom 15 times a day. Especially when we're out running errands. Everytime we walk into a store..."mommy i need to go potty" I've chalked it up to her just wanting to see the bathroom. I'm always hesitant to take her, because i know she really doesnt have to go that bad... but she always manages to GO.. I think that maybe this could be with your friends son. If the doctors cant find anything, there is probably nothing...maybe hes just looking for attention, moving is very time consuming for parents... he might be feeling left out and using the bathroom with mommy gives him time with her... or maybe he just wants to see the bathrooms....:)
Nicole,
My first thought was if he was tested for diabetis? I know you said he had tests run but I have a relative that was diagnosed around age 4. Is he thirsty too? Just wouldn't want you to miss that one.
K.
Karen S has some really good ideas. I would lean in the direction that this is a psychological issue. And try out distracting him. Make it a rule that we only go to the bathroom every 30 minutes and then if that goes well increase the time between uses of the bathroom. Reassure him that you know he can wait but if he isn't that's OK. His mother could do a chart. A sticker for every time he is able to wait.
Add to this, finding ways to distract him so that he's not so aware of the time or how he's feeling. Does he go every 5 minutes while he's watching a movie or TV program?
I am guessing that the doctor is thinking that he might have an urge problem and that the medicine is to decrease the nerve activity in his bladder or something like that. There is no test for this disorder. If the medication works then that is probably what it is.
How much does he urinate each time? If none or very little it would seem to have something to do with the nerves that tell him it's time to go. I have had that after a UTI. It went away in a few days without medication.
Moving cross country could make him especially anxious and it may be coming out in feeling the need to pee. When I'm anxious I feel the urge to pee but when I go to the bathroom there is just a tiny bit but I don't get rid of the urge until my anxiety lessons. If he has in the past gotten into trouble because he wet his pants I would reassure him that an accident will not get him in trouble.
When you're out I'd just say, there is no bathroom here. I think that you can hold it until we get home or when we find one. Both of my grandchildren, ages nearly 4 and nearly 7 insist that they have to go right now. I tell them that they can wait until we get home. They will make a fuss, grab at themselves, squirm, etc. but when we get home they've frequently forgotten their desperation and wait 5 or 10 minutes before going. Sometimes when I remind them they say, "I don't need to go anymore."
What I'm suggesting is bladder training along with calm reassurance.
And to find out what the doctor was thinking when she prescribed the medicine and why the pharmacist said he wouldn't give it to a child.
You can find out more about the medicine on the Internet.
I just had another thought. Could this be his way of getting attention? If so I'd only pay attention when he's successfully waited. And I would rush to find a bathroom while they're out. And find ways to give him positive attention in other ways.
Did she ask the pharmacist why he wouldn't give the medication to her son? That would have been the absolute first thing I would have done if my pharmacist said anything like that. THEN, I would have called the "crusty old doctor" to ask him about what the pharmacist told me. (I also would have questioned the doctor as to why he was giving my son a prescription when he didn't know what (if anything) was wrong.)
But, honestly, if the tests are coming back normal AND he's sleeping through the night without wetting the bed and without getting up every twenty minutes to pee, it sounds like it might be a psychological issue rather than a medical issue. I would not rule out the medical issue, though. (It's possible his body has hit a growth spurt, but his bladder hasn't caught up yet. I've read that this is fairly common in boys and can be why boys tend to be bedwetters for longer than girls.) I absolutely would not rely on the crusty old doctor who wants to prescribe a 4 year old a drug for a condition the doctor can't identify and would immediately ask for a referral to a pediatric urologist. I insisted on a referral to one several months ago for my youngest son because he had been diagnosed with a hydrocele by his pediatrician and I wasn't confident that his doctor had a sufficient level of expertise. I am SO glad we saw the urologist - his information and advice was much better than my sons' regular doctor.
If it were me I would wait. He's in no pain and she's already done the tests. Whenever there are big changes in my sons life he tends to do weird stuff like this. Also I would think back and see if anything else has happened? Did he get in trouble for having an accident and so he's become obsessed with not having another one? Does he get a lot of attention and praise when he goes to the bathroom? Maybe he needs more Mommy time. Also when my son was potty training he 'had to go to the bathroom' every place we went. His way of seeing new things I guess, it passes. I would try some of that stuff before I went to a urologist.
Hello,
I too have a friend who went through the same thing with her daughter. They eventually took the young lady (4yrs old) to a child psychiatrist. She was just not used to the change and being so far away from "home." It took about 6 months before she was able to last longer between "I gotta go!" Just stay positive and get him excited about the new home. Things will be back to normal when you least expect it.
Good Luck!
I do NOT agree that the child should be forced or encouraged to hold his urine. This can cause urinary tract infections. Even if the problem is psychological, making him wait to go won't help the issue and could make the problem worse. I would request a referral to a pediatric urologist, I take my son to one and he (the urologist) is great. I would give you his info but it sounds like your friend doesn't live in the area anyway. The urologist will be able to tell your friend whether or not there is anything structural causing these problems.
In my experience this probably more psychological then physical. He is trying to adjust to a big move and toileting is one of the few things in his life that he has any control over. He may not even be aware of it conciously. I would try asking him if he could hold it. The other suggestion is to let it go. Regarding the medication I would most definately get a second opinion. I would not trust a doc that would prescribe medication to a child when the tests are coming back normal and the pharmacist says don't give it to kids.
