Emotional Challenges for Gifted Children

• Being brighter than all your friends is not easy. Many psychological and emotional issues arise; fortunately most of them can be dealt with by the parents, especially with intervention by skilled child therapists. While many problems are of concern to parents of gifted children, three of the most prominent are loneliness, Asperger's, and hyperactivity...
• Loneliness and the Gifted Child A Different Drummer
• Most gifted children manage to fit in fairly well with their peers. They can learn the same games, tell the same jokes, and eat the same peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. But, for the most part, they know that there are whole parts of themselves that their friends don't understand. Berndt, Kaiser and others have explored this, especially in teens. Research has shown that gifted children are more than twice as introverted as their peers. While involvement in enrichment and gifted and talented programs is one answer, sometimes a child may need some counselling to get on track. Family therapy is often a component of such an intervention, and rightly so, since a gifted child challenges the whole family. Also, when a child is identified as gifted it is likely that others in the family are comparably bright. And what about a bright kid that is into everything?.....
• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Gifted Kids
• Many gifted children who have not yet been identified as gifted, end up referred to a psychologist for evalaution of an Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder(ADHD). If Leonardo Davinci were in a classroom today, chances are good he would have been placed on Ritalin. While some gifted children also may have restlessness, rebelliousness, and impulsivity, is it really that they are more intense, spirited, persistent and inquisitive? A careful differential look is not necessarily something that your average pediatrician or child psychologist is trained to deal with. When your gifted child is labelled as possibly ADHD, then it is important to get an expert consultation.
• Asperger's Syndrome and Gifted Children
• Relentlessness and the Need for Sameness One fairly common psychological problem that often occurs with Giftedness is Asperger's Syndrome. Asperger's children have some of the characteristics of autism, most noticable a preoccupation with sameness, and repetitive play. However, frequently Asperger's children are intelligent and insightful. While they are often socially awkward, they are not disconnected in the way autistic children are. If your child has Asperger's as well as giftedness, you will probably need support from a child psychologist. These children can be delightful but are indeed a handful, and a lot of work.

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