Autism Diagnosis to Swim Champ

When Julianna was a baby I started taking her to swim lessons.

At her first lesson she just cried for 30 minutes straight.

The full-blown, hysterical, what-the-hell-am-I-doing-to-my-kid kind. That was Julianna’s first lesson.

And her second.

And her third and fourth.

Most parents would’ve quit. Hell, I almost did.

But then out of nowhere she just stopped and started enjoying the lessons. Weeks turned into months and I noticed a 3 year old that could jump into the pool and swim to the side, climb out and do it again and again. I was so impressed with this that I became obsessed and possessed in seeing my daughter do that.

By the time Julianna was 2 – I was consumed with her autism diagnosis, derailed by it, that my swimming goals for her got shelved – then I had that thought that changed everything…

“I’m going to die one day, who is going to take care of her when I’m gone.”

That snapped me out of my shit and I had Julianna on her way to learning to talk via sign language and be potty trained.

So when I was righting my ship so came back the fire in me to get her swimming.

She was jumping into pools swimming without any floaties by 3 and half years old.

At age 7 she tried out and made her first swim team as a competitive swimmer. As we were going full throttle into our first season I showed up to her first meet ready to cheer her on in the stands.

Then I saw a coach come up to me and say that Julianna is crying and she is about to swim, you might want to come talk to her.

I go down and I meet her at the block to dive in.

I said “What’s wrong?” and she can’t talk.

I can tell the crowds and noise had caught her by surprise and she was scared.

It would have been so easy and justified knowing how far she’s come, how proud I was already of her to say “no worries baby we can sit this one out.”

But then I remembered that thought that scared the SCARED right out of me.

One day I will close my eyes and not open them again, and she will be alone in this world without me.

I held back the urge to walk her back to our seats and I told her …

“Take a deep breath, like blowing out the birthday candles.” – we did it together.

Then I said “what’s scaring you?”

She said “the block is high and I’m scared”.

I told her – “you do it from the side and we’ll hit the McDonald’s play place with the indoor playground on the way home.”

I saw her face change. She wiped her tears away, pulled down her goggles and made it through the race.

This weekend at age 12 I watched her come from behind and beat out 5 other competitors during her 100yd Freestyle Heat.

A WIN – just a day in the pool for most parents but for me it flashes me back to 10 years ago – when she was diagnosed on the spectrum.

If someone back then said this would be a moment in the life of my daughter 10 years later I wouldn’t have believed them.

This girl is breaking the wheel one swim at a time!

Look – this isn’t about swimming.

It’s about refusing to let autism write your kid’s story. It’s about pushing through when quitting feels safer.

Your kid? They’ve got this kind of fire in them too. Maybe not for swimming. Maybe it’s something totally different.

But these holy-shit-look-what-my-kid-just-did moments? They’re waiting for you.

Here’s what I learned in those 10 years that changed everything:

You’ve got to be more scared of not trying than failing. That thought about dying? It wasn’t morbid – it was motivation. It made every other fear seem small.
Break it down. We didn’t go from crying in lessons to winning heats overnight. We went from stopping the crying, to jumping in, to swimming without floaties, to joining the team. Small wins compound.
Find the workaround. When that block was too high? We started from the side. When talking was hard? We used sign language. There’s always another way.
Never negotiate with the diagnosis. Autism is part of who Julianna is, but it doesn’t get to decide what she can achieve. Period.

This isn’t just my daughter’s swimming story. This is your blueprint for exceptional results – in whatever area your child shows that spark of interest.

Want to know exactly how to create these breakthrough moments for your child?

I help parents like you create these breakthrough moments for their kids. I BET you’ve got dreams for your child that everyone else says aren’t possible.

Let’s talk.

Book a complimentary consultation call with me. I want to hear about your child, share what’s possible, and see if working together makes sense.

Xo Michelle

P.S. Watch Julianna win her heat here… From crying at lessons to crushing competition – this is what’s possible when you refuse to let autism write the story.