I wonder how many swimmers know about Shallow Water Blackout? Apparently the medical profession have known about Deep Water Blackout for a long time, but it's only been in recent years that Shallow Water Blackout has been commented upon.
A friend of mine swims a couple of times a week at the pool. Last month, he got into the water, swam five lengths, then took a couple of deep breaths before diving under the dividing rope'to get into the next lane.
His mate who was swimming behind him suddenly saw my friend at the bottom of the pool.
Lifeguards gave him CPR, he was rushed to hospital and put in intenssive care for several days. He's now fit.
The doctors told him that he must have sort of hyperventilated as he was sucking in air prior to ducking his head under the water. And this is what made him lose consciousness. It's called Shallow Water Blackout.
I passed the story on to the gang at the beach and we all sat there demonstrating our techniques for going under water. One said she didn't even think about her breath, just went under. Another said she took in one big gasp. Another took a couple of fast little intake breaths. Oops.
Here's a pic I took last weekend at Hataitai Beach. We've swam practically every day this month. The water doesn't seem all that much colder for March. But Hurricane Lucy is on the way ....
We will try to swim through the winter like we did over the last few years. Fingers crossed.
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