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2009-07-29 2:37 PM


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Subject: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks
I am a runner who is new to the triathlon world.  I just began swimming a couple of months ago and have become quite comfortable in the pool.  I have gone to a local lake a couple of times to practice open water swimming and although I was nervous, I did ok.  I completed a pool sprint triathlon with no problem.  However, I recently attempted my first open water swim triathlon and I had a major panic attack in the water and didn't complete the swim.  It was frustrating because I know I could do the distance, but I freaked out.  I was totally embarassed and disappointed.  I went ahead and signed up for another open water swim to redeem myself.

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to deal with open water swimming anxiety?

ac


2009-07-29 2:48 PM
in reply to: #2315626

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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks
Hi. Welcome to BT.

Was it cold out? or was the water cold?
I consider myself a good swimmer, maybe not very fast, but can swim long distance without any problem. Except if I get cold. Then I'm done.
2009-07-29 3:01 PM
in reply to: #2315626

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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks
Wow I feel like I wrote that post!  I too started with a pool swim tri and finished, did an open water tri 2 weeks later and while I did finish I freaked out and was not able to put my face in the water, swimming 750m with your head out of the water the entire time made for a LONG swim.

Anywho, I found the root of my fear came from the fear that I would run our of energy and be unable to get back to the shore.  The way I dealt with this was to practice swimming in open water and I tied a pool noodle to my race belt with a shoestring, that way, in the back of my head I knew if for some reason I ran out of energy I could hang on to the noodle to stay afloat. This helped me tremendously and I was able to do about an 800m lake swim with no problem and no noodle assistance. 

Try to figure out the root of your anxiety, that could help you find a solution.  Water temp?  Too many people?  Lake creatures? Claustrophobia?  It took me a few weeks to really be able to hone in on what was causing my problems and once I did I was able to overcome it.

Practicing more in open water also helps, the more comfortable you are in the water the better.  Even swimming 50m at a time to get yourself used to it should help.

Good luck!  You can do it!
2009-07-29 3:10 PM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks
I consider myself to be a strong swimmer (always my best event in any race), but my first open water swim was BAD. Panic, shortness of breath the whole nine yards. I found by doing a light warm up before the event it calmed my nerves. Now I hop in and swim to the first buoy and back nice and SLOW during the alotted warm up time. Works for me.....
2009-07-29 3:11 PM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks
This is not all that uncommon to have some difficulties with the first OWS. The best thing you can do is practice, practice, practice. Don't wait until the day of the triathlon to be the next time you do an OWS.

Even after you practice doing OWS, it won't be just like a race.I found what helps is to do a warmup swim of a couple hundred yards before the start. I talk myself into remembering to start out easy and concentrate getting my breathing and stroke under control before picking up the pace. Starting out too fast and getting out of breath lets that panic feeling get in my head when that happens it is hard to get it under control. To get it under control without quiting I flip on my side and do an easy side stroke to get calmed down before going back to frestyle again. After several TRIs with OWS it has become less and less of an issue, but I still have to concentrate on starting out under control.

When you practice your OWS, I also suggest getting a couple of TRI freinds to swim with you. Start out close together and get used to being bumped and kicked a little. The first time I did a wave start and got bumped it suprised me because I was not used to it and it also caused a little panic. It is something you just need to get used too so it does effect your swim.

Good Luck on your future OWS.
2009-07-29 3:30 PM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks
DrPete65 - 2009-07-29 4:10 PM I consider myself to be a strong swimmer (always my best event in any race), but my first open water swim was BAD. Panic, shortness of breath the whole nine yards. I found by doing a light warm up before the event it calmed my nerves. Now I hop in and swim to the first buoy and back nice and SLOW during the alotted warm up time. Works for me.....



X2, except I consider myself to be a terrible (but slowly improving) swimmer.  I was very nervous at the start of my first open water triathlon.  I was afraid I'd panic, not finish, etc;.  I started at the back of the pack to stay out of the way and lessen the pressure a bit.  I did the best I could to calm myself down; by telling myself that I've trained for this and that there is nothing wrong with going to the breaststroke or side crawl if I got rattled or too tired.  Just finish and get on the bike.

The race started, my heart rate skyrocketed, I had trouble breathing, I took in a mouthful of tasty lake water, and I was on the verge of a meltdown.  I pulled into a slow breast stroke, allowing me to get my head up out of the water and compose myself a bit, until reaching the first buoy.  I went into the front crawl from there, aside from veering off course a bit, things went well and I even managed not to come in last in my age group for the swim...close to it though.

Congratulations on signing up for another one.  I'm sure you'll do great this time around.

Edited by jammers 2009-07-29 3:32 PM


2009-07-29 3:35 PM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks
jrj0924 - 2009-07-29 3:01 PM
Anywho, I found the root of my fear came from the fear that I would run our of energy and be unable to get back to the shore.  The way I dealt with this was to practice swimming in open water and I tied a pool noodle to my race belt with a shoestring, that way, in the back of my head I knew if for some reason I ran out of energy I could hang on to the noodle to stay afloat. This helped me tremendously and I was able to do about an 800m lake swim with no problem and no noodle assistance. 



I have to say I think this is a GREAT idea!!!  I swim with other triathletes at a lake about once a week.  This past weekend I was able to go further than I had in the past but only because I had a guy shadowing me that is an awesome swimmer - he was my noodle I guess.  I did keep telling myself - you ARE swimming, you CAN do this and Eric is RIGHT there and can save you so just swim stupid!
But if you don't have that as an option I think this is a great idea!
2009-07-29 4:25 PM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks
Don't worry, it happens to the best of us!

This is what I do:

1)  Warm up in the water before the race.  The shock of water entry won't be bad if you're used to the water.
2)  Start slowly, with long, easy strokes.  Concentrate on long strokes and making sure your breathing is under control.  Once you feel comfortable, speed up if you wish.

Practice in open water a good few times.  Personally, I need to practice more in colder water.

Panic in the water is primarily a mental thing.  The more you do it, the easier it is.  FWIW, I'm a stronger swimmer and have to remind myself to start relatively slowly.  Lots of people start way too fast, which I think contributes to the problem.

Good luck!

Brian
2009-07-29 4:38 PM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks
You deffinately aren't alone. I come from a water backround. I was a lifeguard in high school and on the diving team before that. We even have a place on the lake so ows are easy for me to get in. I've never been uncomfortable in the water at all until my first tri(last Sunday). 200m into it I bump into a guy I look up to see where I'm at and the panic hits me. I couldn't control my breathing or heart rate. I was freaking. went to my back to get my breath. It was a very long swim after that.
I think getting in a practice swim and more ows with the noodle are great ideas. 
Thanks for the thread and thanks for the advice.
2009-07-29 4:46 PM
in reply to: #2315626


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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks
Thank you all very much.  I really appreciate the advice.  It's nice to know I'm not alone.  I'm going to try the noodle this weekend and definitely get in the water before my next tri.
2012-06-02 3:52 PM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks

I know this is a really old thread but had to add. 

I've done about 5 open water triathlons 2 oly and 3 sprints both Oly's were ocean open water.  I consider myself a very confident swimmer and have always finished in the top 20% overall.   For the first time I had an absolute panic attack about 200 meters into the Quassy Rev3 Olympic.  It took almost another 800 meters to get my head back together.  It was my first time swimming with a wetsuit and I only had one wetsuit swim in prior to this.  I grabbed my shade goggles by accident instead of my clear ones (it was dark and raining) and was having difficulty seeing.   At first I thought it was because I had started too fast but I was totally not prepared for my absolute inability to calm down for such a long time and how disoriented I became.   It was a very scary feeling because I just couldn't get it together no matter how hard I tried or how many mental tricks I used.  I just couldn't pull in the deep breath I knew I needed.

I had a kayak guy pull up to me because I must have looked like I felt which was embarrassing.  I didn't grab on and eventually found my rhythm by forgetting about the race and just focusing on floating on my back.  It was stupid to be embarrassed and stupid to have worried about my time when I was clearly in no position to race.  Fortunately by the 2nd turn buoy I was back to form but just swam it out at practice pace.  

My advice to myself is if that ever happens again is to just tread water or float as comfortably as you can and totally chill until you regroup your mind.



2012-06-02 6:59 PM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks
dswezey - 2012-06-02 4:52 PM

I know this is a really old thread but had to add. 

... just swam it out at practice pace...tread water or float as comfortably as you can and totally chill until you regroup your mind.

Old thread but relevant to so many of us!  I know what you mean about this.  So sorry you had a terrible time today, but kudos on finishing!! That's what the kayakers and swim angels are for!

I was very comfortable and confident in a wetsuit in OWS last summer; but in the fall I ended the season with allergic asthma and trouble breathing during the OWS in a lake full of pollen.    This spring I have struggled in OWS, panicky, can't catch my breath, hard to calm down, etc.  I'm pretty sure it's mostly a mental block this year.  I want to get that calm confidence back; the swim used to be my favorite part of tris     I've got another chance in a sprint race tomorrow.

Practicing with a noodle is a great idea - I have done this and was so glad I had it with me.

2012-06-02 11:41 PM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks

Amigo, 

Last year I asked my family to drop me off 300 yards from my dock and I think I made it 20 yards before I started to think I was going to drown. The panic set in and all hell broke loose. they had to jet ski back to me and pick me up.  It sucks but the only way I have gotten over it is to swim shorter distances in open water. If you can find someone that is good in open water and swim with them, otherwise swim near the shore to build that confidence. 

cheers! 

2012-06-03 6:38 AM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks

I really can't emphasize all of the stuff in this article enough:

beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=2469

I guess that's why I wrote it

Meditation (breathing and visualization). Acclimatization. Practice. Strategy. MAPS. It's how you not only get through but enjoy an open-water swim.

2012-06-03 10:39 AM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks
Article can't be found
2012-06-03 10:58 AM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks

medeiros13 - 2012-06-03 10:39 PM Article can't be found

Dangit. Thanks for letting me know. Let's see if this link works:

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=2469



2012-06-03 11:00 AM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks
That works tyvm.  As a newbie to the sport and nervou about the swim, I'll take all the articles/advice I can get!!
2012-06-03 11:48 AM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks
2012-06-11 8:38 AM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks

Old thread but I have to bump it again. I tried the pool noodle trick yesterday and it was an amazing help. Knowing that the noodle was right there just in case, I was able to force myself to do things like look straight down in the water (can't see the bottom? That's OK, you're still alive), float face down (see? you're floating, you're not sinking!), and even keep still in the water with no swimming at all (see? Your wetsuit keeps your head above water without you even doing anything!). I had the confidence to go out much further in the lake.

It's yet to be seen whether this will help in my race Sunday when I will not have the noodle obviously but I can't imagine spending the extra time time in deep water, noodle or no, will hurt.

2012-06-11 12:23 PM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks

Great article!

I have never done the actual geometry, but figured that starting well wide and away from the pack did not add any significant distance to first buoy - 1 metre over 200 metres is negligible!

I generally do quite well in open water, but have had two mild anxiety attacks in both of my races so far this year. 

Each time I was able to calm myself down and finished with a decent time, but I expect that the possibility of another attack will still be in my head at the start of my next race this weekend. 

Staying clear of the crowd is a good start to keeping calm.

Scott

2012-06-13 2:29 PM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks
I thought I'd add to this discussion as I have had a bit of this panic in triathlons in the past. I was preparing for a HIM and all the triathlons I had previously done were sprints. Doing these things enabled me to have, by far, the most comfortable triathlon swim I had ever had. Not even a hint of uncomfortableness.

1. Swim lots - this probably goes without saying, but the more you swim the more comfortable you will be swimming. One key for me was to make sure that I had plenty of swim workouts where I swam the full race distance without a break.

2. Open water swim with wetsuit - find a way to get in some open water swims with your wetsuit. I was only able to get one in a few weeks before, but it helped a LOT. I don't have a lot of places to OWS, so I went to a park area with a beach and swam back and forth along the boundry rope. Felt kind of weird with all of the families swimming around, but I got over that. Even spending time just floating in my wetsuit in the green water helped get me used to it. One of the biggest benefits to me with this is understanding how much bouyancy the wetsuit adds. It really gave me the feeling that I couldn't drown even if I wanted to. Try letting out all of your air and swimming down a few feet...you just come back up.

3. Practice panicking - this is kind of weird, but every once in a while, I'd try to bring on a measured amount of the panic during pool swims that I knew I'd feel in the race. I could do this just by imagining myself in the race. Or, you might be able to do this by swimming a really fast length but not stopping afterwards. You start to get that feeling of not getting enough air, and wanting to stop, but working through it. Just remind yourself that you are fine...you are in a pool, so nothing is going to happen to you. You end up seeing that you can get out of a panic even if you get into one.

4. Get in the water the day before if you can - I had the opportunity to do part of the swim course the day before and that really helped my envision what it will be like. Part of the anxiety comes from not knowing what to expect.

5. Get in the water before the race - Mostly just to get past the shock of the water. I didn't do a ton of swimming, just short easy stretches and then floating around with my face in the water. So, when you get back in, its nothing new.


2012-06-13 2:47 PM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks

Great thread and timely for me as I completed my first OWS this morning.  Only swam about 400-500 yds in a calm lake.  My "swim' was really a combination of freestyle and crawling but trying to keep moving forward at all times.  There was a tri group there including someone in a kayak plus a friend who stayed close to me most of the time.  I never really panicked but also never got into any type of rhythm.  I want to participate in a sprint in a couple weeks and would be my first tri with OWS.

Even though I didn't perform well, I'm ready for my next attempt (hopefully Friday).  I will read the articles linked in this thread as well.  I'm not fast in any of the 3 disciplines but swim is certainly the weakest.  Just going to keep practicing.

2012-06-13 3:38 PM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks

 

I had a little bit of panic in my first sprint last year....I read some great advise on BT that helped in my my second sprint last year....My panic was partially related to not breatihing properly (or normally).....someone on BT here had a great explanation that some people panic because they are anxious, nervous, scared, etc , and when they put their head in the water to swim they hold their breath (instead of exhaling)...when it comes time to take a breath, you have to exhale first and then try to grab a quick inhale...you very quickly don't have enough air, and that adds to the panic.  When we're in a highstress situation, and our head is in the water, our "instinct" is to hold our breath. 

So, in my second sprint, right before the start I practiced exhaling into the water and breathing as you normally would when you swim in a pool.  I was literally standing in the lake, and put my head in the water as you would in swim position.  I told myself that when the swim started, that was the only thing I was going to focus on - breathing properly.  I worked perfectly.  After only a minute or two of focusing on that, I had a rythm going, and everything was cool.  I'm still about the slowest person in the water, but I got it done without panic. 

Jerry

2012-06-13 6:23 PM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks
Scott71 - 2012-06-11 12:23 PM

Staying clear of the crowd is a good start to keeping calm.

Scott

On the contrary, I swim better if drafting off someone or in a big pack of people. I suffer swim anxiety of varying degrees, and it's getting better. Perhaps the thought of "hey if this guy dies, I'll die too and so will the other 8 people around me" gives me some comfort in the situation.

2012-06-14 7:33 AM
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Subject: RE: Open Water Swimming Panic Attacks

I swim with one of these:  http://www.ishof.org/cgi-bin/mivavm?/Merchant2/merchant.mvc+Screen=CTGY&Category_Code=SF - I bring that on every OWS, unless I have kayak support (and even then it's in the kayak).

I (thankfully) don't have OW anxiety, probably because I learned to swim in open water as opposed to a pool.  But this thing is great.  You don't notice it's there and it makes you far more visible to boats.  It has a nice secure handle so you can grab it and float with it if you need a rest.  It's also a dry bag so you can put keys/wallet in there if you don't want to leave them on the beach.

Highly recommend.

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