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Dr. Harold Koplewicz asks CMI's Dr. Steven Kurtz about the anxiety disorder, from its prevalence, and how it impacts school and social life, to the most effective treatments.

The Child Mind Institute and the Selective Mutism Group co-sponsored the 2011 Selective Mutism Conference: Informative for adult attendees, fun for the younger set, and fantastic for SM awareness.

Older kids, who have "practiced" their SM avoidance for many years, are harder to treat, but intensive CBT can undo those habits, and medication may help.

The term ADD is no longer used for kids who have the inattentive type of ADHD. But these children, who tend to be overlooked, still need understanding and help.

Watching a child emerge from silence during the program is fantastic, but the real gift is knowing that her and her family will work together during the year to cement those gains.

It may be because ADHD symptoms are 'dimensional'—extremes of behaviors seen in typical kids. But it may because parents are wary of the medications used to treat it.

Watch ADHD expert Dr. Steven Kurtz answer viewer-submitted questions on parenting ADHD kids during the summer months.

It started as hugging—a little too aggressively, and at the wrong times. Then pushing, pinching, hitting, biting. Audrey knew it was time to get help.

"Going through the process was difficult," said her father. "There were times when I literally had to put Annie over my shoulder and off we’d go to their time-out room. But it worked. I was very skeptical, but now I’m a firm believer that it's as important, if not more important, than the medication."

Kids with selective mutism sometimes stop speaking to someone who has been “safe” for them—even a sibling or parent. Seeing this as defiance could be damaging to your relationship, and his progress.

Most people think of ADHD as a condition that makes it hard for kids to pay attention in school. But untreated ADHD can have a profound, lifelong impact—on kids and everyone around them.

Kids need to separate, and the process of achieving independence can be messy. Here's how to know when irritability and defiance are more than growing pains.

Children's needs know no boundaries: A Jewish clinician finds hope in helping an Arab child learn to speak.

If your child talks up a storm at home but doesn’t say a word at school, she may have an anxiety disorder called selective mutism.

If everyone knows the rules—and the consequences—both parents and kids will be able to stay calm. And praise for good behavior is just as important as follow through on behavior you're trying to change.

Dr. Steven Kurtz on helping kids with selective mutism—kids who speak freely at home but are painfully silent at school.