How I finally learned to love the water
Diane Louise Jordan tells FIONA DUFFY how a near-drowning as a girl left her with a phobia
DIANE Louise Jordan still finds it difficult to talk about her near-drowning experience as a nine-yearold. “I was playing with friends in the local swimming pool,” recalls the former Blue Peter and Songs Of Praise presenter. “I’d had some swimming lessons with school and could do very basic breaststroke.
“While playing, I’d gradually drifted into deeper water.When I went to stand up, there was no floor there. I slipped completely under and swallowed a load of water.
“I know now the need to float on your back if you find yourself in trouble but, back then, I did all the things you shouldn’t do – floundering and screaming.
“My friends initially thought I was messing about and laughed.
“When they realised it was serious my best friend tried to help me but, in desperation, I clung to her and nearly drowned her as well.
“Thankfully, two men jumped in to help. One pulled my friend out but I was in such distress that it took both of them to get me to the side.
“The next thing I remember was lying on the poolside having water pumped out of me. I honestly thought I was going to die.
“From then on, I did everything I could to avoid swimming.”
TEN years later, a secret attempt to overcome her fear on a family holiday in the Caribbean nearly ended in tragedy. “One morning, I decided to get up early and try to face my fears in the pool,” says Diane, who lives in Cambridgeshire. “Climbing into the water, I did a few strokes and was fine. However, just as my confidence was growing, I slipped and went under. Suddenly, I was nine years old again – panicking and choking. This time it was even scarier as there was no one else around.
“By sheer coincidence, one hand somehow hit the pool wall and I clung to it. I managed to heave myself to safety then lay there exhausted, shaking and crying.And that was it. I never tried again.
“I spent years watching everyone else enjoy themselves in the water.”
So when the opportunity arose to take part in last summer’s Channel 4 show Sink Or Swim for Stand Up to Cancer, she grabbed it.
Sadly, it wasn’t quite the miraculous “fix” she had hoped.
With daily coaching, Diane mastered front crawl but she never felt fully at ease in water. She wept with anger and frustration at having to be rescued from open water following a panic attack and faced disappointment as she failed to make the final team of celebrities taking on the ultimate challenge – a Channel swim relay attempt.
However, just six months on, her relationship with the water has been transformed.
Three times a week Diane, who will celebrate her 60th birthday this summer, visits her local pool and effortlessly swims 40 lengths.
“I go late at night when it’s quiet,” she says. “Afterwards, I have the best night’s sleep and wake feeling refreshed and great. My body feels stronger and I’ve never had such high energy levels.”
The secret to Diane’s transformation? Two hours spent with swimming guru
Steven Shaw, learning his Shaw Method of Swimming, which applies the principles of the Alexander Technique – promoting improved posture and movement – to help people swim in a relaxed, fluid, almost meditative fashion.
Over 30 years,
Steven has helped thousands of fearful swimmers learn to love being in water. After seeing Diane on Sink Or Swim he got in touch.
“His offer to help came at the right time,” she says. The TV show helped me overcome my fear of water and learn to swim, which was brilliant. But when it finished, I felt this sense of loss. I wanted to continue but didn’t know how to. “I’d swim one length and be literally gasping for breath.”
Their session began with Steven asking Diane to swim for him so he could watch carefully. “I thought I’d done OK but he said ‘I can see why you are struggling’,” she recalls. “He explained that my alignment in the water was ‘out’ and I was using too much effort to breathe.
“Steven said: ‘If you breathed that hard walking down the road you’d collapse’. He explained that I was taking huge amounts of breath in and not letting enough out.”
STEVEN started by introducing Diane to his programme of moves – from walking through water to gently bathing the face and performing a basic glide.
“He is like the horse whisperer of swimming,” she laughs. “He got me aligned in the water – so relaxed – then demonstrated the importance of relaxing and working with the water rather than against it.And he demonstrated you don’t need to gulp or gasp to get your breath.” Rather than blowing out and breathing in, the principle of the Shaw Method works on exhaling while the face is in the water, and ‘allowing’ air to enter the body when the face is clear. “When he advised me to just ‘breathe normally’, I thought he was a mad man,” Diane confesses. “How can you breathe normally when you are swimming? “But when I tried it, everything fell into place. It was a case of ‘This is so easy. I can keep going’. I swam a length and reached the other end not out of breath.”
Inspired, she visited her local pool that evening. “I got in, did what Steven had taught me and it felt different – amazing. I’ve still got improvements to make but now I understand the importance of alignment, when to relax and when to apply effort. I love being in the water.
“I’d go every day if I could. It’s a great way to unwind. I can’t wait for the summer to get back into open water swimming. I’m passionate about it now – a swimmer for life.”