Rachel, a psychologist from South Wales, describes her experience with Swimming Without Stress as ‘life-changing.’ We met her as a total non swimmer with a lot of fear. Rachel enjoyed the process, and always seemed happy where she was at. This focus on the present—a non ‘end-gaining’ approach—ensured her progress was both steady and stress-free.
She shared this review to encourage anyone considering our intensive course to take the plunge.
Check out the video for her top 5 reasons for recommending Swimming Without Stress
“When I turned 50 I had a list of things I wanted to do in my fifties…one of the biggest was to tackle my issues with the water. I thought “If not now…when?” I would describe myself as a lifelong frustrated water baby. By that I mean that I liked being in shallow, warm water but would easily get spooked by pretty much anything – a wave, someone splashing me, water coming anywhere near my face etc. The fears in the water meant I was tense and fighting against the water and so could do very little. To make matters more complicated I am very dyspraxic and so coordination / balance are difficult for me. If I was in a swimming pool I would be the one holding on to the wall for dear life in case I lost my balance and went under the (scary) water!
Guess what….because of SWS I am now friends with that same water, prefer to be in an open space well away from that wall and actually enjoy having my face under the water. Who would have thought??? I wanted to write this account to encourage people like me who have gone through life as a nervous or non-swimmer to visit SWS. I can’t believe I am saying this but I am now one of those people I dreamed about being who gets in to the pool or even the sea and moves in the water – I guess you can say I can swim!
Like a lot of people I had bad early experiences surrounded by people who could swim lengths, thought it was fun to splash the non-swimmer and teachers who gave me a float or the dreaded arm bands then ignored me. But in my SWS course I learned that I could relax my neck in the water and float, move in the water in a gentle glide, no more mad splashing. I learnt that I have more breath than I think and I can breathe and then go back under and “look at the fish” (a helpful mental image) at a slow relaxed pace. No more panic to get to the surface!
Through SWS I discovered the ability to float and to glide, I learnt how to find my feet again with support from Ian and Cheryl in the water and then progressed to doing this independently. I also learnt that I can move my limbs calmly as I move in the water and that I could “do less” (a useful mantra) and then feel less stressed and frantic. Little videos of myself in the water that they then showed me were really helpful to see what I was doing and to make adjustments.
Since my SWS experience I have found immense solace in being in the water, going to quiet pools as a chill out and even ventured into the sea. I feel confident and calm and in love with the water…all things I thought impossible a year ago. If you would find it helpful to speak to someone who has been through the SWS experience then you can contact me via SWS.”
In this video, Rachel gives 5 top reasons for recommending a Swimming Without Stress course.
1. One to one lessons
2. The pacing of the lessons
3. Alexander Technique
4. The residential setting
5. Ian and Cheryl