Improving Selective Mutism with Meditation

Sarah Wood Vallely Augist 2005

Selective mutism is an anxiety issue affecting an estimated one percent of the population. Jennifer Jazwierska, School Psychologist for Denver Public schools has a 9-year-old selectively mute third grader named Jackie. Jackie speaks at home but not at school. During their first five sessions together, Jackie never uttered a word. After a summer break, they resumed their sessions in the fall. For the next several months Jackie occasionally whispered “yes” and “no” responses to Jennifer. Her communication was inconsistent and never happened without prompting. Six months later, however, Jackie had a significant breakthrough.

To help Jackie overcome her anxiety about speaking, Jennifer used a child meditation technique that features a child’s favorite TV character, movie or sports activity in a guided journey. Using their limited communication, Jennifer and Jackie created a story about “SpongeBob,” a Nickelodeon cartoon. In Jackie’s story, SpongeBob takes a spaceship to school with his starfish friend Patrick. Patrick helps his friend feel relaxed and comfortable in the classroom and helps him talk to his teacher and classmates. They even included details such as the colors in SpongeBob’s classroom

Jackie left the session, only to return a few minutes later to speak her first spontaneous sentence to Jennifer. Jennifer says, “Jackie whispered to me that her class was not in their classroom and was probably at gym. This was a monumental shift in our therapeutic relationship.”

Jennifer continued to co-create meditation with Jackie and incorporate the Satya Method principles into her practice. Weeks later, Jackie’s teacher reports improvement also. Jackie reads books one-on-one with her teacher in an audible whisper.

A variety of holistic approaches are becoming available to school professionals. “With a little creativity, patience and an open mind, we can pioneer the use of holistic practices in the education community, enhancing learning experiences for both students and teachers,” Jennifer says. She believes the guided imagery coupled with the partnership the Satya Method teaches jump-started their progress.

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