Protecting kids from sting rays?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean WTF? It's the ocean - how do you protect yourself from animals that live there. Don't go into the water?

I got stung for the first time by a jellyfish in Costa Rica last Spring. It could have been any one of my family members incl my 2 kids. You know what? It hurt like hell and I knew it was just unlucky. How can you possibly guard against it? It can happen again but that's a risk we're willing to take because we enjoy the ocean.

Jelly fish stings are nothing compared to a sting Ray barb in a tendon or a bone.

You can also protect against jelly fish stings by wearing appropriate swimwear.

We are talking apples and oranges.

+1

And it’s one thing if you’re wading in the water, it’s another if kids are in very tranquil, shallow water, floating on their stomach or backs and get barbed in the chest.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Great, new fear unlocked.

+1

I was thinking goodness gracious what is up with some Mexican beach with all these stingrays and why do people swim in it and then I saw the other post in googled and saw this is a common occurrence in the South Carolina and FL beaches! At least one sting a day over the summer!

+2. I’m convinced DCUM and Apple News are literally why I even have anxiety in the first place.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They do make reef type shoes that have a thicker bottom. I've used them while diving as well as places where I have to walk through tough terrain in the water. They can be kind of heavy and awkward so for kids I wouldn't recommend if they are swimming around. DS is 11 and has them and wasn't a huge fan of how he felt weighed down by them.

Op here. I’ve looked at these! Do you think they’d protect my kids from a sting Ray?

The ones I have are thick enough that it may still pierce my skin but wouldn't be deep. DS' aren't as thick so would go deeper, but certainly better than barefoot. Your kids sound little. Have they ever swum with just regular beach shoes on? I can't stress enough that these shoes can feel heavy in the water and DS, who is a strong swimmer, complained that he couldn't swim as well with them on. If your kids are small enough that they can't follow the instructions someone gave, I'd be worried that these shoes would impact their ability to swim well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Great, new fear unlocked.

+1

I was thinking goodness gracious what is up with some Mexican beach with all these stingrays and why do people swim in it and then I saw the other post in googled and saw this is a common occurrence in the South Carolina and FL beaches! At least one sting a day over the summer!

Op here. I’ve never been scared until it happened to me. Apparently it is becoming more common on California beaches too. It might have something to do with global warming.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Great, new fear unlocked.

+1

I was thinking goodness gracious what is up with some Mexican beach with all these stingrays and why do people swim in it and then I saw the other post in googled and saw this is a common occurrence in the South Carolina and FL beaches! At least one sting a day over the summer!

Op here. I’ve never been scared until it happened to me. Apparently it is becoming more common on California beaches too. It might have something to do with global warming.

Sorry this happened to you. Why did you need surgery? Was the barb stuck?

[Anonymous]

I was stung on a beach in Southern California two years ago. Right in the middle of the sole of my foot. Also was doing the shuffle, plus using my kite board to splash the water ahead of me. Still didn’t work.

Don’t go during mating season - they are closer to shore. That’s what happened to me.

So damn painful for like an hour, it felt like my foot and leg were on fire. You need to put very hot water on it to numb the pain. I also had a shot of tequila and chugged two Coronas while sitting in the hot shower at our house. That helped!

Took about a month for the hole in my foot to fully heal. I was hobbling for two weeks. Fortunately it was only a small piece of barb stuck in my foot which my wife easily removed with tweezers

[Anonymous]

Wow, I realize i probably sound as stupid as the people that don’t know about alligators in South Carolina/Florida, but I had no idea that stingrays were a threat in the US!

[Anonymous]

I was completely ignorant about the threat stingrays posed. Last year, I was at Xcaret in a shallow bay set up for snorkling. There were two stingrays in there and the water was so crowded (with adults and kids) and anyone could have been stung. I actually hovered over a sting ray to look at the ray and now I realize how stupid that was.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's worth the free beach house?? Weird priorities lady.

Op here. It’s driving distance (we live in Arizona) and the only way we can afford a vacation with our kids.

And you're worried before and you'll be worried there and no one will have fun in the water. Some vacation.

This. It literally already happened to you! I bet foot surgery costs more than vacationing somewhere else.

+1.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was completely ignorant about the threat stingrays posed. Last year, I was at Xcaret in a shallow bay set up for snorkling. There were two stingrays in there and the water was so crowded (with adults and kids) and anyone could have been stung. I actually hovered over a sting ray to look at the ray and now I realize how stupid that was.

Well, to be fair when you go to places like stingray city in Grand Cayman they tell you that the risk of being stung is absolutely minimal and most operators have never had a sting. They even go so far as to say the crocodile Hunter situation was a freak accident because it was in his chest and a different kind of stingray. So I think some of us have a full sense of security. But whatever our children are floating around in shallow water couldn’t they be stung in their chest?