So afraid of the dark he pees in his room

[frazzledmama65]

My 11 year-old son is so afraid of the dark that he won't leave his room at night to go to the bathroom. His room is only 4 steps from the bathroom and we put nightlights in there, but because there's a hallway he won't go to the bathroom in the dark. We found out he was peeing in the corner of his room a while back and had to rip out carpeting. We installed christmas lights so he won't be afraid any more. We also put a night light in the bathroom. Now I find out he wads up his clothes and pees on them at night so he doesn't have to leave his room. I know we could put a porta potty in his room or something, but isn't that just supporting this instead of resolving it? Because of his age, I'm worried that there could be other issues there. What do we do?

[NewJerseyMommy]

My son is about the same. He calls me (scream) in the middle of the night and I have to go with him. I'll be installing motion sensor in the hallway/bathroom and also added a switch at his headboard so whenever he leaves the bathroom, it won't be dark 'til he reaches his bed.

[AnnieBrooke]

Do you keep the bathroom light on at night?   Another thing that might be unnerving him besides the darkness is the quiet.  You might try having a radio softly playing in there.

If he was 4, I'd put a potty chair in his room just as a pragmatic issue (i.e., to avoid having to clean up all the time), and would expect he would outgrow it.  But at 11, hmm, if the light and the music don't help, I guess I'd take this seriously as an anxiety issue and consult with a kids' therapist on the question.

[RockRose]

How about a really good high beam flashlight on his nightstand that he could use?