Selective Mutism

Part 1 - Mutism: Is it really that simple?

Have you ever wondered what it's like to be without something everyone else has? What it's like to be without something so natural, it's expected of you to have it? What it's like to be without a voice?

Mutism isn't easy to deal with, it's an inconvenience and it isn't widely accepted by society. After all, talking is normal, right? It's not everyday you come across someone who doesn't speak, so most people don't think much of it. Most people don't even consider it.

If you were to come across one of these people, someone who doesn't speak, what would your first thoughts be? That they're rude? That they're choosing to ignore you because they think it's fun? That they're being rebellious and refusing to respond? Or maybe that they're a complete idiot, who doesn't even know how to talk? Maybe the less judgemental people might assume there's a language barrier. Mutism isn't a myth, and some people live this life of silence each day.

You might be thinking, why don't they just learn to sign, or perhaps write instead? Surely if someone were living mute, they'd have found a way to communicate that? Sign language isn't exactly well known, and it's not very convenient to carry around a pen and paper everywhere you go. That said, some people do do this, and they're able to communicate their differences.

But what if mutism wasn't that simple? You might know about the people who physically can't talk, perhaps due to an accident or a biological condition. You might know about the people who were never able to learn to speak, because of a severe language delay or because they're deaf and can't hear the words. But what about the people who did learn to speak? The people who are perfectly capable of talking but at the same time, can't. Is it their choice to remain in silence? Their decision to make things difficult? It's not. This is selective mutism, the condition that forces so many into silence, a silence that nobody understands.