Meet Micah
At a young age, Micah’s family noticed that he was mute with all adults except for his parents and grandparents. Micah’s family expresses that “he could hardly make eye contact with adults, especially his preschool teachers who he knew since he was 2 ½ years old. They noticed that Micah was always comfortable around kids but did not express that same comfort with adults.
Micah’s family decided to pursue treatment at the Smart Center via the CommuniCamp™ Intensive Group Treatment & Parent Training Program in February 2019. After attending camp, Micah’s family could not believe the progress he had made! Micah’s family explains that:
“In about a month after camp, he started talking to his preschool teachers and they could not believe it. He would take in his favorite watch to show-off and other toys and started to talk about them to his teacher. At home we practiced with him to tell his teacher about out fun trip to New York City, and he did it! Once school ended, we religiously did our homework [that the SMart Center gave us at CommuniCamp™] like scavenger hunts, hand over/ take over, waving bye/hi, ordering food, etc. We had play dates every week during the summer and involved him in various sports (soccer, basketball, swimming) to keep his social interaction going and in hopes that he would not regress. Last month, he started Kindergarten and he has been doing AMAZING! He answers his teachers, raises his hand, advocates for himself if he needs anything, and initiates conversations with some of our close friends who visit often.”
Micah’s family expresses that the S-CAT® strategies that helped the most were:
- Scavenger hunts
- Ordering at restaurants
- HO/TO
- “he basically stands in front of me anywhere we go and I try to make him my voice”
If you are considering enrolling your family in an upcoming CommuniCamp™ Intensive Group Treatment & Parent Training Program with the SMart Center and would like to speak with Micah’s mom about her experience, please email CommuniCamp@SelectiveMutismCenter.org so we can connect you!
To effectively overcome Selective Mutism and all anxieties, an individual needs to be involved in a treatment program, such as those rooted in evidenced-based Social Communication Anxiety Treatment® (S-CAT®), like Individualized Intensives and CommuniCamp. Developed by Dr. Elisa Shipon-Blum, this holistic or “whole-person” treatment approach is designed to reduce anxiety, build self-esteem, increase social comfort and communication in all settings.
As a physician, Dr. Elisa Shipon-Blum (“Dr. E”) views SM as a social communication anxiety where mutism is merely a symptom. The key to an effective treatment plan is understanding factors that contribute to the development and maintenance of SM as well as understanding a child’s baseline stage of social communication on the Social Communication Bridge®. Then, working as a team, the treatment professional, parents, and school staff members help the child build coping skills to combat anxious feelings and to progress across the Social Communication Bridge©.
