Swim with Coach Erin

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SMILE, it's Friday

The puddle jumper....the flotation device moms love. They are cute. They look fun and inviting and they give our kids independence in the water.....we think the...y keep our kids safe....but do they? This post is extremely hard for me. I was that mom who put my beautiful 3 year old baby boy in one of these devices. The packaging told me it would help him stay safe. Other moms told me it would help him stay safe. All I wanted to do was keep him safe. That’s it. That was my sole reason for buying and using this device. I learned after my beautiful baby boy drowned that this device was a major factor in his accident. This is why... 1) Puddle jumpers automatically put children in a vertical position in the water... and that is the drowning position. Puddle jumpers teach children muscle memory for that position so that when they get in water, they will automatically go vertical, whether they have the device on or not. This makes drowning faster!!! 2) Puddle Jumpers teach children to bicycle their arms and legs in order to propel through the water. This expends huge amounts of energy and contributes significantly to drowning incidents because it cannot be sustained for very long. 3) Puddle Jumpers prevent kids from learning to reach their arms out in front of them for any swimming stroke and from putting their heads in the water to help get into a horizontal (swimming and breathing position) in the water. 4) Puddle Jumpers contribute to water phobia because they don’t allow water on the face and therefore don’t allow children to become used to the water being on their faces. If the water does hit their face in an emergency situation, the child is more likely to panic and freeze and then not be able to help themselves. 5) Puddle Jumpers create a false sense of security for the child. The child thinks they can swim because they have built confidence in the water with the device, using it during swim times. They don’t know how their own bodies react in the water without a flotation device on and then they don’t make the connection that the device is what keeps them floating and not themselves. So, when the opportunity arises for them to get into water (even when they aren’t supposed to be in it), they are much more likely to do so without the device, thinking they can swim on their own, when they really can’t. 6) Puddle Jumpers create a false sense of security for adults. Adults tend to not be as vigilant around the water when they put their kids in these devices. So, as an example, during a break when a parent might be attending to another child, their little one may have their puddle jumper off temporarily and because the parent has trained themselves not to have to be as vigilant, they have a lapse in supervision for a few seconds. In that time, the little one can end up in the pool without the device that holds them up in the water and can drown! It only takes 20 seconds!!! 7) Puddle Jumpers are coast guard approved but at the lowest level possible-below life buoys. They are not reliable as a safety measure in any water that is not completely calm. They are marketed as a swim aid. But flotation devices of any kind should never be used as a swim aid because of reasons number 1-6 above. Children should learn survival swim and have one on one touch supervision (a parent or adult never being outside of an arm’s reach of a non-swimmer) in and around the water instead. My son thought he could swim, because I put this device on him during swim times and he learned and adopted the 6 points above. He went to the water without his puddle jumper...he drowned...he died. He was only gone from my sight for a minute or two. It only takes 20 seconds. Why not puddle jumpers? Because your child’s life is not worth the risk that using these devices can and do pose. Do you have a puddle jumper story? Would you share below? #dontletthemdrown #beavoice #saynotopuddlejumpers

Your child will love his or her Swim Life swim instructor! Why? Our instructors are carefully screened and selected for their ability to connect with children a...nd for their passion for drowning prevention. Interested in becoming a Swim Life instructor? Fill out this form www.myswimlife.com/join-our-team

Coast Guard approved life jackets are a GOOD thingas long as they are used where they were always meant to be used. They become a DANGEROUS thing when used in... the wrong place. As a mom, I thought, if it’s good for open water, it must also be good for pools. I mean, water is water, right? What’s the difference? The device keeps my boy up and floating and that’s what I want-for him to be safe. And then my 3-year-old, beautifully curious boy went to the water without it on. He snuck away from my sight for less than 2 minutes and got into the water to play with his brother and sisterwithout his flotation deviceand in that short time, he lost his life. What I didn’t know: Littles don’t understand that it’s the device that keeps them floating, and not their own ability. Using the device everywhere you go where there is water is training your child that they can float when they actually can’t do it without the device. They don’t see any difference. They don’t make the connection that it’s the device and not them that makes them float. Your child grows too confident around the water and is MUCH more likely to attempt to get into water when they may well not have the device on, when you aren’t looking, because they think they will float when they get into the water (they have always been able to before, so why wouldn’t they this time?). These devices put your child in the vertical, drowning position in the water and teach muscle memory for that position, which means if they get to the water without it on, they will drop down into the drowning position automatically and will drown even faster. Floatation devices were never meant to be used as a swim aid and they were never meant to be used in calm, controlled water like swimming pools. They are not rated or even reviewed by the Coast Guard for this purpose. They were made for life saving in a water emergency in uncontrolled, open water, such as oceans, lakes and rivers. Flotation devices teach bad body position in the water and over dependence on the device for buoyancy. What happens if the child gets to the water without it on (given 69% of all childhood drownings happen when kids are not supposed to be in or near water)? Coast Guard approved life vests are important for open water use because we can’t control the environment in open water and it has many hazards and risks, such as strong currents, big waves, entanglements under the water, lack of visibility, big temperature shifts and sudden drop offs, not to mention marine life-all of which can impede anyone’s swimming ability. Pools are important places for kids to practice swimming skills and realize what their own bodies can and cannot do in the water. It teaches them their limits. If they jump in and begin to sink, they will think twice about jumping in again, on their own. If every time they jump in, they float with no effort on their own part (because they are always wearing a device), they will feel over-confident to jump in at any time, even when they aren’t wearing one. Don’t use flotation devices in pools. Save them for open water use only and always wear them in open water. In the pool, use one-on-one touch supervision for all kids who cannot sustain a swim using their own skills. Never be outside of an arm’s reach of them in or near water. Get them skilled in the water as soon as possible. Teach them to be their own flotation device. Don’t be like me. Don’t bring these devices to the pool. Don’t risk it. It’s just not worth it. My son lost his life because I didn’t know these things. Yours doesn’t have to.

Swim lessons are cancelled Wednesday, September 16th. I have opened up Friday, September 18th for lessons. Please schedule with the link below ONLY for Friday lessons. Thank you and stay safe!

I’m starting to fill my basic training spots for November! Email [email protected] to get your little one on the schedule!I’m starting to fill my basic training spots for November! Email [email protected] to get your little one on the schedule!

The more you know!

Why Swim Life? Our instructors are carefully screened and selected for their ability to connect with children and for their passion for drowning prevention. Th...ey initially receive over 100 hours of hands-on training and complete an intensive academic curriculum before they are certified! We embrace the "never stop learning" mindset and all of our instructors continue their education annually. This means your child receives the most innovative, effective, swim lessons with proven success, every single lesson. #swimlife #swimschool #swimlessons #swimming #swimmingpool #swimmingtime #orlandoswim #orlandoswimminglessons #orlandoswimmingpool #orlandoswimmer

When should swim lessons begin? As soon as your baby can sit up! #education #learning #teachers #teachinglife #cfleducators #seminolecounty #scps #floridateachers #floridaschools