Do You Overestimate Your Swimming Skills?
It's finally summer, and if I had my way I would spend all day, every day in a pool. I am so thankful that my parents put me through years of swimming lessons so that I feel comfortable in the water, especially when you hear about all the scary studies done recently involving swimming.
As a new Mom who just bought her daughter her first baby pool, the recent articles about secondary drowning, a.k.a "dry drowning," are totally freaking me out. I am now afraid to even put Ella in the bathtub, and she LOVES her tubby time. Two things I am sure of are; first, I need to relax, and secondly, swimming lessons are a must.
My husband admits he is not comfortable around water, and this is something I have never really understood. That is, until I read about the new anti-drowning campaign that the American Red Cross released for 2014. A survey conducted for the Red Cross found that:
80 percent of Americans said they could swim, only 56 percent of the self-described swimmers can perform all five of the basic skills that could save their life in the water.
These critical water safety skills, also known as “water competency,” are the ability to: Step or jump into the water over your head; Return to the surface and float or tread water for one minute; Turn around in a full circle and find an exit; Swim 25 yards to the exit; and Exit from the water. If in a pool, be able to exit without using the ladder.
Can you do all these things? Can your kids? Don't take a chance with water safety!
Here's a list with links to local businesses offering swimming lessons for the entire family:
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