The scariest thing in the world

[icepixie]

So I went "swimming" today. It's not so much that I have a phobia just of water (though that's a big, big part of it), but that I freak out around swimming pools themselves. There's something about this big, deep hole full of water inside a building made of concrete, where every little noise echoes over and over, that makes me go practically catatonic. And for some reason, those dark blue stripes painted on the bottoms of pools used for swim meets freak me out the most. Maybe I had some horrible experience with getting too deep in a pool like that that I can't remember, and that's why they scare the crap out of me. Not sure. And that's not even mentioning the fact that I have to take my glasses off to get in, so I'm effectively blind throughout the whole experience.

Anyway, the "swimming" was a half hour of standing against the wall in the shallow end clutching the side for dear life, then another half hour of dog paddling frantically from one end to the other of the shallow part, stopping in the middle to catch my breath and to keep from sinking even further (I start out okay, then sloooowly sink to the bottom...). Can. Not. Deal. with getting my face underwater. Cannot.

*

In other news, my muse is is a sick little wench. She has me writing Weir/Sheppard UST fic already, when we've only seen one episode. Wench. But at least she's back from Bali...

Comments

[suzvoy.livejournal.com]

Hey, but you did it!

[icepixie]

Well, depending on your definitions of "did" and "swim"... ;)

[weyoun21.livejournal.com]

::hugs you tight::

That doesn't sound good at all. :-/

::snugglesnuggles::

[icepixie]

*hugs Ver*

Yeah, it wasn't fun. It would be nice to be able to swim enough to save myself if I ever screw up and fall into water, but I'm not so sure that'll ever happen. No matter what I do, I sink like a stone.

[weyoun21.livejournal.com]

::hugs you tight and saves you from the evil water::

::snuggles::

On learning how to swim (or at least float) ;)

[rensong.livejournal.com]

Don't know how much good this will do you if you're afraid of the water, but a good way to swim without getting your face wet is to lay on your back in the water (back float) and kick your feet. If you wanna add arms (once you get the back float, that is) for a little more speed, you take your thumbs and stick them in you arm pits while laying in the water, then straighten your arms out so you look like a T in the water, and then try to get arms back down flat against your side (so your body is in a straight like a soilder at attension) while keeping them straight, kinda like you might do if your trying to flap them like wings to try and fly.
Buuut, in order to do this, you have to be willing to get your ears wet... I don't know if this would be a problem for you, but it's one of the big ones I deal with with my little kids. But, should you ever find youself in a position where you would have to swim or float to save youself, this is the best position to use because it doesn't require much energy to hold.
If you wanna try learning it, start out trying to get your back float. Stand in the shallow end and ask someone to stand at your head support your shoulders/mid to lower back while you lie back in the water like you would on a bed(if your willing for the touchy/feely, see if they'll let you put the back of your head on their shoulder while they bend their knees and stand so their shoulders are two to three inches beneath the surface of the water - I found that this method works best with my little kids because they know that my shoulder will prevent them from putting their head back too far, but they still end up in the right position to do the float by themselves if/when I move away). Get a good lungful of air, hold it, and arch your back enough to keep your butt from sinking more then a foot or two beneath the surface of the water (it also helps to pinch your butt cheeks together as much as you can, like you would if you had to go to the bathroom really really bad ;) ) When you feel comfortable enough, have the person holding you move back away from you slowly, keeping their hands under your shoulders but no longer supporting your head on their own. Stay like this for awhile, and if you feel comfortable/confident enough that you won't sink, have them lesson the support under your shoulders little by little until they can take their hands without you going under (but still have them keep their hands in the water beneath you for catching purposes, just in case. :) ) This is usually the hardest part, because once you feel their support leave, if you're still not very comfortable in the water, your automatic responce is to double up and try to get you feet back under you to stand, but remember that you can't sink far because just because their hands aren't touching you anymore, it doesn't mean that they aren't still there to support you if needed.

And holy cow, this wasn't supposed to turn into a lecture... can you tell that I'm a swim teacer? :) I shall stop spamming your journal now. Sorry!

Re: On learning how to swim (or at least float) ;)

[rensong.livejournal.com]

(and that was also horrid grammar... for that I also apologize. I really will stop spamming your journal now and if you ever want a free swim lesson or two, feel free to give me a call. ;)

Re: On learning how to swim (or at least float) ;)

[icepixie]

*snippity-snip*

Thanks, Maren. I have tried to float on my back, and, um, it doesn't work. I have a feeling I'm simply not designed to float. Gaaaah.