Looking for some honest Advice from the community.

[SiaTheMermaid]

Hey guys, I'm Sia. I've been a member of the community for over six months now and I haven't really gone anywhere with my plan to start a mermaid company. I had saved money for a tail, then it went down the drain in some unexpected bills. But now I have a new idea and I am thinking about starting a kick starter or a gofundme campaign to help me start.

I suffer from a relatively little known disease known as Chronic Fatigue also known as M.E. It's a condition that isn't fully understood yet, there haven't been many studies into it and there are no cures. What is it you ask? Well, it's a bunch of things. It causes crushing physical fatigue, lethargy, chronic pain, cognitive difficulties, swollen lymph glands, the list goes on and on. No matter how much sleep you get, and there can be several hours of it, you don't feel refreshed. Sometimes, you don't sleep at all. Getting out of bed in itself is incredibly tiring. You are more prone to viral and bacterial infections, headaches and probably worst of all, clinical depression. The suicide rates in suffers of M.E and fibromyalgia are up to 15 times higher in people who suffer from these related conditions. And there is very little help out there.

So why am I telling you this? Well, recently I've decided to research my condition. It started when I was thirteen years old, not long after moving back to Scotland. Then I started to wonder. Why didn't I have any symptoms when I was growing up in Cyprus? And I think I found the answer. Swimming. Everyday I would visit the beach and go swimming, as that was my favourite thing to do. So I looked it up and indeed, swimming is considered a therapy for those who suffer from M.E. That was when I decided that I have to help others like me. The emotional toll this syndrome has on people is staggering, and I want to stop people from feeling alone, like no-one understands what it's like.

I want to start a mermaiding class for suffers of M.E and fibromyalgia, as the dolphin kick uses 60% of the body's muscle mass. This will help suffers keep exercising, build friendships with others like them, have fun and just give them a reason to get out of bed. There's not a lot of treatment out there for us, and I think this may be a good social way to deal with the issue.

I want to know what you guys honestly think. It'll be a long journey till I actually start classes and I am not a qualified instructer of any sort, will this matter? I just need some opinions. And yes, I am age of majority in my country.

[Mermaid Jaffa]

When you said saving for a tail, did you mean silicone tail? I expect that's going to be heavy, not only lugging it around but swimming in it, one would need to be a strong swimmer I think.
Fabric tails are a great way to start. You can even make your own from swimwear fabrics. I've only swam in fabric tails so I don't know what kind of swimmer strength you might need for neoprene or latex tails.

Swimming, just take precautions. There's goggles, eye drops, healthy eating, so many to think about and do. There's threads here somewhere I think that talk about that stuff.

[AniaR]

I have chronic fatigue and fibro too along with other illnesses. I am a full time mermaid. Water helps me a lot

[SiaTheMermaid]

I was thinking about saving for multiple fabric tails Jaffa since I want to start a class. Silicone isn't a great start for a beginner but I may get there one day. i am an incredibly strong swimmer, have been all my life.

Wow Raina, I never would have guessed that! That's amazing :)

[AniaR]

you should read my second book ;) it's all about dealing with illness and being a mermaid!

[Mermaid Jaffa]

Raina is a good source of info! She's all that and more!:D

[SiaTheMermaid]

I will get your books when I eventually tell my parents what I want to do, which terrifies me haha! So do you think people would attend the classes as a sort of therapy?

[Spindrift]

Lots of mers have a platform they champion. You're not out of line with your idea :) Good luck with everything!

[Atlantisblue]

I think it is a great idea :) I suffer with chronic pain and various other issues, and mermaiding is my new outlet.

[SiaTheMermaid]

Thanks guys! :)

[Yulia]

This sounds like a really good idea!
I'd suggest you get some kind of swimming-teacher education though, I don't know how it is in Scotland, but I can imagine pools not wanting to have untrained people having classes.

[SiaTheMermaid]

Yeah I was thinking the same thing, but there doesn't seem to be any courses available for water-safety and instructer certification :S

[Yulia]

Yeah I was thinking the same thing, but there doesn't seem to be any courses available for water-safety and instructer certification :S
How about this?
http://www.edinburghleisure.co.uk/courses/adult/teacherlifeguard-training/swimming-teacher-trainingcpd

[SiaTheMermaid]

You know I didn't even think about looking at gyms for things like that, I was looking at college haha thanks!

[Yulia]

You know I didn't even think about looking at gyms for things like that, I was looking at college haha thanks!
I got excited myself of taking a course there, I want to travel to Edinburgh sometime, and train to be a swim instructor. ;)

[SiaTheMermaid]

Edinburgh is actually where I live so that link is super helpful thank-you :)

[Theta]

I second the thought that you should get certifications of some kind before you start this. Get every certification you can- lifeguarding, red cross babysitting, swim instructor, whatever you've got in your area. You also may want to consider going to school (college or uni) for physical therapy, or even massage school or something similar. I feel like while this is an awesome idea (and it totally is!!!) you're going to be dealing with a lot of liability and insurance issues. Just be careful to cover all your bases.

The bonus to doing all that stuff is that you'll be in and around the water and gain some awesome skills you can apply to other areas or jobs down the line :)

[Mermaid Sonyta]

This idea is so brilliant, if I lived in a larger community (I live in a farming community so people are scarce) I would do this too! My doctors have suggested that I might have Chronic Fatigue however, as you said, there isn't a lot known about it, and since my town isn't very up-to-date, they weren't able to officially diagnose me. Having physical limitations can cause a lot of emotional distress, but with the ease of movement that water provides, I've found myself to be much happier since mermaiding. I think that Mermaid Therapy is genius.

I support you 100% I don't have much financially, but if you start a fundraiser I will advertise the hell out of it!

[Mermaid Sonyta]

you should read my second book ;) it's all about dealing with illness and being a mermaid!

Every word I hear about your second book makes me want to read it more!!

[SiaTheMermaid]

I'm actually already at university for marine biology theta, so I have no idea if that will help at all. Hopefully it does! I've looked into getting the certification in my country thanks to the link Yulia gave me. Like I said, it's going to be a long journey but I'll get there eventually.

Thanks for your support and advice everyone, I really appreciate it :)

[PearlieMae]

Also, if you don't want to wait until you get certified, how about partnering with people who already are, as well as people who help people with M.E. and Chronic Fatigue. You'll be more likely to get people to sign up for your classes/services. Sure, you'll have to split profits with your partners, but a third of something is better than all of nothing! You would be the head of the organization and the Mermaid Celebrity (great marketing focal point), assisted by experts.

Good luck!

[SiaTheMermaid]

I have a list of people I could work with already, so it's definitely something I'm considering. The only problem is finding a pool that will allow me to train in a monofin

[Mermaid Danielle]

This sounds like a great idea! Best of luck to you!

[SiaTheMermaid]

Thanks :)

[Sabrina the Selkie]

This is a seriously fantastic idea. I'm really lucky in terms of my health, but I have roller derby knees (snap crackle pop does NOT just apply to your cereal when you play derby or have played derby) and the water really helps.
I've also seen the water work miracles in senior citizens, arthritis, and paralysis. Doing this for M.E. would be fantastic. Best of luck to you! But yeah, get all the certification you can, work with experts, advertise like crazy. Start a website, a facebook page, and utilize social media. Good luck!

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