My daughter and son have always been very quiet. My son was very quiet and rarely talked outside of our family until about Kindergarten. My daughter is now eight.

She has never spoken to anybody outside of her family, her entire life. Until today....


For the first time, she spoke directly to her best friend and our next door neighbor's daughter, about 30 minutes ago. She suffers from something called "Selective Mutism." Selective Mutism is a complex childhood anxiety disorder characterized by a child's inability to speak and communicate effectively in select social settings, such as school. These children are able to speak and communicate in settings where they are comfortable, secure, and relaxed.

This was an incredible moment and day for my wife (I listened over the phone, but not the same as being right there) and me. My wife cried.

Fortunately, her Selective Mutism is not accompanied with any other Social Phobias, such as Social Anxieties. This has always been the bright side; she's the most outgoing little girl who never speaks I've ever met. Ohh, and to clarify, she does speak in public, but only around strangers, and in open areas. Never in closed offices or at school. As long as they don't know her, she feels comfortable to speak. The moment a familiar face comes into the picture, she zips up.

And she has little to no difficulty making videos, so if you've seen her talk on a video I've posted up, that's why.

But, I think today was a turning point. Today was special.

This is a day, I'm not gonna forget.