IF an extreme fear of water has been preventing you from learning to swim then believe it or not you are not alone. There are children and adults with exactly the same fears missing out on the fun and the fitness that swimming can bring.

One such adult who is conquering his fear of water and learning to swim at Meadowlands Leisure Pool in Tavistock is Eddy Hancock.

Eddy's fear of water came about in 1979 when while working abroad he was involved in a car accident which resulted in the vehicle he was travelling in leaving the road and ending upside down in a river. The vehicle sank like a stone — Eddy was trapped in the passenger seat with his seat belt jammed and he could not release it.

He was rescued by an off-duty police officer, but unfortunately two friends who were with him that day died. Eddy woke up in hospital several weeks later with no memories of the accident or of his life. He had forgotten everything and had to be re-schooled all over again.

From the moment he woke in hospital Eddy had a terror and fear of water. It was so bad that he could not take a bath and even taking a shower resulted in panic attacks. He spent years avoiding any situation where he had to get into or be near water.

This changed when Eddy's step-daughter and grandson moved to New Zealand.

Eddy explained that his grandson, who is now 10 years old, loves the water and enjoys swimming and wants his granddad to join him in the fun. So at the age of 53 he has decided to conquer his fear and learn to swim.

Eddy started one-to-one lessons with Clare Short, a swimming coach at Meadowlands.

Clare told the Times: 'Eddy came to me with a fear of the water. The first lesson was simply getting into the pool and walking from one side to the other.

'Eddy is a very determined person and many times I could see that he was struggling mentally with being in the water. He has overcome many fears but he has several challenges still to come. He will be learning front crawl techniques and swimming in deep water — all before Christmas.

'Eddy just proves we can all overcome our fears if we are determined enough. He has been an excellent person to teach.'

Eddy recalls that it took him three months before he could swim a length, but now he can swim eight lengths (200 metres) without stopping and although sometimes the fear still gets to him, he wishes he had done this years ago.

Eddy said: 'When I first got into the water I felt this sheer terror but Clare got into the water with me and created a sense of trust. She always explains and shows me what she wants me to do.

'She has never let me go unexpectedly and through a gradual process of developing different methods to help me overcome my fear I started to swim.

'I would like to thank Clare for the time she has taken with me and recommend that other people who have a fear of water should take lessons and discover the benefits and enjoyment that swimming can bring.'

Anyone who would like to talk about swimming lessons can speak to Chris Gallie at Meadowlands Swimming Pool on 01822 617774.