That Feeling of Panic Swimming in Open Water

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• I had an almost identical experience to the post below. Wanted to quit less than three minutes into the swim. But I somehow managed to talk myself out of it. Was my first tri (sprint distance) and it really left me defeated. Didn't practice any open water swims and I regret it as swimming is my weakest event. The stress of the panic attack lasted through the entire race as I was tense, muscles aching from just trying any which way to finish the swim. Hate that feeling of doubt where I thought, I'm just going to stick to running from now on. But I want to keep trying, thank you for posting your experiences!!

• I just did my first sprint tri and totally freaked. I didn't listen to people warning me about this. The wetsuit felt tight, couldn't get enough air, getting kicked and grabbed and couldn't calm down to put my face in the water. Plus, it drained me for the rest of the tri. My run was slow but I cramped up. I should've done some open swims and will if I ever do this again. It was so bad I think I may stay with running! Although I hope not, I did better on the bike than I thought and if I could get comfortable with the swim I might feel better about my times, never panicked like that before, gosh I used to surf all the time in a full suit in the winter. Glad to know I'm not alone.

• @Susan - I can relate to your situation. Last year I did three triathlons; panicked during the swim in the first two and dropped out of the swim in the third. This year I did one triathlon and had a great swim, even did a negative split. I spent A LOT of time in the lake preparing. I started by simply standing in the water, bending at the waist so my head was in position to rotate in and out of the water to model the motion used to breathe. I had trouble breathing out under water and spending several minutes "warming up" that way helped my confidence.
  I also attended a clinic where we practiced a mass start. It really helped to be in a small group with no pressure or high expectations, like on race day. After that clinic I went back to the lake and practiced my start into the water AND exiting the water. I even practiced being fast and intense into the water, swimming about 50-75 yds, then settling into my rhythm. Understanding how YOU handle going from chaos and panic to calm and rhythm before you even step into the water can make a big difference.
  As for the pool, I tried to visualize the lake; picturing the murky water and even small fish swimming by me. My confidence grew when I started being more comfortable picturing the lake while being in the pool instead of needing to picture the pool while being in the lake.

  Best of luck to you as you prepare. Let us all know how well you do!

  Steve

• Hello all. I just googled "overcoming panic in open water." I am in a desperate state! My first tri (Olympic distance) is in 13 days and I have now done 3 open water swims to prepare. Let me say that I can swim a mile in the pool and it is very relaxed and FINE.

  I have gone to a sports psychologist. I have meditated and prayed and talked positive things in the water. But every time I go in, I get this short of breath feeling, I HAVE to flip on my back or else if worse comes to worse hang on a kayak (humiliating) until I get my breath again. It is a raggedy, wheezy, death rattle (bronchospasm??) kind of strangled breath. I really feel like I am dying. By the time I get through tons of back floating and trying to CALM the hell down, everyone else is out of the water. This is so upsetting to me. I KNOW I can do it physically but somehow my mind has got me so messed up. I'd appreciate any suggestions.

• I just finished my first tri today. I had practiced swimming more than anything else, and was up to 60 laps in 40 minutes. The problem I had today at the tri, was that I couldn't catch my breath during the lake swim. I also gulped a mouthful of yucky lake water. I ended up doing breast stroke with my head above the water for most of the race, since I couldn't seem to get enough air. I would like to know why this happened to me? Does anyone know? And, I would love to learn how to avoid it from happening in the future. The swim should not have been a problem for me. Had it not been for the breath issue, I think I might have enjoyed it. Thanks!

• I wanted to add a few comments to my earlier post about my game plan for my sprint tri next weekend. I'm going to wear clear not tinted anti-fog goggles, even though sun-glare may be an issue, it's better than feeling like I'm swimming in the dark.
  Also, I'm going to get more wetsuit practice; I'm going to swim today in the pool with the wetsuit on so I can get a better feel for it. If I just can't tolerate swimming with it, then I'll do the race with just the trisuit. I have never liked any swim suits that are too tight around my shoulders, so it makes sense that a wetsuit zippered up the back of my neck wouldn't give me warm fuzzies.
  Also, I remember the taste of the lake water seemed to add to my panic for some reason; I'm going to make sure to go ahead and taste some, even get a good gulp of it prior to the start of the race. It's not a bad taste, bland and without the familiar chlorine, just very different from pool water. Since the race is on Sunday, I have plans for another open water camp on Saturday and this time I will make myself swim that entire course at least twice so that my freaky-deaky issues will come out of the closet and hopefully be conquered! Water is my friend and I won't let myself feel betrayed; I'm still a strong swimmer. I'm pretty sure that with some equipment modification/tweaks as described, things will be much better.

• Thank you everyone for your stories; it makes me feel better to know that I'm not alone. Yesterday, I did my first sprint tri in Denver. Swimming was supposed to be my forte! I can swim a half mile in the pool in under 13 minutes! I even went to an open water training camp and thought it would take me 15 minutes tops in the open water course. Wrong!
  Immediately after starting the swim, someone kicked me on the side of my wetsuit bootie and it filled with water. It felt like an anchor. My breathing became ragged and I realized I was gasping. I didn't even swallow any water; I remember hearing myself dragging air in and couldn't believe I was making all that noise. As others described, the wetsuit began to feel like a vise around my neck, even though I had on a shortie sleeveless. I tried to resort to breaststroke, but couldn't keep my face in the water, so was kind of bobbing and frog-kicking along. My tinted goggles added to that closed-in feeling, so I positioned them on top of my head. I just did the whole swim alternating between semi-breast stroke as described, with something like a side-stroke which seemed to be faster and still kept my head out of the water. I've never even side-stroked before in my entire life; what in the world was that?! Majorly humbling experience!

• I had this exact problem last week at the DC tri. Could not catch my breath, felt totally panicked. I had done the tri last year and it was fine, and I had been training. Even on the bike I couldn't take deep breaths and when they took my oxygen levels, they said I was at 81 (instead of the normal 96-100). I had to quit after the bike because the medics thought it was too dangerous to continue and I still couldn't breath well. They think I aspirated water (went down the wrong pipe, into my lungs), which caused a "bronchospasm," meaning I couldn't get oxygen. I don't remember swallowing water, but the beginning of a tri is always chaotic. I'm relieved to hear I'm not alone, but I'm nervous it will happen again.

• Thank you guys for all the comments. Just did my first sprint tri this weekend. Swimming was my weak spot any way and when I tried to freestyle with my face down, same thing, panic attack like I was closed in. I also did the breast and back stroke and as a matter of fact, part of it was over a sand bar and I just walked ha! That part of the tri was terrible but over quick. I kicked some bootie running to the transition, biking and running though. I guess from now own I will do the breast stroke in the pool and just get stronger that way. Heck with the face in the dark water :-)

• Great post Carol! It is normal to feel a bit panicy (if that is a real word) in your first open water swim. Especially if you don't normally swim with a bunch of people, or in a pool, or don't swim in a wetsuit. Getting in a wetsuit doesn't feel natural and is constrictive, then having to dela with 50-60 sets of feet and arms, and then murky water is very nerve wracking the first few times. If the water is very cold, you might even find it is hard to get into a normal breathing rhythm. I started hyper ventallating my 3rd race in 56 degree water every time I put my face in. I second Carol's advise. I tried to stay calm and breaststroked until I could get my breathing under control. Don't worry it happens to alot of us from time to time and you have two more legs to make up for any issues you have on the swim.