Swim Safe Now with Lisa Persse

https://www.parentspreventingchildhooddrowning.com/post/puddle-jumpers-more-harm-than-good-how-floatation-devices-can-be-dangerous-for-your-child

Puddle Jumpers: More Harm than Good? How floatation devices can be dangerous for your child. My son, Jackson, wore a puddle jumper when in our backyard pool. We occasionally took it off to work on “swimming”, but he wore it most of the time. I thought it kept him safer in the water. After we lost Jackson to drowning, I kept it for his younger brother to wear. A special hand-me-down. Jac...

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What is swimming? When we tell children they are swimming, what are they actually doing? Floating on a float, standing in the water, sitting on the step, bobbing in the water, dunking their head, jumping in with a floatation device….

Is that really swimming?

We are using this term too loosely and children are believing us.

Is it any wonder they are sneaking back to the water when we or their flotation devices aren’t with them when we have convinced them that they can “swim” when they really can’t?

What should we tell them instead?

“Look at you, playing in the water! Playing in water is fun but don’t go there alone. Always wait for mommy or daddy to go with you.”

“Mommy/Daddy is helping you stay up in the water because you haven’t learned how to do that alone yet.”

“We are going to go to swim lessons so you can learn how to swim and be safe.”

“You are doing a great job learning how to hold your breath when you go under water. This will help you when you learn to swim.”

Everytime we post about Judah’s story it brings to light yet again the common resistance responses we get every single time we post about the dangers of using flotation devices on a constant basis with young kids while playing in pools.

These responses are so very common that we have created the following answers to help you when you inevitably face them too.

Changing firmly established culture is THE hardest work. You have to live with personal attacks and vicious, painful comments about the very worst day of your life.

But this is the work that saves lives. I won’t let defensive comments and attacks stop me from doing it. If anything, they just make me more determined to push for change.

That being said, here are the comments and our responses:

Comment: You cannot blame the device or the company. These are just a flotation device. They are not meant to take the place of a parent.

A: I think, when all the evidence (hundreds of testimonies and even surveillance video footage) is pointing to devices causing unintended, dangerous things to be learned by the child while the parent is completely unaware of what the devices are teaching their child and therefore can’t mitigate against it, I actually can and do blame the device.

Comment: My child/children used these devices and they are just fine. I didn’t have any problems. Just because you did doesn’t make the device bad.

A: This is the DEFINITION of survivors bias. Other examples are people who drove drunk and didn't kill anyone or themselves, or people who survived a car crash without a seat belt. It doesn't make it safe. They're just lucky. You are very lucky that it didn’t happen to you. Just because it didn’t happen to you doesn’t mean that it’s not a problem.

Comment: You are just trying to blame something other than your failure to watch your child. You can’t handle the guilt that you failed so you have to blame the device.

A: I think, when all the evidence is pointing to devices causing unintended, dangerous things to be learned by the child while the parent is completely unaware of what the devices are teaching their child and therefore can’t mitigate against it, I actually can and do blame the device.

Furthermore, there is something called Inattention blindness. It’s a concept in neurology that every human has and is susceptible to. It is what we know of commonly as lapses in supervision. Tiny pockets of time when your mind is distracted by other stimuli so you don’t see something else happening, even if it happens right in front of you.

Examples of this are when you find your child with your makeup or marker all over their face or the wall, you find them in the pantry with all of the shelves of food on the ground, etc. It happens to every parent, even when they are in the same room as their child. No one is immune to this. This does NOT mean they weren’t watching their child. This does NOT mean they just sent their child off to find trouble and ignored them. This means that there are gaps in EVERYONE’S ability to supervise. This is why supervision alone is not enough to prevent drowning.

The only difference between a funny photo of your child with toothpaste all over them and a funeral is the presence of water.

The vast majority of all drowning accidents that were investigated were NOT a result of a problem with neglect. I know you want to blame the parent because it makes it less scary for you. If it is a bad parent, you don’t have to think that it could happen to your child. But it isn’t because of bad parenting the majority of the time…and that means it CAN happen to you.

Comment: Is this different from a regular life jacket? And what about floaties? Can we use any of them instead?

A: Yes it is different. It’s not as solid as a regular life jacket. It’s not as good for your child in any kind of water. It will put your kids face down in choppy water where as good life jackets will pull them face up.

Floaties are toys and are not lifesaving devices.

That being said, life jackets and floaties will also teach your child that false sense of confidence, if used during swim time and in pools consistently. Life jackets should only be used when you go to rivers, lakes and oceans. Everyone, adults included, should use them there.

They should NOT be used in pools with a few exceptions: a child with special needs who cannot safely or physically learn to swim or at a crowded, uncontrolled camp or a water park situation, where the water can be unpredictable.

Apart from a few exceptions, the frequent use of ANY flotation device in a controlled water setting, like a pool (where kids should be learning what their own bodies can and can’t do in water) is how they learn that false sense of safety and the vertical positioning in the water.

Don’t use any flotation device in pools on a regular basis. Have one-on-one touch supervision with non-swimmers instead.

Again, exceptions include if your child has special needs that make it impossible for them to learn to swim (if that is the case, they also likely won’t be able to get themselves in the water without you), in a kids camp/school outing setting where there are just not enough adults to watch the children properly or at a water park where the water is uncontrolled.

If that means you can’t go to the pool because there is one adult to 3 kids who can’t swim, then take them to a splash pad or use sprinklers instead. Plan a one on one date for pool time with each child, or find enough adults to have that one to one ratio with each non-swimmer.

Is this harder to do? Yep. But harder to do is nothing when you compare it to losing your child forever.

I’m glad you asked!!

Comment:

The false confidence and the jacket making your kid think anything doesn’t make sense. I constantly tell my kids they can swim without their floats because that’s what we are supposed to do. Also learn to swim means it can assist in helping your child in the water it doesn’t imply that it replaces swim classes or actually teaches your child to swim?
We have used these as well as others and honestly they all suck for toddlers. I would never trust my kid alone in any sort of pool if they haven’t been swimming well on their own for years. Drowning is one of the leading causes of death in kids and it’s not because they are correctly in a life jacket and just drown. It’s usually because someone wasn’t paying attention.

Not saying that was the case here and I understand with death you feel the need to blame someone other than yourself because it’s your child and you’re going to blame yourself regardless but unless there was something wrong with the jacket and it didn’t keep the kid up and the kid somehow drowned with an adult in the pool then okay sure that would make sense but this just does not.

A: It’s not what happens when they are wearing the life jacket. It’s what happens after they take it off, because they have been constantly wearing it. It’s what happens when they go back to the water without the flotation device on, jump or fall in (most go back in intentionally) and don’t have any skills to save themselves. They thought they could swim, due to being able to float while wearing the life jacket, which is what gives them the confidence to go in without it.

Most who survived, when asked why they did go in without it, said they thought they could swim. They didn’t understand the device was what was keeping them floating. They literally thought it was their own ability doing that. Some even hid their device before running back to get into the water.

So many of us are trying to educate you so that you can protect your children from their number one killer. Why would you teach your children to have fun in the water with a false sense of security before you would teach them how to survive in it? I understand if you have questions, but please have some curiosity on why this is dangerous instead of criticism. It blows my mind that you are arguing with people who have suffered the ultimate sacrifice for believing exactly what you believe now, then learning they were wrong in believing it and then trying to help others see that mistaken belief so that this tragedy doesn’t happen to them too.

Just open your mind a bit and educate yourself. That's all we are trying to do. Don't make our mission, (trying to save you from the unimaginable-the actual ONLY thing that gives us purpose in this life) so much more difficult because of your reluctance to hear us.

We aren’t trying to blame anyone or tell them they are bad parents. We all thought the same things before our accidents happened. Now that we know better, we want to help others learn before they have to bury their children too.

Instructor training, program safety and teaching methodology matters….do your homework before enrolling your child.

⚠️WARNING! Not all swim lessons are created equal! 🧐Please research any swim program or instructor claiming to teach “survival” or “self-rescue” skills very carefully. Legitimate, Certified Survival Swim Instructors undergo intense specialized training to safely and effectively shape INDEPENDENT swimming, floating and problem-solving skills. ➡️Here’s a few good questions to ask a potential instructor: ❓What training have you had? What Survival Swim program are you certified through? ❓Do you teach group or one-on-one lessons? ❓What is the length and frequency of lessons? ❓How long will it take for my child to learn INDEPENDENT swimming and floating skills? ❓How do you teach breath control? ❓What INDEPENDENT survival/self-rescue skills do you teach? What if my child cannot reach a wall? 🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩 Here are some red flags that someone is NOT a Certified Survival Swim Instructor: 🚩They teach lessons longer than 15 minutes a day, fewer than 4 times per week 🚩They teach blowing bubbles (the opposite of breath control) 🚩They encourage treading water (the most ineffective & exhausting way to try and breathe & not an option for infants and young children) 🚩They teach more than one child at a time 🚩They use any type of flotation devices or props as “swim aids” 🚩They won’t allow you to observe lessons prior to registering and can’t demonstrate (in person or on video) their students performing INDEPENDENT swimming and floating skills. ✅To learn more about what SHOULD be included in High Quality Swim Lessons, visit swimsafenow.com/high-quality-swim-lessons. #swimsafenow #survivalswimlessons #swimlessons #swiminstructor #themoreyouknow #choosewisely #savetime #savemoney #smart #thebest #watersafety #layersofprotection #drowningprevention

What swim instructors wish you would do to prepare your kids for lessons:

Get your kids used to having water on their faces-including their ears.

Use one-on-one touch supervision in the water instead of flotation devices. Avoid puddle jumpers at all costs.

Teach your kids to ask before getting into the water.

Don’t allow them to blow bubbles in the bathtub.

Don’t let them drink bath water.

Don’t tell older kids they are doing this so they don’t drown. They don’t know what that means but they do sense it’s negative and then they form a negative association with lessons.

Don’t let your child lay on their back or “swim” in the bathtub. Bath time is not practice time!

Get your child excited about starting lessons. Frame it positively with them. Watch positive videos and read positive books.

Guess which one your child learns to do when they wear flotation devices during pool time? Guess which one they will resort to when in panic if that’s all they know because of the way flotation devices hold them up??

If you want them to get into the life-saving position, get them out of the devices and skilled to self-rescue as soon as you possibly can!

Let’s remember: Floaters, NOT Floaties! Please read entire post!

🌊 Hey everyone! 🌟 I often get asked about life jacket recommendations, so I’ve compiled several for you to choose from to make your shopping easier! Please read this post and also check out our Amazon recommendations here https://linktr.ee/sunshinewatersafety 🌟 We keep this link in our bio for you!

Life jackets aren’t meant for recreational use, but they have their place for water safety. FYI, Coast Guard Approved only means the USCG has approved the floatation device for use on a water vessel! They are meant to be life saving devices in an aquatic accident 🚫🏊‍♂️but the USCG does NOT evaluate or approve the safety of devices for use for any other purposes. See TheJudahBrownProject.org for more detailed information on this.

Life jackets should be used:
✅ Around open water 🌊
✅ At waterparks 🏖️
✅ In swimming situations where direct adult supervision is challenging or limited - crowded pool parties, multiple kids to watch 🏊‍♀️🏊‍♀️

They shouldn’t be used:
❌ For recreational use 🙅‍♀️
❌ As a replacement for adult supervision 🙅‍♂️

Here are some parent testimonies regarding puddle jumpers:
Judah Brown Project https://judahbrownproject.org/testimonies-results-of-flotation-device-use-around-pools/
Levi's Legacy
SWIM for CJ

When a floatation device is needed, please choose a life jacket! Choose proper life jackets for your swimmers based on weight. Check out our recommendations here: https://linktr.ee/sunshinewatersafety 🌟


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