Powering through stressful situations can lead to a lifetime of happiness and enjoyment of the world for humans or dogs.
My son and I started his first swim class. It’s a class for infants and toddlers so they are safer around pools and water, but on the first night it seems more like choir practice for a choir that practices screaming and crying.
My son absolutely hated his first class. His body was stiff as he clung to my arms, neck and whatever else he could get a hold of. He screamed out “dada!” even though I was right there – as someone who loves him, every time he said “dada” what I heard was “Dada, why are you doing this to me!? I thought you loved me!?” He cried the whole duration of the 30 minute class and it wasn’t a matter of whether he would stop or not, it was just a matter of how hard he would scream and cry at any particular moment.
All around me I saw frustrated parents going through the same thing – often times stopping whatever baby maneuver we were doing to hold or console their child or just to get a break from the screaming.
As a parent, swim class sounds like a fun idea, but when you get there and you see what a pool does to these babies, it can end up being one of the hardest experiences of your life.
My son absolutely hated his first class. His body was stiff as he clung to my arms, neck and whatever else he could get a hold of. He screamed out “dada!” even though I was right there – as someone who loves him, every time he said “dada” what I heard was “Dada, why are you doing this to me!? I thought you loved me!?” He cried the whole duration of the 30 minute class and it wasn’t a matter of whether he would stop or not, it was just a matter of how hard he would scream and cry at any particular moment.
All around me I saw frustrated parents going through the same thing – often times stopping whatever baby maneuver we were doing to hold or console their child or just to get a break from the screaming.
As a parent, swim class sounds like a fun idea, but when you get there and you see what a pool does to these babies, it can end up being one of the hardest experiences of your life.
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