I live in the state with the highest number of drownings in the nation for children age 1 to 4 (according to a 2007 Nova Southeastern University pilot study of drowning prevention practices in Broward and Miami-Dade counties).
In fact, in 2004, enough children drowned in Florida to fill four preschool classrooms, despite local and state laws requiring safety features like gates and sensors for backyard pools.
Pool drownings are disturbingly common in South Florida (not to mention all the canals, lakes and big ol’ ocean we have to contend with). It feels some weeks like you hear of one every day in the news. Add to that having been married to a pediatric ER nurse who has his fair share of drowning victims (most of whom die), and you better believe I’m paranoid about having my son drown.
So we started swimming classes last week. We’re doing a “mommy and me” class where Max actually does better with the instructor than me, which makes me think I may follow this two-week program with some private lessons. (Side note, why is it that my son is a little devil with me and a perfect angel with everyone else? Anyone got a clue?)
The gist of the classes (this session is every day for two weeks) is to teach them to get to the wall if they fall in or are struggling. So all the exercises we do teach the kids to go to the wall. It’s been amazing watching my son pick this up, to see him kick, kick, kick and then turn towards the wall. We do this one exercise where the kids are outside the pool, on the edge, and you pick them up, put them in the water, then turn them to the wall - the message being that if they fall in, they go right for the wall.
I don’t know right now how effective this will be. I wonder, what will stick, and what more can I do to reinforce all this? But I feel that these classes are essential, not just because of all the pools, lakes and canals Max comes into contact with, but also because he is such a headstrong, reckless little boy. He has no sense of caution, no fearm, and at times I wonder how to break through that and, frankly, scare the hell out of him so that he’ll learn some safety measures. This is why I feel that more classes will be in order, just to make sure he gets it as best as he can.
So here’s where I blast a PSA at you all: Knowing what I know about children drowning, I have to urge you to take every possible precaution to protect your kids from drowing. Make them take lessons; teach them CPR; put fences around your pools. The most tragic thing I hear over and over again is how everyone assumed the kid was safe, and one minute he/she was fine, and the next, at the bottom of the pool or tangled in some weeds in the lake. Tragic. Devastating. Avoidable.
Summer is the time for fun, for creating lasting memories. I want yours to be as beautiful as the ones I’m trying to create for my son and myself.
by Tere
Photo graciously provided by Ctd 2005, through a Creative Commons license, some rights reserved
3 responses so far ↓
Nan // Jun 25, 2008 at 6:00 am
Tere, my first son was (and eleven years later, IS) like yours. Terrifyingly fearless! We lived on the beach, had fishponds and pools everywhere we went. I taught him to hold his breath under water and get to the side of the pool as well, and it saved me many grey hairs! Another idea is to teach your son to SCREAM LOUDLY if he is in trouble. One day, I heard a scream which cut off, and my son had fallen into a half-empty pond. He had screamed on the way in, but then his little arms were too short to reach the rim. I flew to the rescue, and he was absolutely fine and excited about his adventure. He had held his breath, but could not get his head above the weeds to take a breath. If I hadn’t heard him, he might have eventually drowned, scrabbling on the slippery sides of the pond. It makes my blood run cold to think about it. Even with a confident little swimmer, you still have to be vigilant! Our little adventurers keep us on our toes, don’t they? You have years of action ahead of you. My Chas is now into surfing. His happiness and confidence in the water has stayed with him, and always will!
Tere // Jun 26, 2008 at 3:45 pm
Hi Nan - yes, Chas sounds an awful lot like Max! I love his fearlessness but fear it, too. The constant vigilance can be exhausting, you know?
I love the tip about screaming loudly, definitely something I can teach Max. Thanks so much for chiming in!
Holly // Jul 1, 2008 at 12:20 pm
Drowning kid stories totally freak me out. We took our boy for lessons when he was 7 months, but he was really too young for that. We should try again soon, though.
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