COMING HOME - A Cameron Boyce Love Story

21: things be lookin' up.

Week 1

"So, let's lay what we know we need to work on out on the table." Ada's therapist, Dr. Christian suggested. Ada watched as her therapist began to write on the dry erase board on the table before pointing at it.

"So, we know you have... selective mutism," Dr. Christian said as she wrote out the word.

Ada's eyebrows raised a bit in confusion as she looked at the word, not understanding what it meant.

"Do you know what 'selective mutism' means?" Dr. Christian asked. Ada shook her head, biting her lip.

"Selective mutism is when someone will stop speaking at certain moments due to their personal comfortability levels of their surroundings. This is usually because of trauma in childhood, and can carry into adulthood which is what is happening with you. So, you know how you said sometimes you get scared and too flustered to speak? It's because you have certain anxieties and possible trauma that stops you from being able to communicate effectively."

Ada gave a small nod, feeling two things. One feeling was confusion because she wasn't fully grasping what the woman was saying. The other feeling was a small sense of achievement and soothing a space in her mind. She never understood why she was unable to speak at times, and now that there was a name put to it, she felt a little better.

"Now, we can fix that. We just have to unpack and discover what it is that triggers it, and you can have a tighter grasp of it. You can have more control over it. But, we'll get there. Now, next on our list is: Family," Dr. Christian announced as she wrote on the board.

"Family seems to be a huge theme in your life, and like every human, family affects us in the greatest way, whether that be positively or negatively. It seems for you that the way you view the different units of family you've encountered will all influence this, not just based on your biological family unit, and I think it's important to unpack that. Okay?"

"And both of these are related to the third word: EMOTION!" she spelled out as she wrote the word in bold letters above the two other words before drawing to lines to connect them.

"FAMILY is linked to the cause of your EMOTIONS, and SELECTIVE MUTISM is the result of your EMOTIONS. It is a natural tool that you have developed to showcase your emotions. Together, me and you will journey and talk through this, and unpack allll of this!" Dr. Christian said, talking with her hands and overemphasizing.

Again, Ada nodded in slight confusion. She tried her best to keep up with what the lady was saying. Dr. Christian picked up the dry erase board, hanging it up on a tack on her wall.

"Now, this list will be everchanging. There will probably be at least five more terms on this board by the time we're done. We might even erase some things the more conversations we have." Dr. Christian smiled as Ada nodded again.

"Okay, so we have 15 more minutes in our session. What I want to know is how you've ended up where you are now. I know you're like 'Dr. Christian aren't we going backwards?'" she giggled, Ada giving a small smile.

"But, I want to get to know Ada of 2019 first before I get to know the past Ada. Because the past Ada is what has grown and shifted and morphed into this Ada. And this Ada," Dr. Christian's hand referenced Ada. "Is not the final one. You are not the finished product yet. And you never truly will be, no one is. So, let's dig into this stage of Ada!" She laughed as Ada giggled from having her name said over and over. "Alright, so you are 18. And you'll be 19...?"