Millions of tweens continue to wet the bed at night, with about 15 percent outgrowing the problem each year. Contrary to what many people think, depression doesn't cause chronic bed-wetting. On the contrary, bed-wetting puts tweens at risk for depression because they can't do many things other youngsters do, such as attend camps, slumber parties, or because they are made to feel ashamed by being punished and treated harshly.

Hereditary factors are thought to be involved in bed-wetting, since most bed wetters have a parent who wet the bed. The problem usually stems from an inability to awaken when the bladder sounds the alarm and tries to rouse the sleeping brain.

Brief bouts of bed-wetting can occur when a tween is overly tired, stressed, or depressed because the sleep cycles are disturbed. The altered brain waves prevent the sleeping brain from detecting signals from the bladder, so the child fails to awaken. In that case, you can expect the problem to disappear as soon as your tween is back on an even keel. Since punishments increase stress and depression, be kind or you may perpetuate a problem that might have cleared up on its own.

Sleepwalking

It is not unusual for tweens to sleepwalk. Although most outgrow it, fatigue and sleep deprivation are thought to precipitate it. Tweens can injure themselves if they rise from their beds and cook in the kitchen or go outside for a midnight stroll, so take steps to keep them contained. It's a myth that it's dangerous to awaken a sleepwalker. It is common for tweens to talk in their sleep, too. It's doubtful you'll be able to pry any secrets from his sleep-loosened lips, however. Few of their comments are comprehensible and those that are tend to be pretty mundane.