I didn’t realize how important ISR was until it saved my son.
ISR used to stand for Infant Swimming Research. It was created with the hope of finding ways to prevent young children and infants from drowning. After 45 years of research with incredible evidence of life-saving results, the organization was renamed Infant Swimming Rescue.
READ: Levi’s Story: The Real Truth About Drowning
Just after having my son, I came across the huge window at Aqua Babies with a picture of an adorable baby who couldn’t have been more than 6 months old. He was freely floating in a pool effortlessly. It blew my mind to think that this was possible, so I immediately began to Google.
That research led me to Amy Kordula, the incredible ISR instructor and owner of Aqua Babies. Without hesitation, I signed my little guy up for lessons. Yes, he was only 10 months old, but we have a pool at home, like a lot of folks in Florida. Let’s be honest, whether or not you have a pool at home, you live in Florida. There are beaches, lakes, the Intracoastal, creeks, etc., around every corner, and you should take ISR into consideration.
Here is my story why.
My second pregnancy really took a toll on my health. For weeks, I had a heart monitor attached to my chest to make sure my baby girl and I were okay. It was very expensive and not waterproof. I was instructed to avoid high-stress situations, have minimal anaerobic exertion, and not get it wet.
One afternoon, my son was casually following our pup around the pool as he often did. I was sitting on the sun step no farther than five feet away from them with my legs in the water.
In a split second, I saw him stumble and fall in. Before I could even dive in after him, he floated to the top. He had rescued himself — just as he was taught to do.
Seconds later, when I made it to him, he was fussy but not shaken up in the least bit. He turned over and embraced me like he normally would if we were playing. I ripped the heart monitor off and threw it across the pool deck as I held my baby close and told him how proud I was of him.
Before I was even in the water from just a few feet away, he had saved himself.
Every penny spent on lessons was invaluable at that moment. Every second of every day, going for a mere 10 minutes at a time, was worth it. ISR had saved my son. In my eyes, it is priceless. What if we had been at a party, and I was distracted?
I loved the program so much that I signed up my baby girl when she was old enough. She screamed bloody murder, but that can happen. You just have to “trust the process” and know that they are cranky because they are in an unfamiliar environment/situation.
“Graduation” from the initial rollback to float class is essentially tossing them into the pool fully dressed with clothes, a diaper, and shoes on. The same as they would be, God forbid if something happened.
The next course is a swim-float-swim course, where they reinforce the floating with swimming skills to help them get to the side of a pool or shore safely.
If you have small children and live in Florida, I implore you to please look into ISR. Especially if your home has a pool or is near any kind of body of water. A whopping 6,455 homes sold in our area in the past year had pools or access to a community pool. That doesn’t even include homes that were on the water.
READ: Guide to Swim Schools and Swim Lessons In & Around Jacksonville
There’s a difference between a life-saving course and a class that teaches you how to blow bubbles in the water. Consider this my personal “thank you” to ISR for everything you are doing to make sure “not one more child drowns.”
