We live in Texas where the pool heats to near 90 degrees in the summer so as soon as Anna was cleared after her shunt surgery in June, we were ready to get her in the water! We wanted to give her a new sensory experience as well as give her the chance to exercise her muscles without fighting gravity. We guessed she might enjoy it because she LOVES her baths, but we didn't want to overwhelm her. We started out slowly, just taking her in for a few minutes at a time. She tolerated her first swim very well! I say tolerated because she wasn't smiling, but she certainly did a lot of kicking! She had a very focused expression. Kicking is hard work!
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| Anna's First Swim |
One of the many (sometimes strange) things Anna's grandma has purchased for her is a swim collar. The first time I saw it, I said NO WAY would that thing be around Anna's neck! But after researching aquatherapy for cerebral palsy and seeing the collar in use, I relented. Despite the fact that we had it on backwards the first couple of times, Anna seemed to enjoy it. I like that she can move both her arms and her legs and because she is fully immersed she can swim longer before getting chilly. We have to watch her though, because she learned she can push off our stomachs and swim away! She likes swimming with her collar more each week.
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| Working it out! |
