taking baby swimming....

[mummyandpig]

When can you start taking a baby to baby swimming "classes"?

My DS is 5 months and is all up to date with his immunisations. His next lot are due when he is a year old.

Is it safe to take him to the pool? He really loves the bath so I think he would enjoy "swimming". Also he is being a bit crappy about sleeping in the day atm, so I thought it might help tire him out!

TIA!

Mine has been swimming since 3 months, not in classes, just down the local pool.

I wish i'd known you could do it that young - my DD is 4 and a half months and I was waiting until 6 months to take her as that's the age i'd heard. I've been really excited about it so i'll be taking her asap

Also, this is a dumb question, but what do you do about nappies? DS was given a pair of baby trunks as a gift and I know you have to put a nappy underneath them.... Are they special waterproof nappies? Where do you get them?

Yup, we had her on holiday at 4 months so wanted her to be used to the water. Its fab, buy her a swimming costume a size bigger than she usually wears, much easier to change them

You need a swim nappy from the supermarket. Expensive but essential. Keeps in the poo and lets the wee...out.

You can get disposable swim nappies near the normal nappies. Lots of swimwear for babies have integral washable swim nappies inside them too though unless they're very snug I'm not sure they'd hold much.

3 months for DS1, 6 months for DS2 (because I couldnt be bothered earlier). Just go whenever you feel like it. You need a swimming nappy (pampers, boots whatever). Some pools insist on those happy nappy type costumes too as that is double protection. Have fun!

I started taking DS to classes when he was five months old because his reflux was too bad before then. He'd never been in pool before then.

He's now nearly three and adores swimming, can swim ten to fifteen metres on front or back without float and is so relaxed and confident in the water.

They can go thru sticky patches between about twelve and eighteen months but stick with it, I'm so pleased we did and I'm pleased he's going to grow up so confident and happy in water.

Sorry missed the nappy bit, we use Tescos own swim nappies and a swimming costume, in my experience the swimming costume with the nappy integrated didn't work very well

you can take them to normal swimming classes normally from about 3 months onwards, or you could do Swim Babies or whatever your local version is.

Or, you can just take him to a pool and do it all yourself whenever you want to.

One my local pools does a Parent and Baby session where the water is a bit warmer than normal and it is not full of older splashing around kids - price includes a coffee afterwards so might be worth seeing if there is something like that for you.

I did the expensive swim class thing with DD, mostly for me if I am honest, to help me get some confidence around how to handle a baby (as she wiggled more) in the water/learn some safety. But, tbh i did know it anyway, just did not realise it! With DS I did not bother, just take him for a splash when I want to.

You don't have to wait for their immunisations to take them swimming, as the diseases you're vaccinating against aren't likely to be picked up in a swimming pool.

In theory you can take babies swimming from birth, but I always found public pools pretty cool (even baby pools are only about 30-32 degrees) and so little babies get cold really quickly. It depends whether you want all that faff and expense for 10 minutes in a pool!

Thanks for all the advice!

Our local pool runs a "Jelly Babies" session in a hydrotherapy pool so I will be taking DS to that as soon as I get round to getting the nappies.