CommuniCamp™ Commentary: Take Their Word For It!
Children, tweens, and teens 3-17-years-old with Selective Mutism and Related Social Communication Anxiety Disorders from across the globe attend CommuniCamp, our intensive group treatment program. Children learn strategies and coping skills based on Dr. E’s Social Communication Anxiety Treatment® (S-CAT®) to “Cross the Social Communication Bridge” into speech! They laugh, role-play, learn coping strategies, and make new friends while parents are educated, share stories and experiences, and become empowered! To submit your Communicamp Interest Form, click here.
“We are so grateful for the opportunity to meet and learn from Dr. E, Dr. Jenna, and Jennifer and to hear from the panelists that are teens with SM. To be in a room of professionals who know exactly what we have been going through and what our child has been going through was truly an overwhelmingly validating experience. Their confidence that our child would be verbal and overcome social communication anxiety gave us the confidence that our child could overcome Selective Mutism too. Ultimately, this gave our child that confidence as well.”
“Thanks to CommuniCamp, our child learned how to identify her feelings of anxiety and fear in specific situations. Through utilizing the feelings chart and using the bridge to cross over from making word sound to being verbal in front of others, she now has the language she can use to communicate those feelings to us while we learned these terms along with her. The camp is organized so perfectly for the kids and the families. We could see and feel all the thought, work and effort the team put into all the little details that make this program such a success. In three days, our child was speaking in a classroom setting which she had never done in her whole life. We are really looking forward to continuing to work together for her success at school and beyond!”
“I was so worried that my daughter would never speak in front of other children that I traveled from London to attend Communicamp. It exceeded my expectations a thousand times and she was talking in a classroom setting on the first day! I, as a parent, learned that the key to treatment lies with the adults around her and I took home strategies and a wealth of knowledge to help her to keep moving forward and to help her school to help her. Thank you!”
“I was very happy with our experience at Communicamp. As parents, we received three full days of education on practical ways we can help our son. We were also able to connect and learn from other parents that are dealing with similar challenges. Our son had fun each day of the camp and returned home with a new sense of confidence. It was well worth the investment!”
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“We attended Communicamp and had a wonderful experience. It really showed us that with the right information and jumping in with practical ways to help our daughter, we can get her across the bridge into comfortable communication! Thank you so much!”
“The kids built a community and then the parents built a community… You learn so many skills. You learn how to talk to your kid in a way that you didn’t even think of before… [Communicamp] has changed how my son looks at things.”
“She had fun every day! We loved the sense of community and hearing from other parents and kids who had been through it. Dr. E is amazing, and I loved hearing her talk and her philosophy.”
“My favorite part about Communicamp is that you get to see other parents and learn from them and ask questions together… It was a very educational, comforting, welcoming environment and our daughter loved it.”
“My daughter enjoyed CommuniCamp so much that she wished she CommuniCamp could be her ‘school.’ The warm-up time and RSA helped her around others she was just getting to know, and will be an important tool at school! Parent support during camp and resources for after camp were exceptional! Certainly received tools for life!”
These families traveled from California and Canada to the Greater Philadelphia Area to the SMart Center’s CommuniCamp™ Intensive Group Treatment and Parent Training Program. These amazing, dedicated parents of children with Selective Mutism say that CommuniCamp™ turned their confusion about SM into clarity, and that the program provided them with hope and a supportive network to be able to help their children speak in school, in the real world, and at home.
“She actually said she wants to come back… She seems calmer, and more confident! It was so nice to see we weren’t the only ones going through this. I feel like we have all the tools we need to help her succeed!”
“I just feel so empowered and I feel like I can really help my son. I feel like I know where to go and the tools I can use, whether at home or with family and in school. I just feel so happy”
“We all have a story and things we struggle with. Mine just so happened to be getting my words out. I want to help others know that they are not alone, and they don’t need to stay stuck and feel like they are isolated from everyone else. They can do it just like I did! The rest is history. I have crossed over that bridge that once felt impossible to get across. It took people believing in me, like my family and Dr. E and her staff. Getting your feet to move across the bridge is the hardest part. But once you are moving, you don’t want to stop until you are to the other side. I didn’t believe the day would come that I could say “I’m not scared to talk anymore!” But, that day has come. I overcame Selective Mutism!” – Chloe C.
“It’s blown my expectations out of the water. I had no idea that there is so much to learn and there is so much passion with you and your staff. This is unreal. Thank you for doing this.”
“Thank you, Dr. E and all your staff, for an amazing weekend. You really are an answer to my prayers as I’ve researched the past year on the best approach and next steps to take with my son. The S-CAT® treatment protocol just makes sense to me. As a physical therapist, I value giving patients concrete steps and methods to achieve their goals for overcoming whatever issue they are facing. I feel that is what S-CAT® is for me when trying to figure out the next steps with my son. It is a tool that helps guide the way and doesn’t leave me feeling overwhelmed”
“It was so great to find a place where we could come and connect to other parents, get real-life tools that are quick and easy to bring back to our real lives that are so far away, and my daughter was so excited to be here. It was such a great experience for the whole family and we’re just so pleased with our experience here and our takeaways from here.”
“All clinicians and counselors were able to present in a comfortable and knowledgeable manner. They covered every possible factor. I was extremely impressed with their awareness and recommendations in treating SM. In addition, they were empathetic to parents’ confusion about SM. I am thankful for the resources and support I have now.”
“Amazing! Very compassionate and understanding. My child felt safe and loved camp! She felt understood, as did the parents.”
“Great info – I feel this was the missing link that we needed, as a family, to continue on our journey.”
“I’m very happy with how camp went – I had wanted my child to meet other kids like her, and get a nice confidence boost. She even spoke to other parents, through me, and loud enough for them to hear!”
“Amazing to see my child interacting with other children at the park, talking and totally comfortable. She loves CommuniCamp™!”