What Teachers Should Know Incontinence is common among preschoolers. It's usually the result of kids waiting until the last minute to go to a bathroom. Urinary incontinence, or daytime wetting, is more common than fecal incontinence, or soiling. Bladder or bowel incontinence is rarer among elementary and secondary students. Causes of incontinence include: overactive bladder constipation, which can result in urinary or fecal incontinence problems with nerves from the lower spinal cord that control bowel and bladder function problems related to other conditions, such as diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease, irritable bowel syndrome, and spina bifida Students with incontinence may: need preferential seating nearest to a bathroom miss class time due to frequent bathroom breaks have pain or discomfort due to bladder or bowel issues need to go to the school nurse for medication or to change their clothes benefit from a 504 education plan feel anxious or embarrassed by their incontinence be at risk for teasing or bullying due to their condition What Teachers Can Do Incontinence can affect your student's self-esteem, social well-being, and even academic performance. Incontinence can be embarrassing to anyone, especially if it happens in the classroom. Students' abilities to wait until appropriate bathroom breaks can depend on a variety of factors. For students with special needs, for example, it may be difficult to communicate their need to use a bathroom. Make sure your students with incontinence know they can go to the bathroom whenever they need to, without asking permission. Adding regularly scheduled, frequent breaks also can help reduce accidents. While most students with incontinence will outgrow it, others may continue to have difficulties. Be patient, understanding, and reassuring, and avoid drawing attention to your student. Back to Articles Related Articles Your Urinary System You pee every day, but what makes it happen? Find out in this article for kids about the urinary system. Read More Kidneys and Urinary Tract The kidneys perform several functions that are essential to health, the most important of which are to filter blood and produce urine. Read More Bedwetting Lots of kids wet the bed. Find out more in this article for kids. Read More Bedwetting Bedwetting is an issue that millions of families face every night. Most of the time it's not a sign of any deeper medical or emotional issues and kids eventually grow out of it. Read More Bedwetting (Nocturnal Enuresis) Bedwetting can be embarrassing and upsetting for teens, but there are effective ways to correct the problem and scientists are constantly developing new treatments. Read More A to Z: Neurogenic Bladder The term neurogenic bladder refers to a bladder that doesn't function properly because of nervous damage. Read More 504 Education Plans If your child has special needs in the classroom, he or she may be eligible for a government-supported learning plan. Read More Kidneys and Urinary Tract The bean-shaped kidneys, each about the size of a child's fist, are essential to our health. Their most important role is to filter blood and produce urine. Read More Soiling (Encopresis) If your child has bowel movements in places other than the toilet, you know how frustrating it can be. Many kids who soil beyond the years of toilet teaching have a condition known as encopresis. Read More Note: All information is for educational purposes only. For specific medical advice, diagnoses, and treatment, consult your doctor. © 1995-2021 KidsHealth®. All rights reserved. Images provided by The Nemours Foundation, iStock, Getty Images, Veer, Shutterstock, and Clipart.com.