Skydiving and expecting first born

[SixtySecRush 0]

My wife is currently 4 months pregnant and to make a long story short, i have seriously hisitated from jumping because of the risk involved. I've wanted a child for a long time and i want to see my first born. I'm on here daily checking out what people are talking about and i check the "incident" forum daily and i think i may be getting too involved with the "incident" forum where it kinda makes me think. I review EP several times a week when i'm not jumping regularly and i know that if the situation arised i'm ready to perform as needed. Looking for thoughts of parents out there that have had the same problem, and i know there are several. Did it make you think or did it not affect you at all? Thanks

[airtwardo 7]

For whatever it's worth...

A very good friend of mine always stopped jumping for the term of the pregnancy on all 4 of his kids...

Didn't seem to hurt him or them any!

as for me....well that's another story

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

[flyangel2 2]

The sky will always be there.

If you want to put your children first, I see nothing wrong with that.

May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds. - Edward Abbey

[Beverly 1]

Just remember that uncurrency kills.

I think true friendship is under-rated

Twitter: @Dreamskygirlsa

[Andy9o8 2]

Plenty of people keep jumping while they have young kids, and they're still caring parents. On the other hand, plenty of people take time off from jumping to lessen the risk to themselves while their kids are young, and many of them, like me, are dads; and there's nothing dishonorable about doing that, either. I did it (took time off while my kids were younger), and the sky was still there when my family was older and I was ready to come back. Currency/uncurrency issues usually aren't the main decision variable for most people (plenty of people who live up north stop jumping for the winter months every year). But if you do take a good chunk of time off, when you come back, have patience and make sure you ease your way back into it to compensate for the uncurrency.

[CornishChris 5]

3 weeks to go til my first born. I have had thoughts about taking a break for a while but I think the UK winter will do that for me. The problem I have is that a friend of mine had a nasty BASE accident. The day before he had hurt his ankle and I asked him if it was worth it and he said "definitely". When he finally became compus mentus again 3 months after the accident I asked the same question and he said "no way". I keep thinking about this because if i have an accident and my kid doesn't get to know me it would so not have been worth it. I do love this sport and I intend to do everything to avoid getting hurt but the only surefire why to avoid dying skydiving is to not skydive.

That said, shit happens everywhere else in the world and other things could go wrong in your life. It's you're call to make and no one elses - if you are looking for reassurances to make you're decision then you shouldn't, don't justify your actions through the actions of others - ultimately the responsibility lies with you, as mine does with me.

That was pretty unhelpful wasn't it!?

CJP

Gods don't kill people. People with Gods kill people

[mysky 1]

In my opinion if you even have to think about doing it then you shouldn't be doing it at all, at least for the time being. I know friends in similar situations that said once they found out they had a child on the way every skydive became a mind game of, "I wonder if this is the one" and made it much harder to do what your supposed to do on the jump and that's enjoy yourself. Extra thoughts and nervousness lead to extra problems in the air. I'm sure you love jumping more then anything but I'm also sure when your baby is given to you for the first time falling out of an airplane will pail in comparision. Then your little one can later on watch you jump and be proud. It's also good to take a breather for your wifes sake, it really seems to help pregnant women knowing their husbands are doing everything they can to comfort them while carrying around a bowling ball for 9 months. I'm sure your wife would also feel much better even if she doesn't tell you it bothers her, it does and will assure less stress in her life, hence an easier pregnancy. Good luck to you and I'm sure we'll see you back in the blue skies again should you decide to take a breather.

There are 3 kinds of people in this world, those that know how to count, and those who don't.

[anewempire 0]

if you need to take time off then take time off. different situations come about in everything that will eventually change how you see things. i rode dirt bikes for 5 years. i got into freestyle for the last year. last summer i got hurt really bad again and thought i was going to die and that changed my whole perspective on the sport. i've been riding one time since and it just wasn't the same. sometimes there's other things that are more important in life than the rushes we get. for me that happened to be my mentality that i'll always be ok when riding but now i really want to be able to walk when i'm older and the reality of injuries hit me full on (i even cracked a vertebre when i over shot a jump about 3 years ago). you just got to do what you got to do. it's all relative. i just started skydiving this summer and have 18 jumps in so far. i've thought about what i'd do if i ever had a family and when it comes down to it i think i'll probably quit. maybe for good, maybe for just a little while. it's your call dude