Opinion: Drowning is not a peaceful way to go

Big surf on beaches like Marine Parade isn't necessarily the cause of Hawke's Bay drownings

Having nearly drowned once, the notion that is it somehow a peaceful way to go is beyond me.

A poor swimmer, I took on a fast-flowing river breast-stroking at a slow pace on a beautiful day on an outgoing tide that fed into the ocean.

I made it through what I thought was the main current, and got caught out by a second current as I neared the shore.

There was nothing peaceful about it – I saw through a window of panic that I was tired and struggling, but I was lucky enough to have enough wits about me to lie on my back and let the current take me sideways.

Eventually, I was close enough to land and I made it ashore. It became a mental challenge – for a moment I did not believe I could make it, and it was terrifying.

It was partly the catalyst to, at the age of 46, hire a coach to teach me how to swim. I had sat on the side of the pool, waiting for her to finish a lesson with some children.

"Let's see what you can do" said the coach.

Not much. I couldn't swim a length, or breath properly.

Eventually though, I learned enough to swim 2km in a half ironman.

But, to this day, I am uncomfortable in the water, by no means a "natural" and terrified of drowning.

I am also in the 45-plus age group that, according to experts, has a disconnect between perception and reality when it comes to drowning risks.

That is, we over-estimate our ability and under-estimate the risk.

There are also some sad results in the 65-plus age group. Nationally, 17 people in this age group died in the past five years, with six people dying in Hawke's Bay.

Getting into difficulty taking a dip at the beach or in a swimming pool isn't necessarily the cause of deaths. Baths or any body of water where a slip or fall could prove deadly are a potential hazard.

Kiwis tend to consider the water a right - a right to drink, to take, and to swim in. Which means sometimes we over-estimate our ability and under-estimate the risk.

I've been there, done that. And never want to be there again.