Overnight diaper leaks can disrupt your baby’s sleep and cause discomfort. Learn about the common causes of leaks and how to prevent them for a better night’s rest.
When your baby leaks through their diaper at night, it causes them discomfort. This leads to your baby waking up solely for a diaper change, which disrupts your baby’s sleep routine. A super wet diaper can also lead to diaper rashes, which only leads to more potential sleep disruptions as your baby is in discomfort all day while that rash heals.
In this post, we will discuss ways you can help prevent your baby’s diaper from leaking at night so you can all have more sleep (and less laundry!).
Change Baby’s Diaper Before Sleep
The first thing you want to do is make sure you always change your baby’s diaper before putting your baby to bed for the night. This is even true if you do a dream feed (a feeding in the 10 PM hour). If you worry about waking your baby up too much with a diaper change the dreamfeed, simply change the diaper in the middle of the feeding so your baby will get drowsy before going to bed.
You want to start the night off with a totally dry diaper so that any peeing that happens in the night will hopefully not overflow the diaper. If you do not have a dreamfeed, change your baby’s diaper right before bedtime. The diaper change should be a part of your bedtime routine.
Find the Right Diaper Size and Type for Baby
If your baby’s diaper is too big, it will not fit properly and your baby will leak through the diaper. If your baby’s diaper is too small, it will hold less than your baby will pee. Make sure your baby is in the correct size of diaper.
With that said, many parents find good luck with sizing up one size for night sleep. This is more common if your baby is on the larger size of a diaper size range. You don’t want the diaper coming above your baby’s waist line (above the belly button).
I always liked to use an overnight diaper. They absorbed more. I would also size up in a nighttime diaper if needed. The greater the absorbency, the fewer the nighttime leaks.
You might also need to try different brands of diapers. Some brands just seem to work better for some babies than others. Ask around to see what is working for other moms at the time since brands will change things up from time to time, but Huggies is usually the favorite overnight brand option.
Follow Best Practices for Diapering
There are a few tricks you want to do to help prevent leaks as you put the diaper on your baby.
Make sure you pull the tabs for a snug fit. You don’t want the waistband too tight so that it is uncomfortable for your baby, but if it is too loose, pee will leak through.
You also want to make sure you pull the leg cuffs out around the legs. If those are folded in, urine will leak out.
Use some diaper cream on your baby as a preventative against diaper rashes. This won’t affect leaking, but it will help your baby feel more comfortable in a wet diaper and prevent skin irritation.
And if you have a little boy, always point down before putting the diaper on.
Change Baby’s Diaper at Night Feeds
If your baby wakes up in the night to eat, make sure you change the diaper at this feed. This is especially true for a newborn. It is better to have your baby become more fully awake at this one feeding than to wake up an extra time because of nighttime diaper leaks.
If your baby struggles settling down after a diaper change, change the diaper mid-feeding. Hold the wet wipe in your hand to warm it up so the coldness of it does not startle your baby too much. Keep the lights dim and keep interaction to a minimum.
Use a Diaper Insert
A diaper insert or diaper liner can help absorb extra moisture. It adds an extra layer to the diaper. This is especially helpful if your baby cannot size up at night. Sposie is a popular liner to use as diaper inserts with disposable diapers. Here is a popular liner if you cloth diaper.
Liquids
Some people wonder if they should limit liquids before bedtime. For a baby, the answer is no. You need to make sure you feed your baby as much and often as needed and not worry about fluid intake.
If you have a toddler leaking at night, you can manage fluid intake more. You can try to get more liquids in during the day and prevent a liquid guzzle right before bed.
Tips After a Diaper Leak
Despite your best efforts, you might still have a diaper leak here or there. You want to be able to change your baby and your baby’s bedding as quickly as possible so you disrupt sleep as little as possible.
It is wise to keep a change of pajamas right on the changing table at night. That way if your need to change for a diaper leak, you have the clothes right there and do not have to fumble around in the dark looking for more.
Dress your baby in pajamas that are easy to take off and put on. That way if you have a diaper leak, you can quickly swap out for clean and dry pjs.
If leaking is a problem you are actively trying to solve, you can put an absorbent pad under baby’s crib sheet so you don’t have to change the sheet AND the mattress pads.
When you go in to a baby who has leaked through the diaper, quickly and calmly change the diaper, clothes, and bedding as needed. Do a fast version of your sleep routine to help your baby prep to go back to sleep. If your baby still eats in the night, you might just do the feeding then to prevent yet another night waking later.
Conclusion
There is a lot you can do to prevent your baby’s diaper from leaking at night. Follow these tips to help your baby stay dry and prevent night wakings from a wet diaper.
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