I have heard of several kids with selective mutism; all of them were gifted. I believe it can be outgrown without any intervention. My daughter has a friend who had this issue, and she (at age 9) speaks little in a big group but is very chatty with 1-3 friends.
I was a very quiet kid in many circumstances when I was small, and I can remember people saying, "Oh she's shy!" Once I burst out with, "I'm not shy, I'm just quiet!" To me, there was a world of difference between the two terms.
Gifted kids can have all types of personalities, but they all seem to be INTENSE.
welcome!
