As a parent of an SM child knows, this isn’t a condition that a child has control over. It’s not a condition any parent would want for their child, and there’s a huge concern that without intervention, the SM anxiety-driven behaviors become ingrained.
I can say that my daughter was so fortunate to not need medications, and the “sliding in” techniques (and jumping on a trampoline among other things) seemed to work, but I know not all kids are that lucky.
It’s very interesting to hear the perspective of the parents, the teachers and their peers. Unlike the small girl in this video, my daughter couldn’t even smile to other kids or adults. She would hold herself rigid and keep her lips shut tight and never smile. This is consistent with what Maggie Johnson says of SM kids in this video. When SM kids are at home, they are relaxed and can speak, but when they go out in the world where there are so many unknown, scary things, she explains “their bodies get tight and the muscles of their throat gets tight, and their voices won’t come out.”
I admit…I’m tearing up watching these beautiful kids, and remembering how it was for my SM daughter.
Raising Smart Girls 