congratulations Laura sounds like she's on the right track. make sure she has
some opportunities over the summer to talk with people she hasn't before and you
might want to try gradually weaning her off of her counselor. make the time
between visits longer each time she sees her. i know how hard it is not to be
able to show her how proud you are but tell your parents and your best friend
and any one else who will listen (when Laura's not around of course) and get it
off your chest. good luck
----- Original Message -----
From: Julie
To: Selectivemutismsupportgroup@yahoogroups.com ;
selectivemutismsupportgroup2@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Tuesday, June 08, 2004 9:35 PM
Subject: [Selective Mutism Support Group] SM success story


My daughter Laura is 10 1/2 years old and has been selectively mute for about
6 years. She is in grade 4 and began seeing a child development counselor at
her school while in grade 2. The counselor had never dealt with an SM child.

I am so happy to report that Laura is now speaking to many adults. About 2
months ago she began speaking to her counselor, whom she just adores, as well as
my boyfriend, who she adores as well. She now speaks to a few aunts and uncles,
her Girl Guides (Scouts in the U.S.) leader and her classroom teacher.

This is simply amazing to me. I took her into the school yesterday after a
dentist appointment and walked her into her class. Her teacher said hello to
her and asked her how everything went. Laura replied completely normally by
saying that everything went well and it was just a very short visit. I was
shocked! We then went looking for her counselor because it was her last meeting
with her before the end of this school year. We found the counselor and Laura
spoke directly to her, talking away about the dentist and not wanting to miss
her visit with the counselor. Again, I couldn't believe my ears.

Laura is empowered. Her counselor told her a few months ago that she was not
going to be able to see her any more because it was her job to get Laura to
speak and Laura wasn't. She asked Laura what to do. At this point Laura was
whispering to the counselor so Laura whsipered that she would like to play some
games with her. Not long after this Laura began speaking directly to her. While
I think being so blunt with Laura was a drastic and possibly damaging move, it
did work with my child.

What the counselor has told me is that it is very important that people look
Laura directly in the eye when speaking to her. It is also important that
people do not make a big deal when she speaks. This is crucial. When Laura
first spoke in class to her teacher, many students made a fuss over it. Laura
came home and told me she was very upset that "everyone said 'Laura spoke, Laura
spoke to the teacher.'"

The sad thing about Laura's success is that I cannot tell her how proud I am
of her. She does not want to hear about it. With only two weeks of school
left, I can only hope that this talking continues through the summer and for her
next year in school. She does know that her counselor will only see her for a
month or so when school resumes. Problem might be that she likes her so much
that she might decide not to talk so that she can visit with her counselor again
in the fall. I am thinking that I shouldn't worry about that possibility right
now!

Anyway, I hope you all are seeing progression with your children. If you have
any questions, please do not hesitate to ask me.

Julie
follow your heart






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