Blog Posts by Jess Thorpe

'"Why don't you ever speak?" Why does it bother you why I never speak? Is what I wanted to call back, only I couldn't. The words were there, but buried deep, stuck in my throat like a dry bone and no matter how hard I tried to pull them out it still felt like nothing more than a paralysis to the throat.' (Quote from 'Slipping in and out of my Two Worlds') Selective mutism is a complex anxiety disorder in which an individual is unable to speak in select social settings. Since this disorder is one of the most misunderstood and misdiagnosed disorders about, you are probably thinking, Tah! A disorder for shyness? What next, a disorder for thinking? There is an excuse for everything these days! Selective mutism is an actual disorder which consumes, as estimated, 1% of the entire population's lives. Contrary to popular assumption, it is vocal chord paralysis due to muscle tension in the vocal chords. Sufferers can not speak any more than somebody can be persuaded not to feel pain during