Bed-wetting or enuresis (the involuntary passage of urine) is a poorly understood problem that continues after the child reaches five years of age.  Some nocturnal bed-wetting is related to maturation, especially in boys.  Commonly, bed-wetting is blamed on immature sleeping patterns or small urinary bladder capacity.

One of the common causative factors involved in nocturnal enuresis is categorized as bladder innervation disorder.  This is the area in which the Doctor of Chiropractic can be of help to the child.  Chiropractic studies have indicated that bed-wetting has been resolved when vertebral subluxations (nerve interferences) are corrected. 
What is a subluxation?
The free flow of nerve communications from the brain, through the spinal column, to all parts of the human body governs itself and all its functions.  When nerves become stretched or twisted (commonly referred to as a "pinched nerve"), this vital communcation system is disturbed.  These neurological disturbances are called subluxations.  Chiropractic science has determined that subluxations can lead to serious health consequences.  Conversly, the removal of subluxations has been shown to have important health benefits. 

When nerve supply or communication is disrupted, one or more parts of the body begin to fail.  Health in general begins to fail and as your body weakens, sickness and diseas are the result.  Instead of treating the symptoms of disease, the Doctor of Chiropractic corrects the subluxations, so that normal body function may take place.

Chiropractic is a very specific science.  By minimizing nerve interference through chiropractic adjustments, the natural strengths of the human body are meximized increasing the body's capacity to heal itself without use of drugs or surgery.

(for more information on subluxations and what causes them, go to our FAQ tab above then click the tab labeled Whats is a subluxation? on the side bar to the right)
Parents can help, too.
Before initiating corrective care, the family must understand that enuresis is a problem that is out of the child's conscious control.  The child's problem should not be viewed as bad behavior. Scolding, restricting fluids, and waking the child, generally do not help and may actually delay resolution; therfore these practices should be discouraged.  Your child should activively participate in both their chiropractic consultation and correction.  Changing and washing sheets is suggested as long as the child is not made to feel humiliated. 
In addition to restoring nerve supply, bladder exercises may also be helpful.  Two types are expecially useful; bladder stretching and urine stream interruption.  Bladder stretching may be done as follows:


Urine stream interruption is designed to increase the child's ability to withstand bladder spasms.

    This interruption exercise often helps to strengthen contol:


Both of these exercises should be followed for at least three months to acheive the best results.


Conclusion
Any child suffering from bed-wetting should be thoroughly analyzed for vertebral subluxations that may be interfering with normal growth and function.  Although this is a difficult problem for both the parents and the child, continued patient seems to pay off as normal nerve function is restored.  Parents should encourage their child to "stick" closely to their corrective schedule as this plays a major role in the elimination of this problem.   

Chiropractic is safe and natural.
The chiropractic approach to health care is natural, in that it does not try to stimulate or inhibit normal body function.  Instead, the chiropractor realizes the importance of the nervous system in relation to disease.  Drs. Bachman and Lantz reported dramatic improvement in bed-wetting of traumatic origin with chiropractic adjustments.