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Pre-School and Daycare
angelrue522
member
Anyone's LO scared to swim?
angelrue522
member
Last year my son was a daredevil in the pool. He would jump into our arms and go underwater briefly and then come back up. He loved it! There was one time where he went under and swallowed some water and now he is scared to even set foot off the 2nd stair of the pool. Also we were going to do swim lessons but I am not sure if I should force this issue. Any advice?
Also he always used to LOVE escalators. Yesterday in the mall he missed a step and tripped. DH got him, but after that he refused to go down the escalator and screamed the entire time and DH had to hold him?
Is this normal behavior do you think? And if anyone has experiences with this how long do these fears usually last?
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Re: Anyone's LO scared to swim?
A good swim instructor could help him work through his fear. I would ask around and get recommendations for someone who isn't overly aggressive with fearful children. My 4 year old's class this spring had a group of kids who cried every time they had to put their head under the water. After 8 classes, almost all of those fearful children were in the beginning stages of the freestyle. I think the key was a brilliant instructor who asked them to do the things that scared them on their own (ie putting their head under the water), versus just dunking them under the water against their will. After the first day, very few tears were shed!
I was a lifeguard for young children when I was in high school. You NEVER make a child do something in the water that they are fearful of. That will always backfire and they will be traumatized.
Children learn by example and by watching. So you model for them. You show them how we do this skill, and how it's not scary. You show them over and over. You let THEM decide when they want to do it.
Of course it's normal behavior to not want to go on an escalator after almost falling! I wouldn't want to go on it again, either. Parents seem to take these things so personally, I will never forget watching dads, especially, throw their kid off the diving board when the child wouldn't jump.
Just be gentle and make sure your child knows you are there and he will come around in his own time.
Some kids are just scared of swimming, so yes I do think this can be normal behavior. I think that a good swim instructor can make a big difference.
Up until about 4 months ago, DD was pretty nervous in the water. We've had her in swim lessons since she was 2 and she was still uncomfortable. We debated a lot whether or not to take her out of swim lessons because she really didn't seem to like it. We ultimately decided to keep her in the lessons because swimming is an important life skill.
Her swim instructors were so great, they were very gentle with her and let her take baby steps and didn't make her do anything that made her uncomfortable. They were also really good about communicating with me about their plans for helping DD overcome her fear.
It did take some time for DD to not be scared to swim, but it's a world of difference. About 4 months ago, she realized that swimming isn't scary and is actually really fun. The improvement she has made in that time has been pretty amazing.
ds2 turned 5 in january. He is now scared of a lot of things. He is terrified of the dark, thunderstorms, the pool etc. His pedi said it was normal as is imagination is just really taking off good. It's hard. I just give gentle encouragement.