Selective mutism involves a child who does not speak and who will only speak

in certain situations for fear of being judged or critic. In many instances children with

selective mutism will speak to peers but they won't speak to adults or sometimes they will

speak to their friends but won't speak with their teachers. Often times these children

won't speak at school but they'll speak and be quite rambunctious when they're at home.

Of course selective mutism creates great difficulties in school because it's challenging assessing

the child's knowledge and helping the child when they may not understand what's going on in the class room setting.

Selective mutism has multiple different treatment strategies and behavioral intervention is key.

A child can learn how to speak and be more comfortable

in those environments through a gradual succession of practicing and speaking and positive reinforcement.

Selective mutism has a very good prognostic outcome when interventions are immediate.

It is important to remember that when a child is selectively mute, not to consider them

to be shy or rude and it's also important not to put them on spot and insist that they

speak , this often exacerbates their anxiety and makes them even more less apt to speak in that situation.

Selective mutism treatment requires the intervention of parents, teachers

and behavioral professionals . A collaboration that helps the child learn how to speak through

small and gradual successions. Selective mutism is rarely understood but these are few facts

regarding this anxiety disorder.