Reflective Essay On Lifeguard

I am confronted with challenges every summer day as a supervisor at the world-renowned Texas waterpark, Schlitterbahn. I work closely with children of all ages, families, lifeguards, managers, and other staff members. On any given morning, I am unable to anticipate the obstacles that will confront me and the problem solving strategies I will be forced to call into action.

This past summer, I received a set of keys, a radio, and a name tag that read “Supervisor.” This was my third year working at the waterpark where I advanced from lifeguard to lead lifeguard and finally into a management position. I was now the youngest administrator in the operations department. Walking into work the first morning in my new uniform, the lifeguards looked surprised. Most of them were older than me and apprehensive about a boss who seemed so young. Initially, they spoke to me in a condescending tone and passively refused to complete any of the tasks I requested. When I politely asked a group of lifeguards to clean and straighten a section of the park after we had closed, the area was still in disarray when I

returned thirty minutes later. Rather than calling them out on their noncompliance, I work alongside them to complete the job. That evening, I gained their respect and learned that empathy and teamwork are more valuable attributes than coercion.

A waterpark with a daily attendance of more than 10,000 people, emergencies and injuries are bound to occur. I deal with scrapes and cuts, asthma attacks, compound wrist fractures and even seizures. Medical dilemmas at work are the largest hurdles I have managed in my lifetime but with my first aid training and support from the team of lifeguards and managers, I am able to overcome these stressful issues.

One hectic afternoon I responded to one of my lifeguard’s emergency whistles, I came on scene of an older lady having a seizure in the water.

Immediately my adrenaline kicked in and I began to go into shock. For three years I was trained to handle medical dilemmas and seizures, but this was real. After a ten second panic attack subdued, I allowed my training to commence. I asked a witness to call 911 and I jumped to aid by checking her vitals to make sure she was breathing and still alive. Lifeguards and I rolled her onto her side and monitored the length of the convulsions and eventually medics arrived and took over the scene. This lady survived this catastrophe and returned to the park less than a week later and found me, she was extremely grateful for myself and the lifeguard that aided her. The gratitude and appreciation she expressed made me enjoy and respect my

job.
Being employed at one of the largest and terrific waterparks in the world has provoked me into regulating situations that I have to resolve with skills such as first- aid, empathy, equanimity and teamwork. Events such as overseeing lifeguards and attending to cleaning can be handled with empathy and exchange of respect along with humor. Incidents where disasters occur require teamwork, treatment, and composure. These circumstances have changed me because they illustrate the importance of my job and allow me to gain knowledge and experience with teamwork and first aid. Now, with a years experience, I am ready to come back to my job again in the next summer and be more prepared because of these skills I received.