Overcome Selective Mutism with The SMart Center's CommuniCamp™ Intensive Group Treatment and Parent Training Program

USA - English

• USA - English

JENKINTOWN, Pa., May 14, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The Selective Mutism, Anxiety, and Related Disorders Treatment Center, also referred to as The SMart Center, is hosting their CommuniCamp™ Intensive Group Treatment and Parent Training Program this summer, June 21-24, July 19-22, and August 23-26, in Jenkintown, PA (approximately 13 miles north of Philadelphia, PA). Visit http://www.CommuniCamp.org for more information and to register.

CommuniCamp™ helps children and teens between the ages of three and 17 with selective mutism, social communication anxiety, and related disorders speak in school to teachers and peers, teaches coping skills to ease anxiety in group settings, and facilitates confidence and motivation to "get the words out." Based on world-renowned philosophies from Selective Mutism specialist Dr. Elisa Shipon-Blum's evidence-based treatment approach, S-CAT® (Social Communication Anxiety Treatment®), CommuniCamp™ helps build comfort, confidence, and social communication in all settings of a child's life. CommuniCamp™ has dual missions:

1. Intensive Group Treatment: Over the course of a three-day weekend (5 hours/day, 15 hours total), our professionally trained counselors, under the direction of our lead clinicians, work directly with campers on social comfort and confidence to instill social confidence, increase communication, and facilitate learning of coping skills using S-CAT® strategies, activities, and interventions using each camper's individual baseline for social communication. Through these strategies and by removing the expectation for speech and respecting each camper's baseline, our campers see and hear themselves communicating confidently in a peer-group school setting which translates to their school environment when they get home.
2. Parent Education, Training, and Support Sessions: While campers undergo treatment, we simultaneously provide 5 hours/day, 15 hours total of intensive parent education, training, and breakout support sessions so families can immerse themselves in the world of Selective Mutism, ask questions, share stories, receive support, and feel confident implementing the interventions, goals, and strategies learned at CommuniCamp™ as soon as you get home.

Why choose CommuniCamp™?

• Unlike other group treatment programs for Selective Mutism, children/teens DO NOT have to be verbal to attend CommuniCamp™.
• FULL DAY parent education sessions are included. Share stories, ask questions, receive support from our expert clinicians, and learn step-by-step strategies, games, and goals to utilize at school and in your day-to-day life as soon as you get home!
• CommuniCamp™ is modeled after Dr. Elisa Shipon-Blum's S-CAT® treatment approach which has been used to successfully treat over 6,000 individuals with Selective Mutism worldwide. This cost- and time-effective three-day program educates parents and exposes children and teens to key aspects of S-CAT®.
• We target effective communication in all aspects of the child's life—at school, in the real world, and at home. This comprehensive approach allows campers to see and hear themselves in everyday situations while being exposed to fun games and activities that incorporate strategies and coping skills to positively impact comfort, confidence, and communication.
• CommuniCamp™ is strategically scheduled over weekends and holidays to cut down on time away from work and school.
• We accept new patients directly into group treatment; the enrollment process is easy: 1) Apply: S-CAT® is grounded in the understanding that SM is so much more than just not talking in social settings. The application also allows to start to uncover the child's/teen's unique needs so that we can utilize the appropriate S-CAT® strategies with respect to his/her baseline. This step are also the reasons why non-verbal campers are accepted, and why "lead-ins" are not associated with the SMart Center and CommuniCamp™. 2) Meet: After your application is thoroughly reviewed, you will be eligible for one of three meeting options (in-person or virtual dependent on clinical recommendation based on application) with one of our clinicians to deepen our understanding of your child's unique social communication needs so that we can determine ideal group placement and identify and plan for the proper treatment strategies to utilize during CommuniCamp™. 3) Attend: We kick-off the weekend with a Welcome & Orientation Get-Together the night prior to Day 1 of the program where campers and parents will meet their counselors, fellow campers, and tour the facility. Therapeutic, S-CAT® strategies are incorporated into this pre-camp event so we recommend arriving to the Philadelphia area the afternoon before the first day of the program.
• An official diagnosis of Selective Mutism is not required to attend. We accept children and teens with Selective Mutism, Social Communication Anxiety, Extreme Shyness, and related challenges.

Learn more and enroll your child or teen in one of our Summer 2019 group treatment and training programs for Selective Mutism by visiting http://www.CommuniCamp.org. To request more information, email CommuniCamp(at)SelectiveMutismCenter(dot)org.

To effectively overcome Selective Mutism and all anxieties, a child needs to be involved in a treatment program, such as the evidenced-based Social Communication Anxiety Treatment® (S-CAT®). Developed by Dr. Elisa Shipon-Blum, this holistic or "whole-person" treatment approach is designed to reduce anxiety, build self-esteem, increase social comfort, confidence, and communication in all settings. As a physician, Dr. Shipon-Blum views Selective Mutism as a social communication anxiety disorder of which mutism is merely a symptom. The key to an effective treatment plan is understanding factors into the development and maintenance of Selective Mutism as well as understanding a child's baseline stage of social communication. Then, working as a team, the treatment professional, parents, school staff members, and the child all work together to help the child build the coping skills to combat anxious feelings and to progress across the Social Communication Bridge©.

Dr. Elisa Shipon-Blum ("Dr. E") is the President and Director of the SMart Center, the Founder and Director Emeritus of the Selective Mutism Association (SMA), the Director of the Selective Mutism Research Institute (SMRI), and a parent of a child who overcame Selective Mutism. Dr. Elisa Shipon-Blum and her expert clinical staff have successfully treated over 6,000 children, teens, and young adults worldwide using S-CAT". For more information about Dr. Shipon-Blum, S-CAT®, and the comprehensive treatment services offered at the SMart Center, visit http://www.SelectiveMutismCenter.org.

SOURCE SMart Center

Related Links

https://selectivemutismcenter.org/communicamp/