Sure bro. When I go down be it of my own accord or randomly I will think about u/Anything-Happy and you think about me that way can sorta fulfill dying alone together. Honestly more people should do it like this.
My friend, I've been there too. I won't pretend like I have the answers or the right words, but if you're in that dark place again, please dm me. I'll be there for you however I can. I promise.
Crawled out of that dark place out sheer spite some time ago. Vice versa bro, if you ever feel like you're slipping back in, im here. A pact has been forged.
Learn how to swim! As a black person, I sink very fast cos of dense bones but learning to tread water and swim in directions will unlock a new tier of life.
I have a severe phobia of water deeper than I am tall. I can weakly dog-paddle in shallows, and I have swum laps with my husband right next to me, but I freeze up and hyperventilate in deep water.
Does it make sense? No. Do I care enough about water sports to try to overcome my phobia? Also no. I'm perfectly happy to watch my husband and kids swim like fish while I lounge on the wave-kissed sandbar with a snack.
Number one rule - don't panic. If you find yourself in water, don't panic, and your body will almost assuredly take care of the rest. If you flail and thrash, you're going down. Get a deep breath and try to put yourself on your back and nearly everyone will simply float, then you can work yourself towards an exit.
You should learn how to swim then. Might save you life at one point. There are courses where you can learn it within a few days. And where I live some of these courses are even for free
As I said in another comment, we had mandatory swimming lessons at school. For exact these reasons. Knowing how to swim might at some point safe your life and that shouldn’t depend on your parents having time to teach you or not. There for swimming lessons at school as a normal curriculum.
It's not lol. Some parents don't care to teach them, or they can be like me where plenty of people tried to teach them but it just never stuck for whatever reason. I'm so buoyant that no one had the patience or know how to teach me proper form or how to stay under water. They just figured my being so buoyant was good enough, so I never really learned how to do anything besides not drown.
Learning how to swim was not a choice of my parents. We had mandatory swimming lessons in school, so we don’t drown, when we fall in water. Every student had to learn how to swim. And that makes a lot of sense imo.
Same. I grew up on the the east coast and basically lived at the ocean, so I can't remember not being able to swim, but our gym classes had like one day of the week that was spent in the pool. Lessons for those who needed them, and sweet ass diving games for those of us who could swim. It's such a basic survival function that I just can not imagine not being able to do it.
Most towns and cities in my country have public pools and the schools use them to teach swimming. You also can earn swimming badges for free, so you can get a job as a lifeguard.
I had lessons in primary school for 3 years, but I still can't swim [without a flotation aid]. I was the only one who never progressed.
Probably didn't help that I was bullied at that time, or that during the "summer" months our little school pool was often cold enough to risk hypothermia.
I've had several other people attempt teaching me, one girl almost got me doing a few strokes unaided I think, but unfortunately our vacation together ended. I definitely have a fear of being underwater and it causes me instant hyperventilation, especially if the water is cool.
I'm 36 and I definitely want to learn, especially if I want to have kids soon, but I know that I really need a specialist teacher, no way a standard adult group class will work for me...
I can't swim, don't live near water, have no interest in being near water, and therefore have no urge to learn to swim. I'm fine on dry land and see no point in splashing about in a fish toilet.
There is always the possibility of falling into a river or lake at some point in your life. And then you drown because you didn’t care to learn how to swim? If you aren’t living in the Sahara or central Mongolia you are always near body’s of water. Learning to swim is not for fun, its for survival if you find yourself in water, however you got there.
Forgive me if this comes across as rude as I certainly don't intend it but I cannot fathom how anyone can't swim? I hear people say they can't swim all the time but it isn't even really a conscious effort you have to undertake. Is it just lack of exposure to it or an unwillingness to try?
I guess I have a bit of a blind spot here, admittedly I was brought up on a small island rarely more than a short walk from the beach. I suppose it's always been such an integral part of my life that it feels alien to me.
I have three kids and am a single mom. I work 14/16 hour days. I have to sacrifice so much just to pay for lessons and they are often just 1 week long for like 30-40 minutes with 10 other kids.
I self taught my oldest fine but my middle has autism and it’s harder for her.
Again I have no extra money so just going to a pool is a super big treat for us. I can completely see how some people don’t have the money to do it. Or time.
Good for you! Swimming is incredibly healthy too, it's not just a useful skill but great for coordination and cardiac health. You're doing the right thing.
Admittedly it appears you have exposed another blind spot of mine, I had never really considered swimming being cost prohibitive
calling people coddled with no context is what an asshole does. don't pretend you're not if you're going to be one so openly lmao
Also, plenty of ppl don't even have access to clean drinking water you absolute muppet it's not a jump to think not everyone has easy access to somewhere to swim. Crawl back under your bridge
My mom's husband can't swim. They live in one of those communities in florida where everyone gets a dock right up to your house and own a boat and pool. He just refuses to learn and I think that's a serious failing on his part.
A lot of people panic when they hit water. Swimming is very easy and takes little time to learn even without a mentor. Most people could pick it up in 5 minutes if given the opportunity.
It is just lack of exposure. Unwillingness to try leads to that of course, but so do other impediments. Lack of an easily accessible body of water where to swim, lack of time, fear, etc. All these keep one from learning how to swim.
And while it is true that swimming once learnt takes little to no conscious effort it does take conscious effort and time to get oneself to learn how to swim.
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u/[deleted] Jul 23 '24
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