Carly’s silent story

Carly’s a 44-year-old mum from Scotland, living in Glasgow with her husband Johnny and their five-year-old daughter, Emily. It was her daughter’s experiences that inspired Carly to sign up for The Big Silence.  

When Emily was two, the family began to suspect that she might have autism, and she was referred for speech and language therapy. Carly told us that “it was a total gamechanger. We didn’t realise until then [that] our daughter really responds to photographs, pictures, visual displays, and being able to communicate with her when we were struggling before, it was like opening a door.” 

Carly took on The Big Silence “because the speech and language side of my daughter’s life is humungous. So being able to bring awareness to that and to have a week’s experience of what it’s like myself was quite the eyeopener – and it was actually good fun.” 

Emily enjoyed it, too; “she was coming up and blowing raspberries at me and running away. And then she’s like, Mummy, say chocolate,” trying to get her mum to talk. She loved The Big Silence cue cards we sent Carly: “These have been so much fun, we still use them. … [Emily] sat down in my lap and she was reading out all the cards … and we were making a game out of it.” And the little whiteboard we sent came in handy, as well, when the doorbell rang! 

But the day wasn’t without its challenges. Ordering an iced coffee was tricky, and Carly told us “The thing I really struggled with is being polite to people. I was purposely going out of my way to avoid having to be near people because I’m a big stickler for manners.”  

Her husband, Johnny, found it difficult, too: “I was really shocked at his response. I thought he would think, this is great, you know, I can give you all the cheek all day and you can’t do nothing about it. [But] he found it really sad. He found it really unnerving.” In the evening, once Emily had gone to bed, it felt strange. Carly wanted to tell her husband about her day, but she couldn’t.  

Carly raised more than £300 and she’s so grateful to everyone who supported her. It meant a lot for people to take “the time to read my page and to sponsor me and take on board the challenges our little girl faces and the challenges that people face with us.” 

The big thing that Carly would like to see change for children with speech and language challenges is for “people to be a wee bit more understanding. … I think if people could just have a bit more of an open mind as to why there’s a communication barrier there, it’s not out of ignorance or they’ve not been brought up properly, … some people just don’t have the words.” 

Before taking on the challenge, Carly thought “oh, I’m not going to talk for 24 hours, that’s a doddle. And it wasn’t. It was a roller coaster, to put it politely.” But she’d still be up for doing it again, knowing that it’s all for a good cause. In fact, she’s already thinking about what she’ll do differently: “I would love to challenge myself a bit more next time. Go out and do things rather than get a coffee and hide back home.”  

We’re so grateful to Carly and everyone who has taken on The Big Silence. Together, they have raised thousands of pounds for children with speech and language challenges. What’s more, they’ve opened people’s eyes to the barriers children face every day – and shown how difficult it can be to find your voice in a world that’s set up for talking.   

Like Carly, we’re already looking forward to The Big Silence 2026. But you don’t have to wait that long to make a difference for children who struggle with talking and understanding words! There are so many ways to get involved. Your fundraising journey starts here.