S - CAT

"S-CAT incorporates anxiety lowering techniques, methods to build self-esteem, and strategies and interventions to help with social comfort and communication progression."*

S-CAT also known as social communication anxiety treatment is the treatment philosophy developed by Dr. Elisa Shipon - Blum. In my previous post I talked about Dr. Shipon - Blum and her research on Selective Mutism. She developed the Selective Mutism Anxiety Research and Treatment Center also known as SMart Center. In my last post I posted and talked about testimonials of people giving her and the center praise. I thought if all of these people were so happy with the center I wanted to know what kind of treatment was being used. On her website I came across S-CAT which is the treatment that is used.
S-CAT is based on the concept that SM is more than just not speaking. Dr. Shipon - Blum created the SM - Stages of Social Comunication Comfort Scale. This describes the various stages of social communication possible for a child suffering from SM. To develop an appropriate treatment plan a complete understanding of the child is necessary. After evaluation of the child three key questions are addressed:

- Why did the child develop SM?

- Why does Selective Mutism persist despite past treatment and parent/teacher awareness?

- What can be done at home, in school, and in the real world to help the child build the coping skills needed to overcome his/her social communication challenges?

To help the child and begin a treatment plan a understanding of what stage the child is at during particular encounters must be developed.  Then treatment is developed with the 'whole child' approach. The child, parents and school personnel all work together to develop a treatment. The time is the therapy office also isn't enough. These strategies and intervention need to be implemented in the real world and school settings. These strategies and intervention are based on where the child is on the Social Communication Bridge.
S-CAT provides choice to the child. Games and goals are used to help develop social comfort and progress into speech.

I though this method of teatment was really cool. It seems to really work with the child and not just their mutism. It gives the child a choice and also involves the school and family. I think giving the child a choice and including the family in the progress will help make the child more comfortable, and also help them be more aware of the treatment.

Testimonials

After doing an interview with a parent of a child with Selective Mutism she suggested a website to go to that she found was very helpful. I haven't had a chance to completely look over the website, but the first thing I went to was testimonials. All of these stories were about how well children are doing and how Dr. Shipon - Blum has helped. I thought these were really awesome to read. Through out a lot of these blogs we have been asking questions and talking about negatives with disabilities. So after reading these I thought it would be a good idea to blog about them and hear about families success stories.
I am posting this testimonial because many of the stories I have read about have been girls and this one is a boy (that is another question I want to look at is the boy to girl ratio for SM) and because I hearing how happy the parent is that her child is doing well can give hope to other families.

Dr. E.,

Our son is doing great each day. He now plays with his classmates with complete verbal communication. He communicates well with his teacher. He places orders at restaurants and he is not afraid to respond to questions to any one. Of course he hesitates first, but what a tremendous change. He is now enjoying life. His academic performance also sky rocketed with the teachers being able to evaluate him and see his skills. He raises his hand often in class to answer questions. Everybody in school and outside is amazed by his performance.

None of these would have been possible without you. You are a miracle maker and we always talk about you. God bless you to change many more lives.

There are a lot of other great stories on this website. http://www.selectivemutismcenter.org/aboutus/testimonials
I would suggest taking the time to read some. I can't wait to keep exploring this website and seeing what else I find!

Parent/Teacher Point of View

For my latest blog I thought who better to answer my questions than a parent of a child with Selective Mutism who is also a teacher and has had children with SM. We did a brief informal interview. I am not going to write word for word her responses, but I will give a good summary.

What would you say SM is?
- Social anxiety, children want to communicate but can't because of fear.

Does it effect the family?
- Parents - At first we wanted to talk for her. Always wanted to answer and speak for their child. It can cause anxiety and confusion on the parents. They want to push the child into talking, when they may just put more pressure on their child.
- Little brother - He brings her personality out.

What types of needs at school?
- A teacher who is understanding and doesn't push or baby the child. When sharing she has the option to share when comfortable. She is not on an IEP or 504 plan.

What are some symptoms you have seen?
- Took her awhile to get comfortable around extended family and was sitting off by herself and not talking at school.

What made you realize this might be something more than just being shy?
- She was always a shy child. She was unable to communicate in public situations. At dinner one night with family she ran out of the room crying because she didn't like having people watching her and it made her nervous. Also met with the speech pathologist at school and it was very helpful.

What is your view as a teacher?
- Be sure not to pressure or baby the student. Hard to gain full understanding of what is going on with student and realize what is too much and not enough.
(An example could be the teacher thinking the child is manipulating them by taking advantage of not talking and never doing it, when really they can't because of fear, not because they don't want to.)

Can you grow out of it?
- It is important to work with children as soon as possible and begin therapy. Studies have shown that children who don't get therapy make bad decisions later in life that they normally wouldn't make to release anxiety.

Reactions when you found out?
- It was a very long process of finding out. Relieved to have an answer. We just wanted to know what was going on so we could help.

Anything you would like to see changed in the school systems?
- More education for teachers on what Selective Mutism is. How to deal with it appropriately in the classroom and inform the rest of the students. Teacher's don't seem aware enough of all the details.

I thought this interview answered a lot of my questions and was very insightful. I am very thankful to have an amazing parent and teacher who was willing to share with me and the rest of you. She also shared a website of a doctor who specializes in SM that I can't wait to look at and hopefully do my next blog on!

Symptoms

Since a lot of people don't know a lot about Selective Mutism or even know what it is I thought it would be a good idea to do some research on the symptoms of Selective Mutism. This was one of the main questions I had about it. I didn't know what to look for in a child who might be selectively mute. I did some searching online and I came across one website that was simple and to the point.
http://www.theselectivemutism.info/symptoms-of-selective-mutism/index.php
From this website I learned some common symptoms. One thing I found interesting was people think of Selective Mutism as a form or Autism which it is not.
Some of the symptoms may be -
- The child has trouble speaking in social situations even when they are able to speak at home. They have a fear of being embarassed socially.
- You may not notice the symptoms in the first month of school because many children are shy at first.
- They child will have a difficult time maintaining eye contact.
- Blank facial expressions.
- Worry's more about things than other people.
- The child may be sensitive to noise.
- May have compulsive traits similiar to OCD. ( Working with a child in my student teaching experience with Selective Mutism, I noticed that everything had to be very neat for her. Her desk was always kept neat and her work had to always be very neat. I wonder if this had to do with the Selective Mutism?)
- The child will seem shy, but they have a fear of people.

From these symptoms it gives you a better idea of what Selective Mutism is and what it is like for a child to have it. When I think of it, I kinda of think of it as a type of social anxiety.

Is there support?

As a parent, family member, teacher of a child with selective mutism could be very difficult. As well as it could be difficult for the child. I have been thinking a lot about what kind of resources are out there? Is there help? With help does it get better? I know there are support groups for everything out there and I came across a website that is one big support group. It seemed really interesting it is for anyone to join. You could be a family member, friend, teacher or someone who is interested. I haven't joined yet, but becoming a teacher this may be soemthing I would be interested in. The website is...
Support Group
I also am going to be trying to talk witha parent/teacher of a child with Selective Mutism. This will definitely be one of the questions I ask them. What kind of support do you have and what do you suggest helps?

Questions...

For the topic of my blog it took me awhile to think about what I wanted to do. I went back and forth between a lot of things. At first I thought about doing something with Diabetes because I am familiar with it having two brothers who have it. Then I decided I wanted to do something I didn't know about so I came across Autism and was wondering what it would be like to have an Autistic sibling and what that child's life is like. Then finally I came to the decision of Selective Mutism. I had never heard of this before until my student teaching experience and a child in my class had Selective Mutism. When I was told we were going to have a child in our class with this I had so many questions. My first and main question was, what is it? Then I had many more questions like, when do you get diagnosed, how do you diagnose it, how will the child act, does the child have special needs in the classroom, how can I help and so many more. So for my blog I decided I want to find out more about Selective Mutism. I don't have a specific question yet about it, but I feel after doing more research I will be able to come across something and take a deeper look. On the American Speech - Language - Hearing Association website it tells about what Selective Mutism is and gives a little background about it. This is the site I first came across when I had questions.
http://www.asha.org/public/speech/disorders/selectivemutism.htm