BakersDozen Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 Perhaps all of you are way smarter than we are and would never have this happen but I wanted to share this in hope it will make others aware of how fast a child can drown. Last night we were at a hotel pool to celebrate our dd's bday. I counted heads constantly, making sure littles were accounted for. We were there for probably 2 hours when my dh came and sat in the kiddie pool (1-2ft deep) while I stayed on the first step. He had one baby, I had the other, and our 2yo was standing beside my dh. I don't know how long we talked for but all of a sudden my dh moved and behind him I saw our 2yo...face down. My mind didn't register what was happening at first. I started to scream but couldn't move, I was frozen in place. My dh, who didn't know what was going on, turned and grabbed our ds. Apparently he lost his footing, went face first and couldn't get his legs/feet under him. As we're not around pools at all we had not taught him to turn over and float as we had our older ones. I can't stop the image of him laying like that from playing in my mind. What if we had talked for another 30 seconds? Or a minute? I thought my ds was holding on to his daddy's back or the wall. I counted heads that entire time yet the one time I stopped counting, the only time I took my eyes away from the pool, my ds went under. In the kiddie pool. With two adults just inches away from him. After that both dh and I sat on the edge of the pool so dh wouldn't block my view and I counted heads over, and over, and over until everyone was done swimming. Last night could have ended so differently, it almost makes me sick to think about it. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StaceyinLA Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 Praise God it didn't end differently!! It's a good reminder. It can truly happen in an instant. I'm sure you're hugging your little one extra tightly tonight! :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lily_Grace Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 :grouphug: When I was little we went to a get together at a backyard pool where an adult got hurt. All the other adults went to make sure he was okay and left no one's attention on the kids there. It only took a moment. Just long enough for a 9yo's snorkel mask to cut off her air and let her to sink to the bottom of the pool. The adult was fine with a bandaid. The 9yo barely made it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newlifemom Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 :grouphug: Sorry you went through that. I hope you will be able to relax a little. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happi duck Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 :grouphug::grouphug::grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IsabelC Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 Relieved to hear that your child was OK. I read in this article that a significant number of child drownings happen right in front of parents. It's something we really need to keep at the top of our minds whenever our little ones are in or near the water. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa in Australia Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 :grouphug::grouphug::grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 :grouphug: That's so scary. :( I'm so glad your ds was okay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tress Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 So relieved that everything ended okay! :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freeindeed Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 :grouphug: So thankful that all is well, but I know that was scary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carrie12345 Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 :grouphug: My toddler went under in a 12" pool this summer. I was not there, but I had made dh swear up and down that he wouldn't take his eyes off the kids, and he didn't. Though it did take an extra 5 or 10 seconds with 2 adults and a 10 yo "fighting" over pulling him up. Sadly, my extra insistence was due to a 9yo drowning in our community pool just days earlier. With 2 lifeguards on duty. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denisemomof4 Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 :grouphug::grouphug::grouphug: i am so glad everyone is ok. I still remember the look on dd9's face as she laid on the bottom of the lake, about 1.5' deep where she was, looking up through wide eyes. She never even tried to stand. It waas the first summer we had her home, 8 years ago. All I did was turn to get a Starbucks coffee drink from the cooler and she was under. I saw an elderly woman RUN and scream and I immediately KNEW it was one of my kids in trouble. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linders Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 :grouphug: You sound like you are still in shock - I'm so sorry it happened and glad it turned out okay. And you are right - it only takes a minute. Parents at our club pool tease me because I constantly check on our boys - even though they have been on swim team for 4 years and are excellent swimmers! A leg cramp, a collision with another kid... It only takes a minute. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathryn Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 :grouphug: having almost drowned myself as a small child and still having a vivid memory of it, this is one of my biggest fears. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Truscifi Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 :grouphug::grouphug::grouphug: I'm so glad he's ok. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In the Rain Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 So scary. I'm glad he is okay. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SailorMom Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 :grouphug::grouphug::grouphug: Thank God your baby is ok. That can happen to anyone.... I was amazed once - in a tiny little play pool - just how silent it was when my 18 month old couldn't get back up after falling face first. Now - I was lucky and happened to be looking right at him, but I'm telling you - no noise: no splashes, no sounds of struggle. Nothing. :grouphug::grouphug::grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chepyl Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 My parents have a pool at their house, we are around the water all the time! My cousin had a b-day party for her son at a hotel pool in January. DD needed to go to the bathroom. My mom and aunt and cousins were all watching DS, I took DD to the bathroom. We took off her water wings and walked out of the pool area to the bathroom. When we came out my mom and aunt were in the door way talking. They asked me a question, dd ducked between their legs and walked into the stairs of the pool....no water wings. She walked one step to far and went under. I watched it happen...it was all slow motion. My mom and aunt were looking the other way and did not see it. But I could not get in the pool room because they were still talking to me and blocking the door! I pushed through them and walled into the water but by the time I got there, she had thrashed her way out further in the water. My cousin's 9 year old grabbed her and walked her to me. It was scary! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quiver0f10 Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Down_the_Rabbit_Hole Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 This is why it makes me so d*mn freaking mad to see little ones at the pool and the parents chatting with friends. They think just because they are near their babies it will make a difference. I saved a little one from drowning a few months agao because a parent was busy chatting in the hot tub while her baby was standing on a bench in the pool on the other side of the hot tub wall. The mom never even knew the baby fell off the bench into deep water. :cursing: yes accidents happen, like the OP, even if you are right there, it happens in a split second. It is because the OP was diligent in watching her babies the out come was good. Thank God. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catwoman Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 :grouphug::grouphug::grouphug: I'm so glad your ds is OK, but you must still be a nervous wreck about it! Thank you for sharing your experience, though, because it's an excellent reminder of how quickly a tragedy can occur, no matter how careful a parent is trying to be. You and your dh were right there, doing the right thing, but you got distracted for a quick minute or less, and something went horribly wrong. Thank God, though, that you were both right there to take action as soon as you saw your ds. If you hadn't been as close as you were, it might have been too late. Whatever you do, please don't beat yourself up over this. You looked away for a few seconds -- everyone has done that. EVERYONE. It's just that usually we get lucky and nothing happens during the minute or so while we're rummaging through our bag for our sunglasses or the sunscreen or to say a few words to someone. Your post is such a great reminder to all of us about how seconds can make a difference, and I'll bet all of us will think of you and your ds the next time we go swimming. We'll be watching our own kids more closely than ever, and we'll worry even more than usual when we see little kids playing in the pool while their moms are paying no attention to them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SunnyDays Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 Oh, how terrifying! :grouphug: I'm sure you won't soon forget that image, unfortunately. I'm SO glad your little one is okay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JessReplanted Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 While we have been on vacation, our non-swimming girls decided at different times to walk into the pool. I am super vigilant, and it happened to us. They were fine, but I'm forever traumatized. I think that someone needs to design life vests for children with a lock on them so only the parent can take it off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hope in God Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 :grouphug: When I was 2 years 9 mo. I had to pull my little sister out of an inground backyard pool. My mom left us in the backyard for just a minute and my earliest memory is watching my sister crawl off the blanket toward the pool and just keep on going right on into the pool. I remember being totally shocked that she didn't stop at the edge of the pool like a reasonable person and I ran to the edge of the pool and looked at her in the water. Panicked, I ran to the door screaming for my mom and rung the doorbell a number of times and then ran back to see my sister amazingly still floating and then ran back to the door again ringing the doorbell and screaming. Finally I ran back to the pool, lay on my stomach and pulled her out. It is amazing that she didn't pull me in with her (she was a butterball back then) and that she didn't sink like a brick. My mom only believed me when she saw the scrape marks on my sister's tummy from me pulling her out over the cement edge of the pool. All my screaming had also alerted a neighbour and he was halfway over the fence when I had pulled her out. To this day I would never buy a house with a pool. When we were house hunting we saw some houses with inground pools and I didn't even consider them because of this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swellmomma Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 :grouphug: I am so glad your little one is okay. The worst part will be for you, you will never be able to get the image out of your head. When we see our kids in a situation like that, even if everything turned out okaya nd child is fine we never lose that though of what if. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NanceXToo Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 So glad he's okay!!! My son is 6 and has taken three summers worth of swimming lessons so far but still isn't a very strong swimmer and can't tread well at all. I make him wear floaties every time he gets in or near the water. He didn't really like that this summer, and kept saying he doesn't like other kids to see him in floaties, but I don't care. I told him his safety is the most important thing. Maybe next year he won't need them. It is scary how fast something can go wrong, without other people even noticing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mskelly Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 :grouphug: You are not alone and you are not a bad mother! I also know how scary that is. My oldest nearly drowned on Mother's Day last year. He could swim and I was at the edge of the pool, a little more than an arm's length away. His little brother grabbed onto him and the oldest wasn't strong enough to support to both of them. I jumped in with clothes and shoes and pulled them both up. It is the WORST image burned into my memory. My neighbor was there also and says she still has nightmares about that day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justLisa Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 Glad everyone is ok. Try to not dwell. Everyone is fine and now you can remind others. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mimm Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 Ugh, my stomach hurt just reading that. :( :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 :grouphug::grouphug::grouphug: Drownings are mostly silent. Thankfully, you saw. When we got our house it came with a huge inground pool and let me tell you, I was frantic. I would wake up at night and check, And I never let them use rafts until this year (it casts a shadow on the bottom and blocks vision). :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarbourLights Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 I once read an article about the signs of a person drowning, and one of the things that struck me about it, was that it emphasized that drowning is a very 'silent' act. The person is in a state of panic and despite what we see on t.v., screaming and splashing about are not part of the process. At best, the victim usually starts clawing at the water as if they're trying to climb a 'invisible ladder' and will go under without a sound. At worst, especially in children, the simply go face down and don't fight at all. My own story: When the boys were about 15 months (it was early spring) we were in Virginia at a park. I had gone to the car while my husband had walked the boys toward a dock next to a boat launch. They were throwing rocks in and there was no barrier or railing on the dock. I was about 5 yards away thinking to myself as I rushed toward them 'That's not safe, that's not safe, that's not safe!". When I was about 3 yards away, one of the boys went to throw a rock and lost his balance and fell in. My eyes were totally focused on the ring of circles in the water where is head went under and I jumped in right next to it. My husband was standing in shock looking at the water, and I was already in! :glare: I was counting in my head and just about to go under to feel for him (water was dark, cold, and had a current) when his little face broke the water just enough for his nose and eyes to break the surface about 3 feet away. I grabbed him and hauled him over to my DH who was still on the dock. There were at least four grown men fishing and watching the whole thing, and yet I was the only one in the water! I know with my whole heart if he had gone under again, I would've lost him. My DH and I were both silent and in total shock on the way home. We knew how close we had come to losing him... They've been in swim lessons ever since, and can now both swim like fish. Still, I'm always nervous around the water with them... can't shake that image! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 :grouphug: having almost drowned myself as a small child and still having a vivid memory of it, this is one of my biggest fears. Me, too. OP, I am sorry. That was horribly frightening. I am the most paranoid-of-drowning parent I know. What scares me the most is pool parties. I'm no good for socializing at all at a pool party. I just keep looking at the kids in the water for anything that looks wrong, even if it isn't my own kids. Down at our beach house, my rule for all the kids until they were really pretty old for it was that you had a life vest on before you even left the house to walk to the pier. Good thing that was my rule, because my youngest fell into the water, managed to get to the shore, walked out and found me to tell me about it while not one! of the ten or so adults and teens noticed this even happened. He was about 3 at the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirty ethel rackham Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 I am so sorry this happened to you, but grateful everything turned out ok. <<hugs>> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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