Testimonials

Testimonials

" I cannot tell you how fabulous my experience as been with Jeff. He is a perfect teacher!! After my last lesson, I can actually say - I love going to the bottom of the pool in the deep end! It is very quiet down there - who knew? One complete lap to the deep end doing the crawl was equally super! I will be joining a club soon so I can swim.

Congratulations for creating such a successful program!!!"
VTY,
Yolanda

Hi Jeff,

Thank you so much for all that you did for me. You gave me the confidence to overcome the fear I had of deep water with your patience and understanding. You will never know how much this will change my life. As I said my husband and I own a boat and he is a scuba diver. I feel that I can now go out on the boat and enjoy it. I don't expect to scuba dive but maybe I can learn to snorkel that's something I always wanted to try. Jeff you opened alot of doors for me. As I'm building up my skills I'll think of all the pointers you gave me and just keep practicing everything you taught me. Thanks so much Jeff.

Judy

After reading an article in the Journal News about Jeff's SOAP program I felt certain that this was exactly what I needed to help conquer my fear of deep water. Jeff really understood my fear and give me the confidence to feel more comfortable in the water. I am happy to report that I have just completed my first Triathlon in Sandy Hook, NJ which included a half mile open water swim.


Thank you Jeff,
Rose


"The class is truly water therapy. Jeff has made me feel physically safe and emotionally comfortable in the classes. It is exhilarating to face down this old fear week to week and see it losing power."

Cheryl Gajowski, Yorktown Hts, NY


"I came to the program at age 54 with a life's worth of fear of the water - never having been able to participate in the leisure and learning experiences to be had in and around water. Your program addresses each student's inherent fears compassionately and with understanding. It's a winning formula! After only four sessions, my face is wet, my eyes are open, my body (miraculously) is afloat. Is there more to be accomplished - yes, of course. Do I think that with your help I'll be able to really swim and enjoy the water - yes, without a doubt!"

Cecilia Haas, Hawthorne, NY


"Congratulations for being one of the few teachers in the country who is trying to meet the emotional needs of the adult who suffers water-related anxiety. For many years I was the only organization specializing in adults who fear water. Psychology is quietly integrated into every one of my workshops without students feeling they are in a psychiatric therapy session. Continue having great success with your students. They need you!"

Paul R. Lennon, Founder/Teacher/Counselor Adult Swim Center


"After a traumatic experience in the water when I was four ears old I developed a serious fear of the water. I did not believe that anybody would ever be able to help me. After participating in Jeff's SOAP Program, I have not only overcome my fear of water, but I now swim recreationally three days a week with another former SOAP graduate."

Ellen Bittner, Hartsdale, NY


"Thomas was four when we first enrolled our son in group swimming lessons. To say that he was reluctant to get into the water is a major understatement. He would put the death grip on my husband and I and refused to even try. We were then approached by Jeff Krieger and introduced to his SOAP Program. Immediately following the first week in SOAP, we noticed an immediate improvement. By the end of the program Thomas was diving into twelve feet of water and swimming the full length of the pool. Not only did SOAP enable our son to develop very important life long skills, but a real love for the water as well."

Maureen Donovan, Bronxville, NY


"I had taken swimming lessons at various times in my life, but my fear of water always prevented me from making any progress. Now at seventy years of age, after graduating from the SOAP Program, I look forward to my weekly swims and kayaking. I am no longer fearful, just thrilled that I discovered Jeff's program:"

Jane Cahn, Armonk, NY


"I am a retired Marine Captain who served in both Korea and Vietnam and have experienced many dangerous situations, but nothing scared me more than the thought of jumping into a pool of water that was over my head. Now that I have completed the SOAP Program I feel comfortable jumping of the diving board and swimming laps"

Ted Arman, Rye, NY


"Thanks to Jeff and the SOAP Program I have achieved something that I had completely given up on. At forty nine years old I found myself frozen in my car prior to the first class, almost unable to get out. That's how overwhelming my fear of water was. With Jeff's support and expertise I was able to make consistent progress. Now I will be able to take the cruise that I always wanted to take!!!"

Susan McCormick, Bronx, NY


"Besides the birth of my two children, putting my head underwater for the very first time was the most thrilling experience of my life. Without Jeff's SOAP Program this dream would never have come true."

Joe Cioffi, Armonk, NY


"I was always the one on the beach, holding everybody else's watches and towels. My husband of over twenty five years was not even aware that I suffered from aqua phobia. After getting up the courage to tell him, I enrolled in the SOAP Program. The results far exceeded my expectations and for the first time I will be joining my husband on a scuba trip."

Kathy Sanchez, White Plains, NY


"We had tried to enroll our son, beginning at age five, in swimming lessons at the local YMCA and in camp, but he would beg us to let him stop, claiming that it was boring and he just did not like it. We then read about the SOAP Program and decided to give it a try. Both my wife and I suffer from a fear of water and did not want to pass this problem along to our son. We enrolled him and what happened was truly miraculous. He not only overcame the fear and actually learned how to swim, but because he demonstrated such courage and progress, both my wife and I decided to enroll in SOAP"

Manny & Mary Ellen Garcia, Harrison, NY


"Ever since joining the Air Force, my dream was to become a Navy Seal, the only problem was that I suffered from aqua phobia. After reading an article about the SOAP Program I decided to give it a try. It was an absolutely incredible experience, often more powerful than my military training. With Jeff's help I was able to pass the aquatic requirements of the Navy Seal testing. It is impossible to express my gratitude to Jeff and my pride in myself."

Staff Sargeant John Adams, McDill Air Force Base, Tampa, FL


"I used to ask myself all the time. How could someone who is thirty three years old and lives in Florida, surrounded by water, be afraid to swim? It made me so frustrated and upset because I had so many friends with boats and I had a pool in my backyard. I was embarrassed at first, but quickly came to realize that so many other competent people shared my feelings and failures. We all helped to support one another and before long looked forward to each session with great excitement. Well I am very proud to say that now I enjoy swimming and boating and owe Jeff and the SOAP Program a great deal of gratitude."

Dana Fitzgerald, Seminole, Fl.


"Never in my wildest dreams did I believe that at my age, seventy six, would I finally be able to float on my back, put my face in the water and actually swim in deep water. Well I guess even at my age dreams can still come true because after graduating from the SOAP Program, I can now do all those things and they all feel wonderful. Thanks Jeff!!!"

Ruth Milano, Dunedin, Fl.



"Both my wife and two out of my three children were afraid of the water. I had tried to help each of them, but was completely unable to make any progress. I then became aware of Jeff Krieger and his SOAP Program and decided to give it a try. It was an interesting and exciting process, with all three of my family members encouraging each other. Thankfully all three were successful and now we can enjoy swimming as a family activity."

Marvin Hymanson, Clearwater, Fl.


"As a child, I was considered a "dare devil" and often got myself into situations that would lead to injury. On one occasion, I decided to slide down the support pole of the slide in the playground. This resulted in a gash on my chin. (I still have the scar.) There were also several instances when I fell off my bike. Chances are, if I had been riding it in the conventional way I wouldn't have cut my foot open (which also left a scar), or broken my front teeth.

My daring ways were not limited to dry land. I also enjoyed exploring and playing at the beach and in the lake, undeterred by the fact that I didn't know how to swim. That adventurous spirit continued until one day when I was playing at the lake and almost drowned. I had jumped off the pier and a passing speed boat created a wake that pulled me under the pier, where I was caught in the undercurrent. Not knowing how to swim, I panicked. The more I struggled, the deeper I went into the dark, murky mass of seaweed. That experience left me with a fear of water that lasted nearly four decades.

As I wrote in Chapter 3, my high school had a swimming pool. However, although Swimming was part of the Phys Ed curriculum, I didn't learn to swim there. Because I had developed a fear of water, and was a "non-swimmer", I was a part of the class that was "taught" by a student assistant. This meant that while the teacher taught the "swimmers", the student assistant supervised the "non-swimmers" in the shallow end of the pool to make sure none of us drowned. In order to pass the course at the end of the semester, the "non-swimmers" had to jump into the deep end of the pool and grab onto a pole that had been inserted into the water. The teacher, who was holding onto the pole, pulled us towards the stairs and we climbed out of the pool. Not only did I not learn how to swim, but this experience exacerbated my fear of water. And so, for most of my life I shied away from water, unless I was in a swimming pool where my feet touched the bottom and I could stand along its edge.

As I neared retirement and was looking for ways to become more physically fit, I wished that I could swim. I knew that swimming was good exercise. It was aerobic and there was no impact on the joints. However, the few times that I did try a water aerobics class, my fear of being swept away into deeper water kept me from fully participating in the class.

Then, one day I saw an article in the newspaper about a program for people with aqua phobia  a fear of the water. The article described a new course, SOAP (Strategies for Overcoming Aquatic Phobias) and Water (www.waterphobias.com) created by Jeff Krieger (jkrieger@WaterPhobias.com). Jeff, who was a guidance counselor and Red Cross certified swim instructor, had originally designed the program for children, in anticipation of the summer camp season. His unique approach made use of his guidance background to deal with the phobia, before beginning to teach swimming techniques. I called the number provided, and was impressed with Jeff's compassion and understanding when I told him about my swimming history and near-drowning experience.

When anxiety took over, and I missed the orientation meeting, Jeff called to encourage me and persuade me to join the first class. When I arrived, there were four other middle-aged adults. (To Jeff's surprise so many adults signed up for the program that he had to divide the class into three groups.) We sat in a classroom and talked about our experiences, our fear of water, and our expectations of the program. The pool, the focus of our fears, was nowhere in sight. After about a half an hour concentrating on our fears we went into the pool area, where there was a large metal tub with five yellow "rubber duckies" floating in the water. Jeff had us sit in the tub and choose a rubber duck. We used "our" duck as the focus of a �positive� water experience. Then, keeping that image in mind, we put our face in the water and blew bubbles.

During the ensuing five weeks, Jeff took us from that large metal tub, and taught us how to be in control and feel safe in the water. Using foam noodles, he showed us how to relax and float; then he taught us to float and tread water without the aid of a noodle. A major accomplishment for me was being able to put my face in the water and learning how to breathe. Jeff also dealt with the emotional aspect of our fears by having us write about our experience in a journal after each class. (I still have that journal.) His responses to my entries and his encouragement were very powerful, and played a major part in my progress. One of Jeff's favorite sayings was: "Setbacks, no matter how large are temporary; Progress no matter how small lasts forever."

Jeff eventually had me feeling comfortable enough in the water that I could swim to the bottom of the pool to retrieve water toys that had been scattered around. At the end of the six-week program there were several of us who wanted to take the next step and actually learn how to swim. Jeff put together a �post-graduate� course and created another six-week program for us. During that time, Jeff taught me a variety of basic swimming strokes and how to dive from a diving board.

It's been five years since Jeff helped me overcome my paralyzing fear of the water and gave me the tools to be able to "take care of myself" and enjoy the experience. Since then, a fellow graduate of his SOAP and Water program and I have been swimming regularly at a local Y. I look forward to meeting her each Monday morning to swim laps. We continue to motivate each other, as we try to swim faster and further each time. I have not only overcome my fear of water; I have learned to enjoy swimming and now reap its fitness benefits."

Ellen Bittner