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Why do you think Effy had selective mutism?
What makes me think that’s her diagnosis or why do I think she developed it?
The reason I think it’s her diagnosis is because the DSM-V criteria for selective mutism is:
- Consistent failure to speak in specific social situations (in which there is an expectation for speaking, e.g., at school) despite speaking in other situations.
- The disturbance interferes with educational or occupational achievement or with social communication.
- The duration of the disturbance is at least 1 month (not limited to the first month of school).
- The failure to speak is not due to a lack of knowledge of the spoken language required in the social situation.
That fits Effy. She consistently fails to speak in most social situations, but does occasionally talk to Tony, her failure to speak means that she has no friends, she seems to have been mute for at least five or six years by the start of gen 1 (judging by her series 4 Unseen Skins episode), she understands and can speak English, and (perhaps most practically) there’s no other diagnosis that fits her situation better.
My guess is that her selective mutism happened gradually as a result of her parents yelling at her and trying to provoke her to react to them. Jim in particular has a very explosive way of interacting with Tony and Effy. I think it makes sense that in that context, the only power she could have is by not engaging. If Jim can’t get a reaction out of her, then all of a sudden the power is hers instead of his.
