Open Water Swimming & Facing Your Fear
In recent blog posts I've talked about discovering kayaking and paddle boarding and how much I've been enjoying it. What I haven't mentioned is that I'm actually scared of the water!
I've no idea where this fear comes from but it's started to become a bit of an issue. When I'm out on the water I'm largely ok - apart from when I fell off my board into the sea and panicked. I was convinced something was going to grab my foot and pull me under - but once I'm back on dry land and safely in my bed my retrospective panic is much worse and I find I can't stop imagining the worst case scenario i.e. something actually grabbing my foot, or being stranded in the water unable to swim to the shore.
I read that this is quite a common way for fear to behave, when you're in the moment, especially in a situation where you might feel scared, you can be so absorbed and focussed that you don't feel the fear until later.
On one hand this is quite a good way for fear to behave, if you can keep calm in the face of danger you're more likely to be able to find a safe way out of a dangerous situation. On the other hand, I don't want this fear to stop me getting out on the water or for it to get me into danger if I do fall in and panic.
Our friend Kate, who is a coach at Graham's gym (http://www.insideoutcoaching.co), is a regular open water swimmer and offered to take us for a taster session at Pilmuir Quarry near Glasgow. Vigour Events (http://www.vigourevents.com/open-water-swimming-series) run regular swims at the quarry and offer a safe environment for nervy beginners like me.
Initially I wasn't going to do it but I want to (and need to) be confident in the water, so that's how I came to be swimming in a quarry on a rainy Sunday morning.
When I first got in and dropped off the ledge into deep water I did feel panic rising, I'd also been told there was a submerged car right under me (used for police training) which really freaked me out. However, upon instruction, I took some deep breaths and tried to settle myself in the situation, it helped and once my body got used to the cold I swam for the bouy, I did a lap and it was actually ok.
I've just finished reading "Swimming with Seals" by Victoria Whitworth, in it she talks about swimming in Orkney as an escape from troubles in her life and reading it you get a sense of the peace she feels when she's swimming. The excerpts where she diarises her swims are beautiful and I found the whole book soothing to read. Swimming in that quarry I understood how she must have felt, it was peaceful and that was just in a quarry on a rainy day in Glasgow, swimming in the ever changing waters of Orkney with seals must be increadible.
That said I read another account of wild swimmer Catriona Barr who came across an Orca while swimming off Shetland (read about it here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-36796807) so perhaps I'll stick to the quarry for now BUT I have booked my first swimming lesson, yesterdays swim showed my technique leaves a lot to be desired, so hopefully some lessons will build my confidence as well as my strength and skills.
