selective mutism

I had the opportunity to talk with Aimee Kotrba, PhD on the occasion of the release of the second edition of Selective Mutism: An Assessment and Intervention Guide for Therapists, Educators and Parents co-authored with Katelyn Reed, M.S. She is an international expert on the topic of selective mutism and I have used her material frequently with children struggling with selective mutism. Listen to this informative and fun talk with Aimee Kotrba, PhD.

Dr Aimee Kotrba,  is the owner of Thriving Minds Behavioral Health Clinic in Michigan and directs a camp for children with selective mutism Confident Kids Camp

For more information about Dr Kotrba and to access her webnairs and other material

https://www.thrivingmindsbehavioralhealth.com/

A teacher recalls a miracle in class. A 5th grader girl (a selective mute) utters one word and the class goes crazy. Goats are involved and so are time -warp letters 

- a transcript of this story is available -

On this episode Jay sits down with Nika Hirsch. Nika is the youngest guest so far on the podcast, at 10 years old. But, as you’ll hear, she’s one of the most inspiring guests. Nika and her mom run an Instagram account, This Life Rocks, which documents all of her amazing accomplishments and kind deeds. From a young age Nika has been dealing with selective mutism, which is an anxiety disorder that’s characterized by an inability to speak in certain social settings. So, it makes it all the more impressive that she could sit down with a total stranger and have this conversation. Nika uses her Instagram account to promote mental health awareness, spread kindness, and promote the various fundraising activities she’s always coming up with. Throughout her fundraising, Nika has raised several thousand dollars, most of which has been donated to various cancer foundations due to her father battling with sarcoma, a rare form of cancer, twice. In addition, at the time of recording this, Nika’s dad was in the hospital recovering from a brain surgery after a new cancer showed up.

Because Nika has been so brave through all that she faces, and because she does so much do help raise money for cancer research, Jay reached out to Nika’s mom and asked if he could set up a fundraiser with all proceeds being donated to a cancer foundation of their choosing. If you would like to get more information on this, please visit the show's Instagram page @comingintofocus, all one word and look for the post promoting this episode. And, while you’re at it, go check out This Life Rocks to see all of the amazing things Nika does.

Nika's Instagram: This Life Rocks

Jay's links:
Instagram
Focus Therapy Website
Facebook Group

Do you struggle to get your words out? Feel yourself freeze when someone speaks to you? Do your words seem to get stuck in your throat?

In this fascinating episode, we explore the relationship between social anxiety and selective mutism - a severe response to anxiety. We answer that dreaded question “why don’t you talk?” And you’ll discover how your behaviour might be helping to keep someone ‘stuck’ in their cycle of silence and fear -including how praise may actually reduce the likelihood of someone speaking up again. You’ll also hear about why ‘shy’ isn’t a helpful word to use to describe quieter children. You’ll learn about other ways that this fear response can show up that you might not have considered, and how you should respond if a child is using ‘silly talk’, animal noises, or a voice that isn’t their own - and why they might be doing this. Chelsea also demonstrates how very important it is to take a comfort zone stretch approach to overcoming selective mutism and anxiety as she explains what helped her to move through selective mutism to becoming a podcast host. 

About our Guest
Chelsea Gamache is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. She was diagnosed with Selective Mutism at age five and is passionate about sharing her experience, raising awareness and helping others who are struggling with Selective Mutism and anxiety. Chelsea hosts ‘Outloud the Selective Mutism Podcast’ with her mom and recently wrote a children's book about Selective Mutism called 'I Am Brave'. https://outloudsm.com