POFQ Pool Slide Question About This Page:

[nanpchef]

At POFQ, how deep is the water at the end of the slide? Do you end up going under the water or can you catch yourself and land on your feet?
I am not a "pool" person and panic at the idea of going under the water. (bad experience as a kid - never got over it)
My DH and DGD are giving me grief about not being willing to even "try" the slide.
I don't even own a swimsuit - as I have no intention of going in any pool or hot tub/whirlpool. But they want me to go out and get one for this trip as we have 2 "just resort" days and they will be in the pool a good deal of the time (weather permitting -- it is December, after all.)
They keep saying "how bad can it be? kids go down it". My response has been "kids like to get wet... I don't."
If it were only DH bugging me about it - I'd ignore him or tell him to knock it off, but now my DGD is after me about it, too.
So, I'm asking you... how bad CAN it be? Do you go under the water at the end? THAT is a deal breaker for me.

[feonag]

It is not a really huge water slide. I have never gone on it but watched my kids do it over and over. You can land on your feet and not go under. I have not seen too many adults do the slide. The pool is actually nice you can start over on the shallow end at the stairs and gradually go in and the water is about 3 feet in that area. I would tell your family that you will try to go into the shallow end but not the slide. It might be a bit cold in December, maybe you will get lucky and the pool will be down for refurbishment at that time.

[Disney Dream'n]

I'm about 5'9" and I don't recall the water going much past my chest. It certainly won't go over your head.

[J603]

If you put your feet down as you are entering the water from the waterslide, you shouldn't go under. If I were you I would make a deal and say "I will go in the shallow end but not the slide." Good Luck!

[DMA]

I went down the slide on our last trip, and was hoping I would not go under as well.
It was relatively easy to land on my feet and stay above water when I left the slide.

[nanpchef]

Originally Posted by feonag

It might be a bit cold in December, maybe you will get lucky and the pool will be down for refurbishment at that time.

Could I get that lucky?
I don't want to hope for it to be too cold while we are there, but if I can avoid the pool - GREAT!

I would think that THEY could enjoy the pool while I take the boat to DTD and visit Ghirardelli for a Foghorn Sundae.... sounds like a fair trade-off to me!

[Dave Marx]

I've honestly never tried to land on my feet at the bottom of a water slide - I keep my feet up, and expect a dunking. (My swimming pool fear has always been the high dive - never wanted to belly-flop from the high dive, it was bad enough from the low board. )

Each of us has our personal fears. If "encouragement" from family and friends motivates you to overcome the fear, then plan to work through it. Decide, "I'm going to get dunked, so I can learn it's not the problem I've made it out to be." If you make that choice, take the steps necessary to actually reach that goal. Maybe it's a matter of starting in the shallow end and dunking yourself until you get used to it, then working your way up from there. While there are those who believe you should just jump in the deep end and get it over with, that doesn't work for everyone. In most cases, folks need to gradually build confidence, and there's nothing wrong with that.

If you think you'll manage to please your family while still avoiding your fear (using the slide, but trying to not get dunked), it can backfire. Maybe you land on your feet, but maybe you get a dunking anyway. Will that reinforce your fear, or will you realize maybe it's not so bad after all? That's something only you can know.

I used to teach whitewater safety and rescue. One of my goals was to help whitewater boaters learn to respond calmly when their boat capsized and they got tumbled around in the current - to be able to self-rescue when possible, and to be calm enough to work with their rescuer(s) when they couldn't do it all themselves. We approached that goal step-by-step, in non-threatening conditions, and gradually built the students' confidence. We didn't just toss them in the deep water, and it didn't work at all if a student was trying to avoid the experience.

Rule #1 in whitewater safety (and personal safety in general): You, and only you, are responsible for your safety on the water. Only you can decide what risks to take. It's the responsibility of those around you to respect and support your choice when your choice is to stay on dry land.

[nanpchef]

Ya know, you're right Dave. I think I'm just going to tell both of them to back off. It's not worth the risk. They can just deal with Gma NOT going in the water.
Getting dunked in any way, shape or form would trigger full fledged panic and an asthma attack. Followed by several hours of exhaustion. I doubt that I would even be able to sit by the pool to watch them after that.
I had a bad experience as a kid when my brother threw me in over my head and then swam away -- a lifeguard had to jump in and pull me out. I haven't been able to put my head under water since. If the water is more than waist deep, I have trouble breathing (panic related), so I don't even do hot tubs or whirlpools. Yes, I know it's all in my head and isn't logical... but that's just it - it IS in my head and has been there for 40+ years. Some times you just CAN'T teach an old dog new tricks.