Would you go swimming by yourself?

southernbubby ↓

Tue, Jun 19 2018, 9:11 am

amother wrote:

It happened to a relative of mine, he had a heart attack while swimming alone Sad

my husband nearly drowned after getting a cramp, Baruch Hashem he was with a friend who was able to save him.
please don’t.

Although I agree that it is safer to have someone aware if an adult is swimming alone so that they can check at intervals, runners can also have heart attacks and collapse.

Years ago, a Chabad family was vacationing and the two teenage girls went to use the hotel pool, alone. One girl was sucked into the drain, possibly due to not wearing a bathing cap and the hair was dragged into it and the second one tried to save the first. When the hour got late and the girls did not return to the hotel, their brother went to search for them. Both girls were found with no pulse and the brother who found them was in mental shock for a very long time. There was nothing that the paramedics could do to save the girls. I am sure that some posters here remember this horrific incident and the moral to the story is to swim with others or at least have someone check periodically.

↑ mommyla ↓

Tue, Jun 19 2018, 9:40 am

It doesn't have to be a heart attack. Sudden cramps can be debilitating too, and there are dangers like the pool drain (like southernbubby pointed out). I have a friend who's a strong swimmer and once found herself choking without any warning (it was probably dry drowning or something similar) - she could have very well drowned if there weren't other swimmers around. You can accidentally hit your head on the side of the pool if you misjudge the distance; I once hit the bottom of the pool face-first, and I was fine (just banged up), but it could have ended badly.

It's the first rule of water safety: never swim alone. I have been very tempted at times when I couldn't find a swimming partner, but it's just not worth the risk.

kalanit

Tue, Jun 19 2018, 9:56 am

I certainly agree that there is some risk for an adult to swim alone, but it is something that I do almost daily in the summer months (backyard pool). One thing I do to make it somewhat safer is to throw several swim noodles in the deep end of the pool, so either a swim noodle or the edge of the pool is pretty much always within reach. For myself, I consider it an acceptable risk and an activity that helps me greatly with coping with work stress.

↑ tichellady ↓

Tue, Jun 19 2018, 11:38 am

southernbubby wrote:

In this case there were two people swimming together. I don’t see how this is relevant to the question of swimming alone. It’s a very tragic story and I don’t see how there is any moral to it.

shoshanim999 ↓

Tue, Jun 19 2018, 12:13 pm

thunderstorm wrote:

I know too many people who have lost parents because they were swimming in a pool alone and something happened to them while they were swimming and they drowned because of it. All these people were great swimmers.

The fact that you know people that this has happened to doesn't change the statistics that actually apply to swimming alone tragedies. In the same way that I can't argue that playing the powerball lottery is a good idea since I know several people who have won. Statistics are statistics and they don't change because in our individual little world the statistics are skewed from what they are in the general population. Is swimming alone dangerous? It's certainly not ideal, but as a strong swimmer I would be comfortable swimming in the shallow side of the pool being extra careful while realizing I'm alone. I don't think swimming alone (without being reckless) is statistically more dangerous than driving or crossing the street at a busy intersection.

↑ southernbubby ↓

Tue, Jun 19 2018, 12:18 pm

tichellady wrote:

In this case there were two people swimming together. I don’t see how this is relevant to the question of swimming alone. It’s a very tragic story and I don’t see how there is any moral to it.

One was unable to save the other. There would have had to have been more people around or at least someone within earshot in case the 2nd one tried to scream.

amother

Mistyrose

Tue, Jun 19 2018, 12:26 pm

The difference between eating/driving and swimming is that the activity itself puts you at greater risk of heart attack/cramps, etc. I'm also a lifeguard and swim really well but I would never go myself into the water.

amother

Papaya

Tue, Jun 19 2018, 1:33 pm

I have a friend with a backyard pool, and at night when the family isn't using it, she lets me. I'm a very experienced swimmer and I go all by myself. It's so quiet and peaceful there. (Posting anonymously so no one knows who I am and no one will figure out who she is to try to take advantage of her kindness and overwhelm her.)

↑ tichellady

Tue, Jun 19 2018, 1:43 pm

southernbubby wrote:

One was unable to save the other. There would have had to have been more people around or at least someone within earshot in case the 2nd one tried to scream.

Ok but everyone I know who won’t swim alone will swim in groups of 2, so now you are saying that even that is dangerous.

↑ mommyla

Tue, Jun 19 2018, 1:50 pm

tichellady wrote:

Ok but everyone I know who won’t swim alone will swim in groups of 2, so now you are saying that even that is dangerous.

Or that both swimmers need to know what to do in a dangerous situation. If one is not capable of saving the other with lifeguarding maneuvers or if the other is trapped in a drain, she should be able to react quickly and call for help. There should always be a phone next to the pool - so call for help before trying to help or after realizing that you can't help.

Raisin

Tue, Jun 19 2018, 2:05 pm

tichellady wrote:

In this case there were two people swimming together. I don’t see how this is relevant to the question of swimming alone. It’s a very tragic story and I don’t see how there is any moral to it.

wear a swimming hat?

↑ southernbubby ↓

Tue, Jun 19 2018, 2:13 pm

tichellady wrote:

Ok but everyone I know who won’t swim alone will swim in groups of 2, so now you are saying that even that is dangerous.

Basically one has to be capable of saving the other or at least get prompt help. We have to be able to learn something from that horrible tragedy; one being that saving someone from drowning means having the proper skill and the other being that saving someone from drowning means being able to call for help.

And yes, swim caps could be a lifesaver.

↑ southernbubby

Tue, Jun 19 2018, 3:12 pm

amother wrote:

Drain entrapment often has nothing to do with hair. Google it.

I googled it and it said:

Everything from feet, hands and even hair can get caught in a drain and trap kids, and even adults, underwater.

amother

↑ Babyblue ↓

Tue, Jun 19 2018, 4:37 pm

Those of you saying you go swimming alone: have you asked your Rav if that’s allowed? I thought there was a halacha that you can’t. Did you get a heter? I’m curious if this is really a halacha or it is non existent (and I won’t attack you if you don’t care if it’s allowed or not)

↑ shoshanim999 ↓

Tue, Jun 19 2018, 5:37 pm

amother wrote:

I don't think the burden is on people to show it's allowed or they have a heter. The burden is on those who say it's assur to show that there is a halacha against it. Can you tell us where the source that it's assur is?

amother

↑ Babyblue

Tue, Jun 19 2018, 5:40 pm

shoshanim999 wrote:

I’m not burdening people to show it’s allowed. I’m asking if they know that it is , or if they’ve never bothered asking.
I don’t know the source - it’s what my parents always said. Hence, I’m asking if what I’ve learnt is correct or incorrect.
Edit: I reread my post - I clearly state I’m asking if such a halacha exists.