J has become 'mute' many times in the past, but we figured she just didn't want to talk and sort of wanted to shut herself off for a bit, (we all experience that feeling at times, right?). She would happily write things down though, sometimes in code, but then get frustrated that we didn't know the code, kind of difficult when she made it up and never explained it to us, but I digress...
Never ever did I think at any point that she literally was unable to speak.
The expectation to talk to certain people can trigger a freeze response with feelings of panic and talking becomes impossible. At home, in her own environment, J is a complete chatterbox with an incredibly extensive vocabulary. However, on some appointments with doctors etc she barely utters a word! School have also reported that she can become mute for sometimes more than an hour!!
However, with research I now realise that people with selective mutism are able to speak freely to certain people, such as close family and friends when nobody else is around to trigger the freeze response.
Selective mutism apparently affects about 1 in 140 young children and is more common in girls apparently!
The expectation to talk to certain people can trigger a freeze response with feelings of panic and talking becomes impossible. At home, in her own environment, J is a complete chatterbox with an incredibly extensive vocabulary. However, on some appointments with doctors etc she barely utters a word! School have also reported that she can become mute for sometimes more than an hour!!
However, with research I now realise that people with selective mutism are able to speak freely to certain people, such as close family and friends when nobody else is around to trigger the freeze response.
Selective mutism apparently affects about 1 in 140 young children and is more common in girls apparently!
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