So this Wednesday, we have a class trip for graduation to a resort/amusement park thing, and theres a swimming pool. All of my friends love to swim, ad I have social anxiety so its not like I can go off and do something else while theyre swimming, everyone else in the school hates me so i couldnt hang out with them, and i just dont want to be watching them swim. My mom doesnt know about that, so we were looking at swimsuits today(as i dont have one) so that was wonderful. I'm too self conscious to actually wear a swimsuit because of A LOT of visible scars on my thighs.(I tried last year and ended up havng a few anxiety attacks, no thanks) so i settled on a gender nuetral looking swimshirt thing and basketball shorts, that cover my thighs.(only ones i found that could) Anyways. I don't have a binder, my parents wont get me one and I dont have the money, so I usually layer sports bras, shirts, and hoodies. I dont want to trigger dysphoria Wednesday, as i want to have (dont threaten me with) a good time, im quite screwed. Is there any way I could get by with hiding my chest? I dont know how to bind to swim, but I dont think multiple sports bras and shirts would work in this case. Sorry this is all over the place.
Sports bras would probably work best! But be sure to not overdo it, because swimming can be a strain and you don't want to have difficulty breathing. You could also maybe wear an oversized t-shirt over your swim shirt? And sorta, rearrange it to hide things once it gets wet. Honestly, without a proper binder it'll be really difficult to be binding while swimming. My favorite method is to just stay neck-deep in the water. But please remember to be safe and not accidentally hurt yourself trying to overbind!
I'd be really careful about this because some materials get a whole lot tighter when they get wet and binding anyway already constructs breathing, swimming and binding is going to be even more dangerous. I'd suggest trying the sports bras in the shower for a bit and seeing whether they start to compress any more than usual? Swimming is difficult because the water just makes everything stick to you so other than a good quality binder which has been specified as being safe to swim in, there are very few options. My dad suggested triathlon suits because they have to be tight so may compress somewhat, if you get a mens one, but you would have to look into it. Sorry I can't give you any better advice I'm struggling with not being able to swim too.
