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Joshua's Swim Lessons

July 16, 2006

Joshua has always loved the water.  We discovered this when he went to a language enrichment preschool that used the pool they had in their summer program.  Since it was an indoor pool, I thought that was stupid.  They should have used it year round.

At any rate, his love of the pool began and I spent a great deal of money to teach him to swim because his love of the water was matched by his lack of fear of the water.  And, because he is so disabled, he couldn't participate in group lessons.  So, we forked over the money for private lessons, and after hundreds upon hundreds of dollars he can doggie-paddle with ease across the pool.

This year I put him back in private lessons for a total of six or seven weeks.  My hope was to build his endurance and maybe improve his stroke a little.  But, being a teenager and becoming less and less compliant, I'm not sure we'll get anything out of the lessons but a fun time for him.  Maybe endurance.

Our summer schedule is crazy, and last week and next week are the craziest of them all.  Jonnie has basketball from 10:15 to 11:30 M-F.  Then, Ashley has water polo from 2-3:30 T-Th.  Then Zac, Josh (the first week, Ashley the second), and Jonnie has swim lessons from 5-5:30 and 6:10-7:20 M-F.  Then Ashley and Jonnie has swim practice for the swim team from 8-9 M-Th and swim meets from 7AM to 2PM or later every Sat., except next weekend--championships--when it will be all day Sat. and Sun.

And every time someone else gets to go swimming and he doesn't, Josh gets upset.  He goes and puts his suit on and has to be told several times that he isn't going ("Yes, he is going to swim," he replies), and finally you just tell him to take his suit off and that seems to work.  Of course, his eyes are sensitive and so he has to wear goggles but he has autism and is like a toddler mentally so he doesn't keep track of them and that is how we ended up with two pair for him.  But that worked out because Jonnie's broke and so now one pair is Jonnie's and one is Joshua's.

Oh, and speaking of suits, Joshua got too skinny for the suit he's been wearing for two years and so we had to go out and buy him a swim team suit, the kind that hugs the body, and now he looks like a skeleton in his suit.  The other kids are so embarrassed by his skin-and-bones looks that they have him wear the baggy suit over the tight one unless he's in the water.  It doesn't bother Josh so I haven't interfered.

We're trying to work on weight gain with Joshua, but textures bother him and he still has BM issues, where he doesn't go for days and days (he's seeing a specialist about that), so he often won't eat as much as the other kids and he is a teenage boy--13 now.  I sure hope he puts on some weight soon and that the specialist can get it all figured out.

I would have thought swimming would have helped with the BM issues, being exercise and all, but if anything it has become worse.  There are several other factors it might be though, so swimming continues for now.  When swimming is done, we'll be trying a social group that meets down town.  We are hoping he will learn to entertain himself better, play with others, and how to have a conversation instead of just talking when you need something.

Best wishes,

Khy

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