My eyeballs though x_x

[saborigakusei]

I am bad at putting threads in correct places. I apologize for this.

I had a lovey swim today~

One of the rec center employees greeted me as I came in the door with an enthusiastic "HEY THERE MERMAID!" which was great. :D
Shared a lane with a lovely couple who liked my monofin, too.

Anyway, I decided today was the day I would try swimming with my eyes open underwater. I put extra strength gel drops in right before I got in, and had my nose clip and my regular fins in case I got disoriented.

Which I did. Oh my god I did.

I wear SUPER strong prescription contacts all day every day, and obviously I had to take those out for this. The first time I opened my eyes it didn't hurt at all and it was pretty easy to keep them open, which surprised me. I couldn't see diddly, but who cares.
But the second I started swimming... I could not keep them open it hurt soooo bad. Worst feeling ever xD

I'd really like to know what it's like for you guys to swim without goggles. Is it easy? Hard? Do your eyes burn afterwards? And most importantly if I suck it up and keep trying, will I get used to it????

Sorry if there's already a thread like this, haha. Just wanted to share my experience and hear from everybody! ;)

[suzanne86]

I can't see well even WITH goggles, but I wear them because they help avoid eye irritation from the chlorine in pools. They also help in salt water. I can get away without wearing them swimming in lake (fresh) water, but lake water is often murky and one must swim breast stroke in order to see where one is going. The only way to swim in murky lake water with a monofin for me is with a kickboard! :-)

[Mermaid Jaffa]

I tried swimming without my prescription goggles once... I was thinking about the comment someone here said something like, "you can still see clearly underwater even without eye wear".

Which is totally wrong! Well for me anyways! I was in the deep end, and my judgement for how far the bottom of the pool was all disappeared and I was afraid to swim! So I put them back on and ditched that comment.

[Mermaid Freyja]

Oh my gods, yes. It felt so weird swimming underwater with my eyes open for the first time after years of goggles.
At the pool I frequent, they have a more comfortable chlorine level and good filtration, so the burning is minimal to non-existent.
For the first 15 minutes or so, the feeling of the cooler water rushing against my eyeballs feels a bit uncomfortable. But then I'm also swimming really fast with the monofin. After a while, I get accustomed to it, squint less, and I imagine with more time it will be easier. Keep at it, as long as your eyes aren't getting so irritated they are causing you continuing problems.
My eyes still get pretty red from a little chlorine, but that's usually if they're already a bit irritated from pollen allergies that week.
After my last swim, I emerged from the pool looking like an evil red-eyed siren that was looking for fresh souls to devour. Hey, it's almost Halloween, right? ;)


One of the rec center employees greeted me as I came in the door with an enthusiastic "HEY THERE MERMAID!" which was great. :D
Shared a lane with a lovely couple who liked my monofin, too.

That's Awesome. The people in charge at the San Jose University pool I go to, also now greet me as 'the mermaid'. They always look forward to the mermaid group swims Mermaid Atlantis and I now host there.

[Madison MerFaerie]

For monofin lap swimming in the pool I have always worn goggles because I also find it uncomfortable to move quickly through the water sans goggles. I really only open my eyes in the water if I'm trying to look cute (making a video or taking photos). In those cases I'm not moving super fast and my eyes are generally ok with that.

I apply eye gel (GenTeal) right before getting in a pool, which sounds like what you did. To help with discomfort post-swimming, I apply more gel right after I shower, and then apply again right before bed so my eyes are plenty lubricated while I sleep.

[saborigakusei]

GenTeal is what I used too! (thanks to Raina for the reccomendation in her vlogs!) My eyes didn't even burn at all, and weren't really any dryer afterwards, which was AWESOME. :33

Maybe I'll try swimming around without fins so the water pressure's not so bad. I was just going to use goggles until I had to for videos or photo shoots - until I realized I should probably practice so I don't end up looking like an idiot. xD

it was soooo unpleasant though... I hope i can get used to it soon. *sigh*

[saborigakusei]

Oh my gods, yes. It felt so weird swimming underwater with my eyes open for the first time after years of goggles.
At the pool I frequent, they have a more comfortable chlorine level and good filtration, so the burning is minimal to non-existent.
For the first 15 minutes or so, the feeling of the cooler water rushing against my eyeballs feels a bit uncomfortable. But then I'm also swimming really fast with the monofin. After a while, I get accustomed to it, squint less, and I imagine with more time it will be easier. Keep at it, as long as your eyes aren't getting so irritated they are causing you continuing problems.
My eyes still get pretty red from a little chlorine, but that's usually if they're already a bit irritated from pollen allergies that week.
After my last swim, I emerged from the pool looking like an evil red-eyed siren that was looking for fresh souls to devour. Hey, it's almost Halloween, right? ;)


The pool I go to is a saltwater pool, so that probably has to do with the lack of burning as well.

&that's so awesome!! definitely fitting for the season ;)

[KayNS]

I had LASIK and have 20/20 vision in the air. If I swim without goggles I can't see a darned thing underwater! Just basic blobs. I think I was able to see better when I was near sighted. I don't find the chlorine burns my eyes too badly, but I tend to wear goggles for most of my practice and only take them off for short swims, just to get use to swimming underwater with limited vision.

[Fun123joker]

saltwater pools are the best for no goggle swimming.
i dont really wear goggles much because i pools i go to are not 50% chlorine and i alreaddy have low eye sight for

[saborigakusei]

I had LASIK and have 20/20 vision in the air. If I swim without goggles I can't see a darned thing underwater! Just basic blobs. I think I was able to see better when I was near sighted. I don't find the chlorine burns my eyes too badly, but I tend to wear goggles for most of my practice and only take them off for short swims, just to get use to swimming underwater with limited vision.

Thank you so much, KayNS, I had actually wondered about swimming sans goggles after eye surgery. I am disappointed, I was hoping it would be a cure all that would give me PERFECT VISION underwater. xD Oh well.

It might still help though, because at least I'd be able to see when I got out of the water without putting contacts back in. Your eyes haven't gotten any worse for the chlorine exposure, have they? I know you said you usually use goggles, but.

Also, question for anybody, what's it like to swim with your eyes open in actual salt water? Does that sting no matter what?

[Mermaid Wesley]

It stings worse if the water is dirty but it actually burns more to me than stings. La beaches? OW. Hawaii beaches? Only ow after a while.


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[saborigakusei]

I see, I see. I may just end up wearing goggles for the rest of my mermaiding career. xD Forget looking like a mystical creature of the deep if I'm having a miserable time. I just want to enjoy swimming. :rolleyes: oh well.

[Mermaid Wesley]

Make some cool mermaid sunglasses! Malinghi wears sunglasses in the pool to avoid having to open his eyes and it's a really cool idea.


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[KayNS]

Thank you so much, KayNS, I had actually wondered about swimming sans goggles after eye surgery. I am disappointed, I was hoping it would be a cure all that would give me PERFECT VISION underwater. xD Oh well.

It might still help though, because at least I'd be able to see when I got out of the water without putting contacts back in. Your eyes haven't gotten any worse for the chlorine exposure, have they? I know you said you usually use goggles, but.

Also, question for anybody, what's it like to swim with your eyes open in actual salt water? Does that sting no matter what?


I had a bit of the same hopes, then I read about how water changes the refraction of light into your eyes and now I understand why I can't see well under the water. However, it is still REALLY nice to be able to see perfectly in the air and with goggles, and not have to worry about contacts or glasses. :-) I don't think my eyes have been affected by the chlorine, but I only swim without my goggles for maybe 5 minutes during a swim. I'm going to get some of the gel eye drops if I plan to keep them open any more. I'm currently almost 6 months post-op from LASIK.

[mersheep]

Make some cool mermaid sunglasses! ...

I tried swimming last week with my sunglasses on. As for open eyes it was just a dark blur rather than a light one. I guess with the glasses on, one could not tell if the eyes were open or closed.

When I was a more active swimmer I used to use a full upper face mask. Like snorkelers use, mostly because it blocked my nose. I used to like to dive for loose change on the floor in the public pool.

[Mermaid Wesley]

I suppose you could put goggles under sunglasses too, but I just meant for looks


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[saborigakusei]

xD That's hilarious, I'd love to see a swim video with sunglasses.

Gosh, swimming with my eyes closed now makes me so nervous... (especially with fins, because even with goggles on I manage to scrape the sides of the pool like a dumbass x_x). I used to do it all the time when I was younger though.

The first mersona I ever created was a blind mer I thought up during a swim when I'd accidentally left my goggles at home. It would be nice to be familiar enough with the pool to be comfortable swimming like that again. :3

[mermanmike]

This is why I like going with "better safe than sorry" by swimming with goggles. Of course, doesn't help me that I left them behind by mistake when I was at a friends lake house for his Fourth of July party. Still waiting to get them back!

[saborigakusei]

Had a slightly more successful attempt last time I went swimming. Managed to make it the whole way across the pool a couple times with my eyes open. Again, no stinging but it was just incredibly uncomfortable, and I hate not being able to see anything. :(
I'm really jealous of you guys who have perfect vision underwater; my eyes are terrible on land without contacts and just as bad in a pool!
Has anyone tried swimming with sclera lenses in? I'm sure it's terrible for your eyes, but it seems like they'd stay in because they cover half your eyeball. xD

[suzanne86]

Is it an indoor or outdoor pool that you are swimming in? If it is an indoor pool with overhead lighting, try monofin swimming on your back (dolphin kicking with both your arms outstretched straight as far as they will go above your head and your hands with one palm touching the other hand's dorsal surface)--which means kicking only as the means of propulsion. Try this both with and without goggles. You should be able to see the ceiling and ceiling beams (if there are any). This is what I do (with goggles--I am myopic even with glasses on land). If you swim in an outdoor pool, all you have is the sky! :-) Or maybe, backstroke turn flags when you are about 2 meters from the wall. Anyway, I know where you're coming from! :-)

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