Tag: children
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IEP Annual Review Meeting
The IEP annual review process was another meeting that made me nervous. I thought it might be similar to the initial IEP eligibility meeting, where I felt like I had to fight for my son to get the IEP. Thankfully the annual review was much less stressful. Roles in the IEP Meeting Structure of the…
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Impact on Relationships
This blog post is a hard one to write because unfortunately selective mutism has caused strain in some of our close relationships. This is true both for my son’s relationship with these people, as well as mine and my husband’s relationship with them. What Caused Strain The strain in the relationships started before we knew…
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Celebrating the Small Wins
As a mom of a child with Selective Mutism, there are days that can feel really hard. There are also days that can feel like such a breakthrough. Celebrating the small wins and breakthroughs when they happen is so exciting. Different types of wins I think of small wins falling into two major buckets. Celebrating…
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My Bad Habits as a Parent of a Child with Selective Mutism
Seeing my kid struggle to be vocal with others is hard. All I wanted to do was make it easier for my son. Before I even knew what selective mutism was, I would do what I thought was helpful for my son. What I didn’t know at the time was that I was negatively reinforcing…
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IEP Eligibility Meeting
The IEP eligibility meeting is stressful. This meeting is where you debrief with the professional who did the evaluation, the IEP coordinator, and the child’s teacher. It feels so critical when you are trying to get your kid the support they need. We attended two of these meetings for my son. I mentioned these in…
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Selective Mutism Missed Signs
My husband and I missed some signs of selective mutism in my son or wrote them off as other issues. These are the signs that we missed and what eventually got us to the idea of selective mutism. Every kid is different. Someone else with selective mutism will have different characteristics that cause you to…
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What is Selective Mutism
Selective mutism (SM) is an anxiety disorder. People with selective mutism are typically able to speak freely at home but in other social situations are unable to speak because of their anxiety. It is most common in children. Diagnosis Overview SM is diagnosed by a psychologist. They are looking to see that the inability to…