PARENTING

SPRING INTO SWIMMING

THIS MAY

WRITTEN BY SHANNON E. ROESGEN

Can you believe our pools will be open by the end of this month? Nine months is a long time for kids to be out of the water. While going to the pool may be the best part of summer, there are some things to remember to keep your child safe. Here are some gentle reminders as we transition back to pool time.

1. Regression is normal. If any of us stop doing something for nine months, we regress. Cardio.

Lifting weights. Speaking a foreign language. The expression “use it or lose it” certainly does reign true. And so it is for swimming.

Remind your children to make sure to keep their mouths closed while going underwater. In addition, a great way to keep water out of the nose is to have your child hum while underwater.

2. Rehearse what to do if your child accidentally falls in a pool.

That way, your child develops muscle memory of what to do and won’t have to think while in crisis.

Eventually, your child will be able to automatically kick back to the wall and pull him or herself out of the water to safety.

3. Teach your children to float if tiredness sets in. This skill is imperative for children swimming in water that is over their heads.

Floating is counterintuitive because you have to relax your body and do nothing. Often, children try harder to swim faster or stronger when tiredness sets in. When we speed up, a feeling of panic can easily be created. We need to slow down and float to catch our breath. It sounds like common sense when we are on land, but in water when people panic they tend to do anything but float.

4. Watch your child constantly. Lifeguards only have one set

of eyes, and drowning happens silently.

Be hypervigilant. Stay off your phones and monitor your child and other children’s behavior to keep everyone safe.

I know this isn’t fun to think about. I know how isolating it can be to be a mom and how great it can feel to connect with friends at the pool, but drowning is the second leading cause of death for children under five. Until children have the skills to swim safely and the maturity to behave responsibly at the pool, they need us to be hypervigilant to keep them safe.

5. Puddle jumpers teach children to be vertical in the pool, but the posture of swimming demands a horizontal body position, being parallel to the bottom of the pool rather than perpendicular. When I teach children to swim, as they transition out of the puddle jumper, it is really confusing for them. They are used to kicking their feet while having a standing posture rather than a floating posture with the feet out behind them.

This is a huge deal for your kids as they need to learn to trust the water. Children need to learn that as we relax the body, the feet will float and our bodies are designed to float.

When we are scared, we get tense and our bodies turn into rocks. I often ask the kids, “And what do rocks do in the water? … That’s right. Rocks sink. Do we want to sink in the water? No. That’s right. What do we want to do in the water? You got it. Float. Float like a jellyfish.”

Easier said than done—floating. Be patient with your child. Floating is scary to most kids, especially on the back.

6. Don’t put pressure on yourself to go to the pool if you have multiple children who can’t swim independently. Swimming isn’t mandatory.

I remember when my children were small, I still had energy to try to be the perfect mom. Now that my kids are teenagers, I have given up on that illusion.

Keeping our children safe at the pool can be very stressful. If you don’t feel comfortable taking them by yourself, that is okay.

7. I always tell the kids I teach: “My number one job is to keep you safe, but my number two job is to make sure you have fun.” And

I tell you the same. Be safe first, then have fun, and I hope you have a wonderful summer.

Proud to be providing board certified, compassionate pediatric dental care to KC and Johnson County since 2005.

Schedule an appointment at one of our four convenient locations today! for more information or to visit our blog, visit us online at www.kidsmilekc.com