Selective Mutism News

With the holiday season well underway, the next few weeks are often full of festivities and events at kids’ schools, in the community, and with extended family. These unstructured social events can pose a particular challenge for individuals with selective mutism due to the disruption to usual routines, exposure to unfamiliar people, and unclear speech demands. This article offers parents recommendations for making the holiday season less intimidating — and potentially even more rewarding — for their children with selective mutism. 

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In the early stages of selective mutism treatment, children are often working on establishing foundational brave speaking skills. This might include practicing things such as responding to unfamiliar people, growing single-word responses to short sentences, and speaking in new environments and situations.

Once children make progress on these goals and start using their brave voice more consistently, caregivers and educators often ask us, what next? While making these initial gains is monumental and definitely worth celebration, it’s also important to continuously adjust goals to further challenge our children so they can reach their full potential.

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When families first hear about our intensive therapy programs, they often ask, “What does a typical day look like?” The truth is, no two intensives are exactly the same—each one is shaped by the unique needs and goals of the child. But we can offer you a behind-the-scenes look into two different intensives to give you a better sense of how these programs unfold and how they help children make meaningful progress in a short amount of time.

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