Parents Beginnings of Swimming
Olma: You know what they say about our parents? They make their children achieve their personal dreams. I think it is true sometimes. Like my mom, she wished she could play the piano but her father thought it was an unnecessary skill. So, guess what? My mom made me take piano lessons. Because I was eager to please my mother, I developed some skill in piano playing and I thank my mother for that opportunity.
I have this big dream for Alex. Maybe I was just reliving my own dream through Alex. I can’t swim. I almost drowned twice in my life. Both times, I was rescued by someone. I would not allow anything like that to happen with my son. So the swimming saga begins… regardless of whether he likes it or not. Of course, I will take swimming lessons myself! It wouldn’t be right if Alex learned to swim, and I didn’t.
Bob: I really like to swim, and I think it’s a really useful skill. It’s the best exercise for your body – cardio, low impact, and strength training all in one. As a kid I was never a great swimmer. My dad would take us to Blue Hole after a day of work. He liked to swim a lot. We would jump in the river in the summer, but it was not very wide and not very deep. I never learned proper swimming form – and especially breathing. So I really learned to swim as an adult in the Alexandria, VA YMCA after I signed up for swimming classes. I asked a buddy to join me, but he backed out – as any reasonable adult would – because our first class was open to everyone, adults and children. And I was the only adult. I took lessons every week and gradually got to learn better stroke form and breathing. I was never great, but I was good enough to do a couple of triathlons with a 500m pool swim. But to be honest, it almost killed me. It was totally exhausting. I got to be a much better swimmer when I moved to the South Pacific island of Tonga. A few of us swam or snorkeled almost every day for three years. My endurance got a lot better, and I think my stroke improved. I swam very slowly, but I could eventually go 1.5 miles or more. Once you get into a rhythm, it seems smooth.
So I felt like swimming was something wonderful that Alex, Olma and I could do together. I did a bit of research, and swimming is something that many people with Down Syndrome do very well. Some people with Down Syndrome are exceptional swimmers. (Karen Gaffney famously swam across Lake Tahoe, the Boston Harbor, and the San Francisco Bay. Chris Nikic finished an Ironman Triathlon.)
Overcoming Barriers – Age 2
Alex started an aquatics program at James Madison University called Overcoming Barriers. This program aims to empower individuals with disabilities, including Down Syndrome. Initially, Alex was terrified of the water, but his JMU student mentors were very patient with him and carried him around the pool for several semesters, week after week. He learned to love the water. He splashed and gathered toys and balls and just had a great time in the water.
Private Lessons at Virginia Mennonite Retirement Center
Pre-pandemic, Alex was enjoying swimming class with Alison. He had swimming lessons once a week for 30 minutes. He really enjoyed them. Alison was very patient and played games with Alex. She would occasionally dunk his head under the water for a second or two, and Alex didn’t seem to mind.
Pandemic Swimming Interlude
After the pandemic started, almost everything came to a halt. No more restaurant hopping. The birthday parties were over. Playdates suspended. Gathering together became social distancing. Physical distancing. Safety pods. Bubble groups. You name it. It’s all about preventing the spread of Covid-19. It makes sense but when you have to do it for a year, it becomes an arduous task.
Swimming lessons for Alex had been cancelled. So we bought a kiddie pool from Facebook Marketplace, since all the pools were sold out. I guess all families were looking for some activities for their kids. For us, it was more for continuing Alex’s exposure to the water since he just developed tolerance of getting wet in the pool. We didn’t want him losing any skill or progress he gained from his swim lessons. Unfortunately, we don’t have a real pool. We had to settle with the second hand kiddie pool. We didn’t take Alex to any private pools or lakes for the entire swimming summer.
Infant Swim Resource – Age 3.5
At about age 3.5, Alex started a daily basic water survival course. This course was much more intense and required much more skill than any of Alex’s previous water play. The goal of this program was to give Alex some basic survival swim skills so that if he fell into the water he would be able to right himself and float until help arrived. The course was about six weeks long, and it met every day Monday through Friday. He finished all his Valley Infant Swimming Resource water check out skills – in his jacket, sweatshirt, pants and shoes! The following video demonstrated skill is called a Rollback to Float.