This post has been written by Caitlin, with the help of her Support Worker, Jo.
I'd been wanting to go swimming for a while and I had also never been in a hot tub before, so I told my support worker Jo who started looking into different options straight away! She suggested going to a local spa in a nearby town, as it had a pool and a jacuzzi and was it was really reasonable priced for us to stay for the whole day if we wanted to.
I was really excited by this idea, and the thought of wearing my new bikini was a bonus! I absolutely loved my new bikini but I hadn't had chance to wear yet so this was the perfect opportunity.
When we arrived and had got ourselves ready to get in the pool, I got quite nervous. I actually can't swim at all, and I said to Jo that I wasn’t sure about getting in after all.
Jo reassured me that there were no expectations at all, and that we had no time pressures, suggesting that I might want to just walk down the steps and get used to the water a bit at a time from there, then see how I felt. She was really reassuring and I felt at ease.
L: Caitlin at the pool. R: Caitlin is a keen chef and can add swimming to her list of ways to keep healthy now as well!
With Jo by my side, I slowly walked into the swimming pool, step by step, holding Jo's hand. Jo had already checked the depth of the pool and had assured me that I would be able to stand up in it at every point, as it was only one depth throughout and was quite shallow.
Step by step, Jo helped me to gain confidence, and this only grew and grew! I started off holding Jo's arms while I kicked my legs out. I was worried about hurting Jo by gripping her too hard, but she said she was fine with what whatever help I needed at that time, and thanked me for thinking about her too.
After a while, I moved to holding just Jo's hands to kick up and down the pool, and Jo was praising me for doing really well, telling me how proud she was of me, and how proud I should be of myself. That really spurred me on to keep going and gave me the motivation I needed.
After an hour or so, I wanted to try a bit more as I was getting on so well so we decided that I should have a go at properly swimming with my float vest on (remember, I couldn't swim at all when I first got in)! I put the vest on and got used to swimming in it, exactly how I had been doing before but with Jo's support.
"You're doing so well!" - A member of the public who praised Caitlin for her efforts in the pool.
After a little while with my vest on, I started to get a little frustrated because I wasn't able to coordinate using my arms and my legs at once and I was getting angry with myself. Jo suggested that she could have her arms round my back and hold round my waist, so that my arms and legs were both free but I was still fully supported. Jo said that this is how she taught her kids to swim which reassured me. Although I was nervous about this at first but I trust Jo. Before long I was doing this really well, and my confidence just grew and grew.
After a while, I asked Jo if she thought I’d be okay to have a go by myself in my float vest. Jo said that she thought I'd be fine, as she would stand right next to me throughout, so if I needed her, she would be within instant reach for me. She reminded me that I could pop my feet down at any time too!
I swam 26 lengths in total that day! For the last 6 lengths, I swam the last 4 or 5 metres of each length totally unaided. Towards the end of each length, I told Jo when I was comfortable for her to let go, and she stayed right beside me as I swam the last few metres by myself each time. It really helped knowing that she was so close if I needed her.
I was so proud of myself, and so was Jo. She was so supportive the whole time, praising me for working so hard to gain confidence, to the point where I swam unaided, despite the initial nerves I'd had when I first saw the pool.
Caitlin is a fan of being on the water and now in it too!
Jo told me that I'd been fantastic company today, and praised me for how I'd listened to her throughout, as well as how patient I'd been and how well I'd worked with her to try new things. I had worked so hard that day, and I was delighted with how much I'd achieved.
Throughout the day, Jo reassured me that there was no pressure at all, and no expectations, saying that we were just there to have fun, and whatever I did in the pool was just great exercise either way.
This approach worked really well for me as I felt in complete control of the pace which enabled me to try things when I wanted, and this showed as my confidence grew quickly.
I also LOVED going in the giant jacuzzi and happily chatted to other people in there. This is the first time I’d been in one, so again I was cautious at first, but I quickly realised that I loved it and laughed lots at the bubbles.
I had such a good day, that I was keen to do it again straight away. A few weeks later, we went again! We got the bus again and walked up to the Spa hotel, chatting together all the way.
There were none of the nerves that I had last time, and I wanted to get in the pool straight away!
I held on to Jo's hands for a while and then like last time, we moved on to Jo holding me under my stomach so that I was free to practice using my arms and legs at the same time to swim, but I moved to this stage super quick this time.
I swam up and down the pool with Jo supporting me like this, with several other swimmers complimenting me on how well I was doing which felt really good! I alternated swimming with time in the jacuzzi, which Jo encouraged so that I was getting regular breaks and not overexerting myself.
Jo asked me if I’d like a photo in the jacuzzi as we were the only people in there and I looked so chilled out, and I was so excited by this idea! Jo used her phone so that there was no risk of mine getting dropped in the water. I asked if Jo could put the photo on Moorview Care's telegram group, and I was really pleased when she did so and people started commenting on it.
After a while I got more and more confident swimming and me and Jo worked on the movements needed to get me moving forwards and my legs kicking out. Eventually after a lot of practice, I learned how to get into this position by myself and soon after I swam a whole length by myself like this, with Jo walking along right beside me. I worked so hard and improved so quickly, really listening to all guidance that Jo gave and chatting away to her as I swam.
"Caitlin has grown in confidence a huge amount in just 2 sessions, really listening to any advice given, and working so hard to improve her swimming". - Jo, Caitlin's Support Worker and swimming partner!
In the changing room I washed my hair and got ready independently, telling Jo how much I'd loved spending our time together here, with Jo agreeing. We talked about how proud we both were of my achievements and then headed home shortly after. Ironically, we got absolutely soaked on the way home due to the heavy rain that started with no warning, but we'd had such a good day that this didn't bother us at all, and we laughed and joked together about how wet we both were.
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