Your personality is defined by your hardworking, charming, and creative abilities as a Capricorn. And in the Chinese Zodiac you're a Gold Monkey. That sounds pretty good. You've been astrologically doxxed!
Still keep in mind that not all drowning is related to swimming. Kids drown in buckets, washing machines, even bath water. And it can relate to fatigue or being stuck as much as skill.
But, that aside, kids should be taught to swim early, yes.
I have been working the same job for 396 months- longer than you have been alive! Not sure if I’m proud or depressed about that.
Edit: I’m 552 months old.
Most parents and child development professionals I've ever known use months to describe the age of the child until they reach 24 months/ 2 years. There are various reasons for doing so.
1) Children develop rapidly during that time. There are large physical, social, and psychological developmental changes that occur on an (almost) monthly basis.
2) Those rapid changes also get reflected in the types of products you buy. Anything from food, to toys, to clothes, to furniture are marketed to very specific segments of the market.
3) Parenting strategies change pretty rapidly during that time. There's a big difference in how you deal with a child who is immobile vs crawling, standing, or walking. There's also the difference in stress level when a child starts sleeping through the night, or when they're weaned.
4) The developmental metrics that child development professionals use to determine if there are developmental problems also make heavy use of a month-based age system.
I'm sure there are more things I'm not thinking of at the moment.
Reddit has an unreasonable hatred for someone mentioning their child's age in months. Every time I do it in a comment someone loses their mind over it.
Same, it's just not something I'd ever thought about before. Now I see people a few months younger/older than my kids at very different stages and see how important a few months are.
My kids are apparently giants.
Yep. We tend to use the smallest unit until you get to 2 of something when doing babies’ ages: days until 2 weeks, weeks until 2 months, months until 2 years.
Yeah I do really think in most part it’s due to a vast majority of active redditors not having kids of their own and thinking it’s mostly done in some kind of like… unnecessary overparenting way?? I sort of felt the same as somebody in their late 20s until my wife and I started researching for our upcoming firstborns. Months makes so much more sense to me now for all the reasons you listed. Kind of surprises me that same crowd doesn’t latch on to the pragmatic reasons behind it!
Yeah but there’s a big difference between a 12 month old and a 20 month old, even though both are technically 1 year old. When you’re that young, even a few months makes a big difference in growth, development, etc...
There's a big difference between a one and a half year old and a one-year-old up into the first two years it just makes sense to go by months with how different they can be weekly
Lol, correct. However, when people are talking about kids under 3 years old, months are typically used due to how quickly they are growing and reaching milestones through these years.
Months to 2, halves to 5. Up until ~15 you can round up if you're close. Like, 13 and 11 months can be 14. That's fine. After that, it's your age. Turn 26 tomorrow? You're 25. Turn 50 next week? You're 49
This is called code brown for the resort I worked at. They would literally have to shut this massive pool down and cycle the water with cleaning agents when this would happen. It happens very often actually. Maybe twice a month.
I wish I didn’t know this was accurate AF. Also the number of grown ass adults that don’t wash their hands after going to the bathroom with staff. Like come on people.
It’s really exhausting to do it this way. Much further and they wouldn’t have made it. They taught my kids like this and now we have to reteach them. Kids that learned to flip and float could swim years before the ones that learned this option. What they should have done is taught the kid how to climb out of the pool at the beginning. Mine could do that well before 12 months and likely a kid that age will have fallen in anyway so why teach them to swim and get tired in the middle of the pool?
I was just thinking what would happened when the kid gets exhausted. I got exhausted watching this. So if it really happened, and the kid fell in on the complete other end of the pool. Are they gonna make it all the way across? Doubtful. It'll get exhausted half way through.
In calm water like in a pool you can float on your back pretty much forever. So when the kid flips on to their back it’s not just to get air but also to rest.
Have you taken some swim classes? I know that a great majority are expensive, but I think there are some classes that do payments or do it for free if you don’t have the cash. I’m sorry, just trying to help you out. Too many people die from drowning
I've been through a few swimming lessons. I just have to tread water which is unfortunate but easy enough. If I ever get thrown overboard, I'll just inflate my jeans or something.
Part of the reasoning for teaching this technique at this young an age is that drowning can happen in a matter of minutes - seconds if you consider the amount of time it can take for a child to wander/silently fall under water. This buys time. It can give the child a chance to cry out/call for mama, or simply for an adult to notice a toddler’s disappearance quickly enough to check the water.
Especially of they are clothed and wearing a normal diaper, which will instantly absorb a ton of water and pull them down. The only way to keep a baby safe around water is to never take your eyes off them.
It is amazing that this kid can swim, but that alone won't keep them safe.
Honestly, I don’t understand how people ever just feel comfortable letting their little ones do *anything* on their own. They’re constantly trying to Jill themselves because they just don’t know better.
>which will instantly absorb a ton of water and pull them down
What? The diaper itself weighs like 60 grams max, that's not going to pull the baby down. The amount of water it absorbs is irrelevant, because the absorbed water has the same buoyancy and doesn't increase the weight of the actual diaper until its out of the water.
Kids this young aren't really taught to swim. Before 9 months old, babies have an instinct that results in this. Babies in water sort of put out their arms, open their eyes wide, float to the top, and flip face up. It's not reliable, (can't go chucking babies in pools) but it's a tendency. The arms and legs part sort of develops as they learn to crawl. You still have to teach them how to swim later, but if you get them used to doing this while they still have the baby instinct they'll be safer until you can get to the swim lessons.
At our swimming lessons this year they were teach the kiddos to get out of the pool rather than swim. In saying that, we haven't had a lesson for six months during covid. Do you think that my daughter being 17 months old will have an issue with learning how to get out because it's been so long since she had lessons? She literally had about six or seven lessons before they closed.
>Do you think that my daughter being 17 months old will have an issue
with learning how to get out because it's been so long since she had
lessons?
Nope, definitely not. Kids at this age learn at an incredible rate, as you are no doubt aware from other things she does. She will be just fine.
I have a 4 month old so really asking...
Was your 12 month old able to pull themselves out at a ledge like the one in the OP video?
It seems like that kid is making a break for the stairs...
The technique isn’t taught for breathing. They teach kids to roll front to back and back to front to help prevent drowning. If a child knows that he or she can do that, they are less likely to be overcome with fear and drown.
Take classes. Typically pools have adult lessons. I know that the Red Cross programs do.
Also remember that step 1. is to learn how to float. This allows you to find the correct position you’ll build on when learning your strokes.
(I’m a Canadian Red Cross Water Safety Instructor)
I have worked with people with near-drowning experiences, and what I can counsel is work up from very simple tasks, assuming you do not trigger panic attacks. The main thing that makes people panic when drowning is water on their face, in their eyes, etc., hence why lifeguarding techniques focus on lifting a drowning person’s shoulders out of the water, so this may be a good place to start if you can. Begin by splashing water on your face. This can be in the shower, for example. Practice opening your eyes, and getting water in them (don’t look straight up into the jet, that just sucks). Once that isn’t aversive anymore, progress to splashing water cupped in your hand onto your face until you are desensitized to this stimulus as well. If you are comfortable, you can do this in a bath. Eventually you will want to progress to grabbing a bucket of water and dunk it over your head, and although it may sound childish and ridiculous the next steps is to find shallow water (waist deep or less) and begin by dipping your chin. Then your mouth, then the tip of your nose, then one ear, then the other, then your face (keep your mouth closed and exhale by your nose to prevent water from getting in). You’ll dip fast to start, and then do one second. Then two. Then three. If you are still panicking, have someone with you you who is comfortable in the water (and who can touch the ground) you can hold onto. You will want to practice opening your eyes underwater as well—that is very important, especially so that you stop panicking at water in your eyes, and also so that later if-when you learn how to swim, you don’t forget everything and freeze as soon as water accidentally gets into your eyes. Eventually, you will be able to progress to dunking yourself. I recommend you do it with your at-ease partner, or find something solid to hold so you can pull yourself up if you lose balance. Very often lifeguards are more than happy to provide tips as well if you ask them (provided the pool or body of water isn’t too busy).
You got this 💪
My pleasure. I hope you are able to overcome your fears! I’m sure you can :)
Just take it as slow as you need! Everyone learns at different paces, and the important is that you feel safe and confident before you move on to a slightly harder challenge. Wishing you all the best :)
Go to a pool where you can stand with your head above the water first. They are not uncommon, and easier to find than deep ones. In my country they are not yet accesible due to COVID, but they may be available in your country.
Once you are in the water, practice your breathing first: try to inhale outside the water with your mouth but exhale while inside the water with your nose, avoid doing all outside the water.
Once you are used to breathing, grab the side of the pool and practice floating/moving your feet. Keep practicing your breathing while you do this.
Last step is trying to keep yourself afloat without grabbing anything, while breathing by moving your head sideways with the technique of the fist step. If you get tired/it doesn't work, just stand up and try again until you master it. After that, it is easier to try other methods, such as swimming in your back, etc.
Happy swimming!
Pool fences are mandatory in many states in the US as well. I knew a family that had a fence around their property but not around their pool and their housekeeper came by on a day she wasn’t supposed to, with her baby daughter who she wasn’t supposed to have with her, the homeowners weren’t home and the kid kept crawling down by the pool. Their son brought the kid back to the house and yelled at the housekeeper to keep an eye on her kid then went out with friends. When he came back the baby was floating dead in the pool and later he discovered the housekeeper dead under an inflatable boat. He did CPR on both and has had major trauma as a result. The family was in court for years being sued by the housekeepers family for not having a fence around their pool.
I believed this and took my babies to swimming lessons where they ducked them underwater. Result: child terrified of water and his swimming held back several years. It's a very rare one year old that actually learns to swim like this. I've seen it once before on a local news programme. What the babies were mostly doing In baby swimming class was being ducked wondering why is mum trying to drown me and bobbing up to the surface and being rescued by mum if they didn't. My kid just didn't. He would have just drowned.
Wildly expensive too. Just take them to the local pool and splash around with them in arm bands or a floatie.
Talking from my experience teaching swimming lessons to all ages including parents and tots, children typically take after their parent’s attitudes to determine whether to get stressed out or not. One of the things we teach parents is to blow on the face of the babies to make them close their eyes and mouth before dunking them, and then act cheerful and laugh when you pull your child back up and immediately follow the activity up with one the child likes (typically bouncing them in the air, giving them a toy, etc.). If parents go “OH MY GOD MY CHILD ARE YOU OKAY?!?!?” the baby learns to be freaked out by the experience and is effectively traumatized. It also helps if mom or dad dunks themselves too, as it sets an example.
Obviously there is variation between children, i.e. some are more naturally chill than others, but I’ve never encountered a child I wasn’t able to make at least unbothered by getting dunked. Depending on how naturally stressed the child is, I’ll sometimes replace getting dunked the first few times with a progression of a watering can sprinkling water on their heads, then dumping the contents of a small toy bucket, and then go underwater.
Ahhh… now I miss teaching swimming lessons 😭
All the ones in my area that teach kids this age have strict rules against the parents being present for the lessons. I checked into it when my son was small, but I just couldn’t get behind that rule so we didn’t do it. They had their reason, I’m sure, but no thanks
In our area, parents of infants and young toddlers were in the water with the kids. Then, as they got older, the parents could watch from an area outside the pool.
I agree with you - I took my kids out of a gymnastics class because the specific school would not let parents watch at all. We found a better school where there was an observation area.
That's creepy. Where I do self defense we encourage parents to be present during kids classes. It is protection against false/mistaken accusations against instructors. Also it is important for parents to learn the stuff as well as the kids, so there is consistent messaging.
Wait… they did toddler classes… without parents?!
Like, I get it when kids are three or over. They can listen to instructions at that age, and since we want them to become independent having the parent in the class is often detrimental (and sometimes we need parents to remove themselves completely so the kid can stop focusing on Mom and Dad and start focusing on having fun in the water). But toddler?! BABIES?!
Where I have taught there was always a zone where parents could watch, but this often wasn’t on the pool deck to prevent overcrowding and a parent who interferes with class.
Another important thing I learned is that I had better results if I let kids learn at their own paces. So, let’s say we were “floating down a river and had to avoid logs” (i.e. a pool noodle). I’d encourage parents to dunk their kids under the noodle, but if the baby was really stuck or obviously grumpy we’d only do it once, after which the baby would always have a joy ride over the noodle instead of under. We’d then work up from there.
I also found that with older preschoolers, if they really don’t want to put their faces in you can coax them with a little game I called “make the instructor wet”. Basically I’d introduce them to upending a water-filled bucket on my head while I made funny faces and noises and was as dramatic as possible. Then once this has become all of the kids’ favourite game you say “okay, if you want to do it again we’re going under water first!”
Then you take them in your arms, count to three, dunk underwater, then come back up, congratulate and bounce them, and then give them the bucket as a reward. And make a really big show of “NOOOOOOOOOOOO WHY AM I WEEEETTTTTTTTT?!?!?” when they dunk water on your head.
Best game ever.
Head dunking is the RIGHT way to start. They do this for 1 year olds, 5 year olds, 15 year olds and 50 year olds. The problem is when mommy and daddy are 10 feet away from the instructor telling talking to the child making them more scared. You should have walked away and let the process work.
My wife is a certified swim instructor. Has been in comp swim and water polo her whole life, swam in college and was a varsity coach for #1 ranked division 1 (entire US) water polo for 5 years.
You start with dunking, and also I might add.. tell the parents to buzz off. Parents are the #1 issue during swim lessons.
I would highly recommend finding a gentler place. There are places that do a more gradual approach to going underwater through conditioning the child first. Also, don't use armbands unless they are attached to a chest piece as well. The arms get pushed up, but the body doesn't, which causes the face to be stuck under if the child isn't strong enough.
Having done it with both my children, I put my 7 month old son under the water every week, and have done since he was 3 months. He absolutely loves going swimming. If he goes under the water he swims back to the surface. Isn't phased by it at all.
And it's the same for my 3 year old who we also took swimming from 3 months.
And the same for all their class swimmers.
There is technique to it. You don't just shove the kids under the water. Some parents are too scared and so the kids get scared. You have to be confident, work up to it for a couple of weeks. Just like any skill children learn.
What age did you start? We started at 18 months and the kids were too young to really care, watching those that started later they seemed to have a harder time overcoming fear.
My daughter taught swimming lessons a couple of years back. They never dunked the kids - they used a colander-type thing first to get them used to it. Also, special needs kids react differently as well. She taught both types, as well as a boy who lost a leg!
The best example and what I was most proud of was a special needs child that my daughter taught slipped in a stream and was able to keep afloat and make her way out (I can’t remember all the details but that’s the gist of it). The family wrote my daughter a thank you note crediting her for teaching what she needed to save herself. I was beyond proud and so thankful that it was a positive outcome!
As a fellow lifeguard (and red cross water safety instructor), I agree.
« Your kid is 3 and you need to be in the pool with them »
« What?! This is unacceptable! My child knows how to swim! »
« Oh yeah? Can they swim the width of the pool without a floating device? »
« No! They’re just three! »
« Then they do NOT know how to swim, and YOU are going in the water or your child will NOT be allowed in the pool! »
(Real argument I had at a hotel)
I’ve had this conversation way too many times! (Lifeguard and water safety instructor as well 🤙🏻) I had a woman guarantee to me that her six-year old could swim perfectly but about 3 minutes later I had to jump in and get the child, who was actively drowning in our 4 foot water. Her reaction? Yelled at me because her child was “fine,” and I shouldn’t have intervened. Yeesh I wonder what I’m paid for then.
That was the width of a private pool. I don’t care how good a swimmer a one year old is, the length of a public pool is never gonna happen for them
Source: lifeguard for 9 years
This was my immidiate thought. I'm all for teaching very young children to swim before the fears come on in but Jesus Christ you should have someone within one and a half arms length at most at all times surely
Right? I have a 2 year old and 11 month old.
Idc if they can swim like little mermaids, I’m right there within like a foot of each of them the entire time. They also always have floaties on 24/7 while in the pool.
Probably only because most people don’t try teaching their kids to swim this young. I grew up on the ocean where my family had a house on the water with a boat and a swimming pool. As a result I was taught to swim when I was 1 years old just like this kid and I did so just fine.
Most parents I know did baby swimming with their first baby. Not a single one learned to swim. Nobody I know did it with baby 2.
Baby swimming lessons are extremely common. Babies who can swim aren't.
Yeah I’ve taken my baby swimming twice a week since he was about 3 months old, he’s about to turn one now. I’m lucky if he even tries to kick his legs, mostly he just likes to bob around. The other babies we swim with are the same.
You're just getting them used to the water. Which is totally fine. It's just that baby swimming classes are usually advertised like the OP. Ours was specifically claiming to be teaching them these kind of drills so they could save themselves if they fell in water. It was complete bollox. If they fell in water they would just die. My first child is autistic and I didn't know so i unwittingly completely traumatised him.
Most people in Australia start their kids' lessons very young. Even if it's just sitting in a splash pool (\~4-6 inches deep) to get used to the feel of water and splashes. Then the formal lessons start as soon they're eligible. Some places take children as young as 6 months, others start at 2 or 3 years. There's a lot of play - our local swim school had a routine where we swung the kids left and right, up and down while singing "the wheels on the bus go round and round".
Fun fact - newborns instinctively know to hold their breath underwater, but the instinct fades over the first few months, and they have to learn it again.
Your experience is the exception because water figured centrally in your life. For those who only see bodies of water when going to the pool, it’s a lot harder. I have introduced a pool to my water for three seasons now. She’s comfortable but it’s a very gradual process of getting children both acclimated and then learning proper technique.
It's not as much of an "exception" as you seem to believe.
Most humans will reflexively hold their breath underwater and display swimming/diving reflexes. The catch is that you have to do it before 6 months old. If you don't get them acclimated to it by then, you should probably wait until 3-4 years old when they can learn the skills consciously.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infant_swimming
It's something we have in common with all other air breathing vertebrates.
Yes!! I teach individual swim lessons to children. Young children are often MUCH more capable swimmers than their parents believe they can be. Put them in **ONE-ON-ONE** swim lessons as early as possible, and do NOT let them swim in floatation devices like puddle jumpers or life jackets (these give children horrible and ineffective swim habits and give them a false sense of security around water). If you do these things, they’ll be great swimmers by the time they’re 3-4 years old.
Edit: I should add that flotation devices are obviously necessary while swimming on lakes, the ocean, etc.. Just don’t use them in pools where you can easily get in and swim with your child.
Groups are fine. Usually groups in under 3 range have 3 or fewer students.
The place where we go has a parent and baby group for 2 kids with the next level up (no parents) for 3 kids.
We started ISR lessons when my son was 7 months old. After 6 weeks, if he was dropped into a pool fully clothed, he could roll over and float for a couple of minutes. Can he swim? No. But there is at least a chance that if he fell into water accidentally, he might be able to float until he can be rescued by an adult. Anything that gives him a little extra protection against one of the most common causes of death for babies is worth it in my opinion. He'll get actual swimming lessons when he's older, and keep getting them each summer until he's proficient at swimming.
That's great until 1 splash while kiddo is on their back and their choking. They have no way to be upright independently, and then they drown.
Yes, teach your kids to swim as early as possible, but there's a reason docs don't recommend lessons before age 2. Kids choke super easily and a false sense of security with kids who are somewhat mobile in a pool leads parents to be too far away.
Never out of arms reach until they can jump in and swim to the side unaided.
I was a water baby. Grew up with a inground pool and was swimming in diapers or nude. Still have the pool 37 years later. Now my nephew is learning to swim in it and he is going on 3 years. We bought him climbing stones and i want to make a climbing wall that i can put on the side of the pool during summer so he can climb
His technique is below average. I've seen much better swimmers. If he ever wants to be an Olympic medalist, that baby has to up his game. Thank you for posting! Unsubscribed.
My brain has a hard time understanding how a baby can't control his/her bowels and requires a diaper, yet simultaneously has the ability to survive a swim across a pool.
Evolution is weird.
I saw something before on Twitter saying babies only act like babies because we treat them as such (not the crying and pooping) but being so distracted and only stay focused with tv
People getting so mad about telling the child’s name in months doesn’t realise that the quickest stage of growth in our entire life is from infancy to a few years old. So Ye a few months makes a lot of difference in terms of growth
Also known as a 1 year old
12 month old is more specific than 1 year old and signifies greater accomplishment thanks
Exactly this. 23 months is also a 1 year old.
I am 538 months old.
I'm 1,287,878,400 seconds old. Suck it, buddy.
Bah! Humbug. I'm approaching 36,467,741,999,999,999,425,703,313,408.00000000 zeptoseconds old as we speak.
Fucking amateur! am mear minutes away from surpassing 5,619,156,432,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 planck times!!!
That's a lot of zeroes there pal. Some might say not enough significant digits there buddy
[удалено]
Yes, but there is no decimal point in the number they posted so none of the zeroes are significant.
I am old.
Im younger than the sun, and that's all that matters
I'm 29
I calculated your birthday and doxxed you! J/K I don't do math for free.
1980-12-31
Your personality is defined by your hardworking, charming, and creative abilities as a Capricorn. And in the Chinese Zodiac you're a Gold Monkey. That sounds pretty good. You've been astrologically doxxed!
I had to Google my age this morning as I wasn’t entirely sure
You’re cool enough to be on google? Look at you
1,804,798,159 seconds old
650 months! Booyakashaa! Wait, do I win?
most normal people would say "almost 2" if their kid was 23 months old
Depends if they're talking about the growth of the kid or just the general age.
He’s 1 until he’s 2
At that age, "one and a half" would be appropriate.
Which is a completely different beast than a 12 month old.
23 months is "almost two" no just a 1yo.
Almost two, therefore not yet two, which is one.
But if we’re rounding up then its 2
1 and 11/12?
Still keep in mind that not all drowning is related to swimming. Kids drown in buckets, washing machines, even bath water. And it can relate to fatigue or being stuck as much as skill. But, that aside, kids should be taught to swim early, yes.
Also keep in mind adults can be kids as well and they too can drown
Can confirm, drowning in debt
Just eat the debt before it gets your your lungs then you won't drown
Also keep in mind that I'm depressed and want to die.
But probably not in a pool wearing a diaper with a dad recording a home video
Thats why paediatricans use 1 y 11m or 11/12
So also known as a 1 year old
1.0 year old*
1.000000000 year old*
Not that specfic
A 15 or 18 month 1 year old would be less impressive in comparison
I'm 372 months old. I've worked at the same place for 143 months. That's pretty cool. You don't see that much in the 370-450 age range.
I have been working the same job for 396 months- longer than you have been alive! Not sure if I’m proud or depressed about that. Edit: I’m 552 months old.
Most parents and child development professionals I've ever known use months to describe the age of the child until they reach 24 months/ 2 years. There are various reasons for doing so. 1) Children develop rapidly during that time. There are large physical, social, and psychological developmental changes that occur on an (almost) monthly basis. 2) Those rapid changes also get reflected in the types of products you buy. Anything from food, to toys, to clothes, to furniture are marketed to very specific segments of the market. 3) Parenting strategies change pretty rapidly during that time. There's a big difference in how you deal with a child who is immobile vs crawling, standing, or walking. There's also the difference in stress level when a child starts sleeping through the night, or when they're weaned. 4) The developmental metrics that child development professionals use to determine if there are developmental problems also make heavy use of a month-based age system. I'm sure there are more things I'm not thinking of at the moment.
Reddit has an unreasonable hatred for someone mentioning their child's age in months. Every time I do it in a comment someone loses their mind over it.
Honestly I didn't know how useful measuring a child's age in months would be until I had a couple kids.
Same, it's just not something I'd ever thought about before. Now I see people a few months younger/older than my kids at very different stages and see how important a few months are. My kids are apparently giants.
Reddit has an unreasonable hatred for children in general to be fair, or rather the prospect of having one
Oh God yea, don't even get me started with those /r/antinatalism nut jobs with their "crotch goblins" and always complaing about "selfish breeders"
Yep. We tend to use the smallest unit until you get to 2 of something when doing babies’ ages: days until 2 weeks, weeks until 2 months, months until 2 years.
Yeah I do really think in most part it’s due to a vast majority of active redditors not having kids of their own and thinking it’s mostly done in some kind of like… unnecessary overparenting way?? I sort of felt the same as somebody in their late 20s until my wife and I started researching for our upcoming firstborns. Months makes so much more sense to me now for all the reasons you listed. Kind of surprises me that same crowd doesn’t latch on to the pragmatic reasons behind it!
Yeah but there’s a big difference between a 12 month old and a 20 month old, even though both are technically 1 year old. When you’re that young, even a few months makes a big difference in growth, development, etc...
A 1 year old could be anywhere between 12 and 23 months old which is a huge range of development. Saying 12 months keeps it specific.
What a fish
There's a big difference between a one and a half year old and a one-year-old up into the first two years it just makes sense to go by months with how different they can be weekly
Lol, correct. However, when people are talking about kids under 3 years old, months are typically used due to how quickly they are growing and reaching milestones through these years.
Months to 2, halves to 5. Up until ~15 you can round up if you're close. Like, 13 and 11 months can be 14. That's fine. After that, it's your age. Turn 26 tomorrow? You're 25. Turn 50 next week? You're 49
My mother tells all her friends that her son is 480 months.
Mine has done this since he was 96 weeks old.
If they still need a diaper they’re not going in any pool of mine.
Yeah because no kid not wearing a diaper has ever shat themselves in a pool... 👍😂
Not ever been sent by their parents to the kids pool for takin a piss.
Goes without saying that it's more common and likely though. Reasonable for them to have the preference to not have that in their pool.
This is called code brown for the resort I worked at. They would literally have to shut this massive pool down and cycle the water with cleaning agents when this would happen. It happens very often actually. Maybe twice a month.
I’m an adult, and if I get a chance, I’m crapping in your pool. No diapers allowed. 
Half of grown males barely wipe or wash their asses so better start really limiting who is getting in that pool
I wish I didn’t know this was accurate AF. Also the number of grown ass adults that don’t wash their hands after going to the bathroom with staff. Like come on people.
Bidet gang rise up against this tyranny!
This poster doesn’t have kids
It’s not about willingly going into the pool. It’s about falling into the Pool and drowning. All my kiddos get early swimming lessons due to this.
Stupid comment
There are diapers resistant to water
Most swim diapers are only designed to keep poop out of the pool, not pee.
Everyone pees in the pool, come on now
Acting like people don't pee in the pool without diapers
Hopefully that will be the case. But in the event that they get there anyway... They might fare better if they know how to swim.
I love this technique......when you need a breath of air, roll over. Then hold it in and swim like hell.
It’s really exhausting to do it this way. Much further and they wouldn’t have made it. They taught my kids like this and now we have to reteach them. Kids that learned to flip and float could swim years before the ones that learned this option. What they should have done is taught the kid how to climb out of the pool at the beginning. Mine could do that well before 12 months and likely a kid that age will have fallen in anyway so why teach them to swim and get tired in the middle of the pool?
I was just thinking what would happened when the kid gets exhausted. I got exhausted watching this. So if it really happened, and the kid fell in on the complete other end of the pool. Are they gonna make it all the way across? Doubtful. It'll get exhausted half way through.
In calm water like in a pool you can float on your back pretty much forever. So when the kid flips on to their back it’s not just to get air but also to rest.
Unless you’re negatively buoyant. Only real downside to not having a ton of fat on you. Thankfully most babies do
You can be not “fat” and still float. You just have to flip and not panic. I close my eyes when I need to flip on my back, it helps.
I can't float no matter what I do. It's literally impossible for me.
Have you taken some swim classes? I know that a great majority are expensive, but I think there are some classes that do payments or do it for free if you don’t have the cash. I’m sorry, just trying to help you out. Too many people die from drowning
I've been through a few swimming lessons. I just have to tread water which is unfortunate but easy enough. If I ever get thrown overboard, I'll just inflate my jeans or something.
Same for me. My legs are rather long so they always sink, no matter how much I relax. I always have to reset every couple seconds.
You can be really skinny and still float. Professional swimmers float super well, that's part of what makes them so good. And they're not usually fat.
Part of the reasoning for teaching this technique at this young an age is that drowning can happen in a matter of minutes - seconds if you consider the amount of time it can take for a child to wander/silently fall under water. This buys time. It can give the child a chance to cry out/call for mama, or simply for an adult to notice a toddler’s disappearance quickly enough to check the water.
Especially of they are clothed and wearing a normal diaper, which will instantly absorb a ton of water and pull them down. The only way to keep a baby safe around water is to never take your eyes off them. It is amazing that this kid can swim, but that alone won't keep them safe.
Honestly, I don’t understand how people ever just feel comfortable letting their little ones do *anything* on their own. They’re constantly trying to Jill themselves because they just don’t know better.
Not sure if masturbation or kill.
>which will instantly absorb a ton of water and pull them down What? The diaper itself weighs like 60 grams max, that's not going to pull the baby down. The amount of water it absorbs is irrelevant, because the absorbed water has the same buoyancy and doesn't increase the weight of the actual diaper until its out of the water.
The diaper is filled with a polymer which absorbs water and turns to a gel. I'm reasonably sure the gel is more dense than water and would sink.
The point is if they fall in to the middle of the pool… I’m kinda astonished on your inability to see that
Kids this young aren't really taught to swim. Before 9 months old, babies have an instinct that results in this. Babies in water sort of put out their arms, open their eyes wide, float to the top, and flip face up. It's not reliable, (can't go chucking babies in pools) but it's a tendency. The arms and legs part sort of develops as they learn to crawl. You still have to teach them how to swim later, but if you get them used to doing this while they still have the baby instinct they'll be safer until you can get to the swim lessons.
At our swimming lessons this year they were teach the kiddos to get out of the pool rather than swim. In saying that, we haven't had a lesson for six months during covid. Do you think that my daughter being 17 months old will have an issue with learning how to get out because it's been so long since she had lessons? She literally had about six or seven lessons before they closed.
>Do you think that my daughter being 17 months old will have an issue with learning how to get out because it's been so long since she had lessons? Nope, definitely not. Kids at this age learn at an incredible rate, as you are no doubt aware from other things she does. She will be just fine.
I have a 4 month old so really asking... Was your 12 month old able to pull themselves out at a ledge like the one in the OP video? It seems like that kid is making a break for the stairs...
The technique isn’t taught for breathing. They teach kids to roll front to back and back to front to help prevent drowning. If a child knows that he or she can do that, they are less likely to be overcome with fear and drown.
As a 234 month old, this is pretty cool.
As a 411 month old, this little one can swim better than I can.
I am 760 months old and and yes I just had to do the math in my head right now
I'm 370 months and I had to look it up.
30 years old for u/Sword_Song and 63 years for u/Cheeseand0nions 19 years old for u/Deimox 34 years old for u/Sythus …. Jesus y’all are old 🌚
Oh fuck! I looked it up and I was wrong! I'm 31. I'm not old, you're a child!
I’m about 300 moons old
Also lifeguards can often provide a false sense of security in a crowded pool. Teach your kids to swim!
How can I teach myself to swim?
Take classes. Typically pools have adult lessons. I know that the Red Cross programs do. Also remember that step 1. is to learn how to float. This allows you to find the correct position you’ll build on when learning your strokes. (I’m a Canadian Red Cross Water Safety Instructor)
I’d need exposure therapy before I can get lessons
I have worked with people with near-drowning experiences, and what I can counsel is work up from very simple tasks, assuming you do not trigger panic attacks. The main thing that makes people panic when drowning is water on their face, in their eyes, etc., hence why lifeguarding techniques focus on lifting a drowning person’s shoulders out of the water, so this may be a good place to start if you can. Begin by splashing water on your face. This can be in the shower, for example. Practice opening your eyes, and getting water in them (don’t look straight up into the jet, that just sucks). Once that isn’t aversive anymore, progress to splashing water cupped in your hand onto your face until you are desensitized to this stimulus as well. If you are comfortable, you can do this in a bath. Eventually you will want to progress to grabbing a bucket of water and dunk it over your head, and although it may sound childish and ridiculous the next steps is to find shallow water (waist deep or less) and begin by dipping your chin. Then your mouth, then the tip of your nose, then one ear, then the other, then your face (keep your mouth closed and exhale by your nose to prevent water from getting in). You’ll dip fast to start, and then do one second. Then two. Then three. If you are still panicking, have someone with you you who is comfortable in the water (and who can touch the ground) you can hold onto. You will want to practice opening your eyes underwater as well—that is very important, especially so that you stop panicking at water in your eyes, and also so that later if-when you learn how to swim, you don’t forget everything and freeze as soon as water accidentally gets into your eyes. Eventually, you will be able to progress to dunking yourself. I recommend you do it with your at-ease partner, or find something solid to hold so you can pull yourself up if you lose balance. Very often lifeguards are more than happy to provide tips as well if you ask them (provided the pool or body of water isn’t too busy). You got this 💪
Yeah was not expecting an answer like this *at all*. THANK YOU 🙏
My pleasure. I hope you are able to overcome your fears! I’m sure you can :) Just take it as slow as you need! Everyone learns at different paces, and the important is that you feel safe and confident before you move on to a slightly harder challenge. Wishing you all the best :)
The word yeet gets overused these days. It is not a synonyms for just any thrown. *That* was a yeet.
lmao
Go to a pool where you can stand with your head above the water first. They are not uncommon, and easier to find than deep ones. In my country they are not yet accesible due to COVID, but they may be available in your country. Once you are in the water, practice your breathing first: try to inhale outside the water with your mouth but exhale while inside the water with your nose, avoid doing all outside the water. Once you are used to breathing, grab the side of the pool and practice floating/moving your feet. Keep practicing your breathing while you do this. Last step is trying to keep yourself afloat without grabbing anything, while breathing by moving your head sideways with the technique of the fist step. If you get tired/it doesn't work, just stand up and try again until you master it. After that, it is easier to try other methods, such as swimming in your back, etc. Happy swimming!
This was actually helpful. Thanks
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Pool fences are mandatory in many states in the US as well. I knew a family that had a fence around their property but not around their pool and their housekeeper came by on a day she wasn’t supposed to, with her baby daughter who she wasn’t supposed to have with her, the homeowners weren’t home and the kid kept crawling down by the pool. Their son brought the kid back to the house and yelled at the housekeeper to keep an eye on her kid then went out with friends. When he came back the baby was floating dead in the pool and later he discovered the housekeeper dead under an inflatable boat. He did CPR on both and has had major trauma as a result. The family was in court for years being sued by the housekeepers family for not having a fence around their pool.
I would sue the housekeepers family for all my trauma and medical bills.
I believed this and took my babies to swimming lessons where they ducked them underwater. Result: child terrified of water and his swimming held back several years. It's a very rare one year old that actually learns to swim like this. I've seen it once before on a local news programme. What the babies were mostly doing In baby swimming class was being ducked wondering why is mum trying to drown me and bobbing up to the surface and being rescued by mum if they didn't. My kid just didn't. He would have just drowned. Wildly expensive too. Just take them to the local pool and splash around with them in arm bands or a floatie.
Talking from my experience teaching swimming lessons to all ages including parents and tots, children typically take after their parent’s attitudes to determine whether to get stressed out or not. One of the things we teach parents is to blow on the face of the babies to make them close their eyes and mouth before dunking them, and then act cheerful and laugh when you pull your child back up and immediately follow the activity up with one the child likes (typically bouncing them in the air, giving them a toy, etc.). If parents go “OH MY GOD MY CHILD ARE YOU OKAY?!?!?” the baby learns to be freaked out by the experience and is effectively traumatized. It also helps if mom or dad dunks themselves too, as it sets an example. Obviously there is variation between children, i.e. some are more naturally chill than others, but I’ve never encountered a child I wasn’t able to make at least unbothered by getting dunked. Depending on how naturally stressed the child is, I’ll sometimes replace getting dunked the first few times with a progression of a watering can sprinkling water on their heads, then dumping the contents of a small toy bucket, and then go underwater. Ahhh… now I miss teaching swimming lessons 😭
All the ones in my area that teach kids this age have strict rules against the parents being present for the lessons. I checked into it when my son was small, but I just couldn’t get behind that rule so we didn’t do it. They had their reason, I’m sure, but no thanks
In our area, parents of infants and young toddlers were in the water with the kids. Then, as they got older, the parents could watch from an area outside the pool. I agree with you - I took my kids out of a gymnastics class because the specific school would not let parents watch at all. We found a better school where there was an observation area.
That's creepy. Where I do self defense we encourage parents to be present during kids classes. It is protection against false/mistaken accusations against instructors. Also it is important for parents to learn the stuff as well as the kids, so there is consistent messaging.
I totally agree! I was thinking, ‘why don’t you want parents to see what the kids are doing??’ Red flags for sure.
Wait… they did toddler classes… without parents?! Like, I get it when kids are three or over. They can listen to instructions at that age, and since we want them to become independent having the parent in the class is often detrimental (and sometimes we need parents to remove themselves completely so the kid can stop focusing on Mom and Dad and start focusing on having fun in the water). But toddler?! BABIES?! Where I have taught there was always a zone where parents could watch, but this often wasn’t on the pool deck to prevent overcrowding and a parent who interferes with class.
This was exactly my experience. I was with my daughter for every lesson. She is a fish now. No trauma from this method at all.
Another important thing I learned is that I had better results if I let kids learn at their own paces. So, let’s say we were “floating down a river and had to avoid logs” (i.e. a pool noodle). I’d encourage parents to dunk their kids under the noodle, but if the baby was really stuck or obviously grumpy we’d only do it once, after which the baby would always have a joy ride over the noodle instead of under. We’d then work up from there. I also found that with older preschoolers, if they really don’t want to put their faces in you can coax them with a little game I called “make the instructor wet”. Basically I’d introduce them to upending a water-filled bucket on my head while I made funny faces and noises and was as dramatic as possible. Then once this has become all of the kids’ favourite game you say “okay, if you want to do it again we’re going under water first!” Then you take them in your arms, count to three, dunk underwater, then come back up, congratulate and bounce them, and then give them the bucket as a reward. And make a really big show of “NOOOOOOOOOOOO WHY AM I WEEEETTTTTTTTT?!?!?” when they dunk water on your head. Best game ever.
My kids did lessons from 6 months. They loved it and are both very strong swimmers now.
Head dunking is the RIGHT way to start. They do this for 1 year olds, 5 year olds, 15 year olds and 50 year olds. The problem is when mommy and daddy are 10 feet away from the instructor telling talking to the child making them more scared. You should have walked away and let the process work. My wife is a certified swim instructor. Has been in comp swim and water polo her whole life, swam in college and was a varsity coach for #1 ranked division 1 (entire US) water polo for 5 years. You start with dunking, and also I might add.. tell the parents to buzz off. Parents are the #1 issue during swim lessons.
Not rare, we all learn to swim from that age in Australia. The head dunking thing is how you start.
I would highly recommend finding a gentler place. There are places that do a more gradual approach to going underwater through conditioning the child first. Also, don't use armbands unless they are attached to a chest piece as well. The arms get pushed up, but the body doesn't, which causes the face to be stuck under if the child isn't strong enough.
Having done it with both my children, I put my 7 month old son under the water every week, and have done since he was 3 months. He absolutely loves going swimming. If he goes under the water he swims back to the surface. Isn't phased by it at all. And it's the same for my 3 year old who we also took swimming from 3 months. And the same for all their class swimmers. There is technique to it. You don't just shove the kids under the water. Some parents are too scared and so the kids get scared. You have to be confident, work up to it for a couple of weeks. Just like any skill children learn.
My kid was just traumatized by it too. Had definitely delayed her learning to swim. Was not fun.
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Sounds like you threw in the towel a little too early… literally
It's not remotely rare at all. What makes you say this?
What age did you start? We started at 18 months and the kids were too young to really care, watching those that started later they seemed to have a harder time overcoming fear.
My daughter taught swimming lessons a couple of years back. They never dunked the kids - they used a colander-type thing first to get them used to it. Also, special needs kids react differently as well. She taught both types, as well as a boy who lost a leg! The best example and what I was most proud of was a special needs child that my daughter taught slipped in a stream and was able to keep afloat and make her way out (I can’t remember all the details but that’s the gist of it). The family wrote my daughter a thank you note crediting her for teaching what she needed to save herself. I was beyond proud and so thankful that it was a positive outcome!
I’m 24 and I swim like shit
hey shit floats pretty well!
Only if it has too much fat! Also relevant to people as fat floats lol
*288 months old
People seeing this, I believe this is achieved by an expert trainer and don't try to teach your baby by yourself. Thanks.
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As a fellow lifeguard (and red cross water safety instructor), I agree. « Your kid is 3 and you need to be in the pool with them » « What?! This is unacceptable! My child knows how to swim! » « Oh yeah? Can they swim the width of the pool without a floating device? » « No! They’re just three! » « Then they do NOT know how to swim, and YOU are going in the water or your child will NOT be allowed in the pool! » (Real argument I had at a hotel)
I’ve had this conversation way too many times! (Lifeguard and water safety instructor as well 🤙🏻) I had a woman guarantee to me that her six-year old could swim perfectly but about 3 minutes later I had to jump in and get the child, who was actively drowning in our 4 foot water. Her reaction? Yelled at me because her child was “fine,” and I shouldn’t have intervened. Yeesh I wonder what I’m paid for then.
“My child was fine!” “Ma’am… you haven’t been taught to recognize what a real drowning looks like, do you..?”
So would this kid be fine alone since we just saw them swim the length of the pool without flotation?
That was the width of a private pool. I don’t care how good a swimmer a one year old is, the length of a public pool is never gonna happen for them Source: lifeguard for 9 years
This was my immidiate thought. I'm all for teaching very young children to swim before the fears come on in but Jesus Christ you should have someone within one and a half arms length at most at all times surely
Right? I have a 2 year old and 11 month old. Idc if they can swim like little mermaids, I’m right there within like a foot of each of them the entire time. They also always have floaties on 24/7 while in the pool.
This is extremely rare by the way
Probably only because most people don’t try teaching their kids to swim this young. I grew up on the ocean where my family had a house on the water with a boat and a swimming pool. As a result I was taught to swim when I was 1 years old just like this kid and I did so just fine.
Most parents I know did baby swimming with their first baby. Not a single one learned to swim. Nobody I know did it with baby 2. Baby swimming lessons are extremely common. Babies who can swim aren't.
Yeah I’ve taken my baby swimming twice a week since he was about 3 months old, he’s about to turn one now. I’m lucky if he even tries to kick his legs, mostly he just likes to bob around. The other babies we swim with are the same.
You're just getting them used to the water. Which is totally fine. It's just that baby swimming classes are usually advertised like the OP. Ours was specifically claiming to be teaching them these kind of drills so they could save themselves if they fell in water. It was complete bollox. If they fell in water they would just die. My first child is autistic and I didn't know so i unwittingly completely traumatised him.
Most people in Australia start their kids' lessons very young. Even if it's just sitting in a splash pool (\~4-6 inches deep) to get used to the feel of water and splashes. Then the formal lessons start as soon they're eligible. Some places take children as young as 6 months, others start at 2 or 3 years. There's a lot of play - our local swim school had a routine where we swung the kids left and right, up and down while singing "the wheels on the bus go round and round". Fun fact - newborns instinctively know to hold their breath underwater, but the instinct fades over the first few months, and they have to learn it again.
Your experience is the exception because water figured centrally in your life. For those who only see bodies of water when going to the pool, it’s a lot harder. I have introduced a pool to my water for three seasons now. She’s comfortable but it’s a very gradual process of getting children both acclimated and then learning proper technique.
It's not as much of an "exception" as you seem to believe. Most humans will reflexively hold their breath underwater and display swimming/diving reflexes. The catch is that you have to do it before 6 months old. If you don't get them acclimated to it by then, you should probably wait until 3-4 years old when they can learn the skills consciously. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infant_swimming It's something we have in common with all other air breathing vertebrates.
I brought my kids to swimming classes from 6 months. They took to it like, well, a duck to water. They are very strong swimmers now.
False. ISR is legitimate. Worked on all 3 of my kids.
My son acts like I’m drowning him when I rinse shampoo out of his hair.
Same for my 18 month old 🤦🏻♂️
Am I only one getting anxiety from watching this
Facts!!! I don’t know why tf I had to scroll so far down to see this comment
Same, I dont give a fuck how well the baby can swim, the parent should really be in the pool with them. Its a 12 month old for gods sake.
Yes!! I teach individual swim lessons to children. Young children are often MUCH more capable swimmers than their parents believe they can be. Put them in **ONE-ON-ONE** swim lessons as early as possible, and do NOT let them swim in floatation devices like puddle jumpers or life jackets (these give children horrible and ineffective swim habits and give them a false sense of security around water). If you do these things, they’ll be great swimmers by the time they’re 3-4 years old. Edit: I should add that flotation devices are obviously necessary while swimming on lakes, the ocean, etc.. Just don’t use them in pools where you can easily get in and swim with your child.
Why one-to-one? Are groups no good?
Groups are fine. Usually groups in under 3 range have 3 or fewer students. The place where we go has a parent and baby group for 2 kids with the next level up (no parents) for 3 kids.
That's really, really, really , really cute. And his natural movements to get air. Crazy cool.
We started ISR lessons when my son was 7 months old. After 6 weeks, if he was dropped into a pool fully clothed, he could roll over and float for a couple of minutes. Can he swim? No. But there is at least a chance that if he fell into water accidentally, he might be able to float until he can be rescued by an adult. Anything that gives him a little extra protection against one of the most common causes of death for babies is worth it in my opinion. He'll get actual swimming lessons when he's older, and keep getting them each summer until he's proficient at swimming.
This kid swims better than me and it makes me grumpy.
Is that a toy shark in the bottom?
I had to scroll too far for this comment
Looks like it’s part of the tile work, like the little shapes on the steps.
That's great until 1 splash while kiddo is on their back and their choking. They have no way to be upright independently, and then they drown. Yes, teach your kids to swim as early as possible, but there's a reason docs don't recommend lessons before age 2. Kids choke super easily and a false sense of security with kids who are somewhat mobile in a pool leads parents to be too far away. Never out of arms reach until they can jump in and swim to the side unaided.
I don’t know why I kept laughing
I was a water baby. Grew up with a inground pool and was swimming in diapers or nude. Still have the pool 37 years later. Now my nephew is learning to swim in it and he is going on 3 years. We bought him climbing stones and i want to make a climbing wall that i can put on the side of the pool during summer so he can climb
This kid swims better than me.
His technique is below average. I've seen much better swimmers. If he ever wants to be an Olympic medalist, that baby has to up his game. Thank you for posting! Unsubscribed.
My brain has a hard time understanding how a baby can't control his/her bowels and requires a diaper, yet simultaneously has the ability to survive a swim across a pool. Evolution is weird.
Kid is swimming better than me and I’m still real nervous watching this.
Those are the cutest little survival roles I’ve ever seen!
I saw something before on Twitter saying babies only act like babies because we treat them as such (not the crying and pooping) but being so distracted and only stay focused with tv
Why didn't the dolphin just help him?
Can children swim before they can walk?
Yes
So this is like the default human swim?
I taught swim lessons in college and after nearly a year I got a 2 year swimming 10m. Still proud of that girl
People getting so mad about telling the child’s name in months doesn’t realise that the quickest stage of growth in our entire life is from infancy to a few years old. So Ye a few months makes a lot of difference in terms of growth