When we started writing our blog we said that healthy households are about the emotional as well as the physical. So far we have had a lot to say on the physical and last week I wrote about how swimming has kept me healthy over the past 10 years. So I wanted to talk about how swimming has helped keep me sane through some tricky times.

I haven’t always liked swimming. In fact, as a child I couldn’t swim very far at all and avoided carnivals at all cost. I loved the water as long as I didn’t have to swim in it. This failure to learn to swim became a horrible blot in my memory and for most of my life really bothered me because I always knew I should learn but didn’t get around to it. It’s just that back then i.e. in the 60s, swimming lessons in Sydney were few and far between and conducted in very cold pools and somehow almost always under gray skies (this could just be my warped memory).

I needed a reason  to learn…..

Almost 10 years ago now I broke my ankle and over the next year developed a whole lot of problems with my hips and pelvis so that I couldn’t sit down without pain. I was also very overweight and very unhappy about it. I went to the physio who worked on me and also sent me to a chiropractor. But it was what the physio said to me that made a huge difference to my life. He told me to go to the pool to swim and walk. Of course I didn’t go at first! On the next visit to the physio he asked if I had been to the pool and when I said no he lost it. He said ‘I wish that just once, someone would take my advice and do something good for themselves’. He meant that I should have gone to the pool! I immediately felt guilty and so did what he suggested – I started going to the pool. That was over 10 years ago and I haven’t stopped going since. And yes, I taught myself to swim so that I now swim about 6-7 km a week.

You may be wondering how this keeps me sane?

1. Swimming helped me overcome emotional turmoil

Physical exercise is good for managing your emotional health. When we exercise we produce endorphins (a group of hormones)  that help trigger positive feelings in our body. So with the ups and downs of life, having a regular exercise regime is a good way to weather the storms.

For example….

A few years ago I went through a horrible, life-changing experience and I still struggle with the fallout on a daily basis. I had been serving on a church school board for 10 years and thrown myself into serving wholeheartedly. Sadly, a power struggle erupted and the result was the casting aside of many loyal servants, including me. The loss of my role came with public humiliation and isolation from the church community. I also lost my outlet for my workaholic tendencies and so was bereft at the loss of purpose in my life. The situation threatened to completely overwhelm me.

So how did swimming keep me sane? As you can imagine during this horrible time I slept very little, had a broken record going round and round in my head and got up every morning feeling like death. A trip to the pool was the only thing that got me through each day. I swam far and I swam fast, improving my time, my stroke and my mental health. For about two years after this all happened I would have moments every day where I just wanted to hurt someone and yell and scream my frustration. Going for that swim every day helped dissipate this negative energy.  If I did not have swimming to use up some energy and produce those endorphins I sometimes wonder if I would still be here.

2. Swimming helped me with weight loss

I mentioned earlier that when I broke my ankle all those years ago I was very overweight. This actually hampered my recovery and so I had no choice but to tackle the problem. I actually hate being fat  and I don’t function properly when I am fat. However, starting any weight loss program is challenging and I find that I get very depressed until the weight starts to come off. I started to lose weight just after I turned 50 (about a year and a half after the ankle breaking) and was successful. It was the swimming that helped me stay positive and healthy. It is non-weight bearing which is not necessarily the best exercise for weight loss but at the time, because of my other ailments, it was helpful. I was doing two good things for my mental health – getting over my lifelong feeling of failure at not being able to swim and losing weight! I also took up yoga and Pilates and walk every day too.

3. Swimming helped me cope with frustration and anger after Broken Ankle No. 2!

Yes that’s right, I broke my ankle again two and a half years ago. Same ankle, same place, doing the same thing – just walking! Do you know now frustrating it is to be house bound when you are normally so active? I was so angry at myself for letting this happen and desperate to continue some kind of exercise. I found myself yelling at my doctor when he confirmed that the ankle was broken. I just did not want to accept that it happened again!

I needed something to save my sanity again. I found some chair exercise routines and used weights. I was also able to do some yoga. But best of all, I could swim without kicking. I had to be helped into the pool but managed to get to the pool twice a week. It was those visits to the pool that kept me sane for the 6 weeks of recovery. It was pretty much the only time I left the house over that time and the only social contact I had too. The swimming was once again important for both my physical and mental health.

What about You?

I had very good reasons for jumping in (sorry for the pun) and I still use swimming as my coping mechanism when I am going through times of stress. I know that I will cope better with my up and down emotions if I can channel my energy wisely.

I do recommend swimming to others all the time but I also know that it doesn’t have to be swimming that keeps your same. A consistent exercise routine does a lot more than keep you moving, it may just keep you smiling too!

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Until next time,

Gillian (and Andrew)