Paula Prober's Blog, page 26

Parents of Gifted Children — Who Needs the Counseling?

Parents come to me worried about their gifted kids. Anxiety, existential depression, trouble in school, sensitivities, loneliness, empathy, perfectionism, social responsibility. I describe the typical social-emotional traits of gifted children and the challenges they often experience. We strategize. This information … Continue reading →

Advice for Gifted Adults Living in a Not-So-Gifted World

Let’s say that you understand that you are gifted. That you are super smart, highly sensitive, emotional, and empathetic. That you have a rainforest mind. That you think deeply, analyze everything, love learning, and seek justice. You are even starting … Continue reading →

Realizing That You Are Gifted — Will It Make a Difference?

Realizing that you are gifted. That you are of the rainforest-minded clan. Explains a lot. It explains why you are so darned sensitive. So darned empathetic.  You see, your feelings and perceptions are as vast as your intellect. You are … Continue reading →

A Short Guide to the Complicated Life of Gifted Adolescents or Young Adults

Maybe you wonder how you can be so smart and so dumb at the same time. Perhaps you feel like too much and not enough.  Maybe you are terrified of both failure and success. Perhaps you love learning but are … Continue reading →

Gifted and Resilient — When You Grow Up With Abuse or Neglect

As a psychotherapist, I know trauma. Every day I counsel dear rainforest-minded (RFM) souls who were seriously traumatized by their parents.  What is remarkable is that I have found, consistently, that they have not become abusive, personality disordered, or even … Continue reading →

When Perfectionism, Anxiety, Empathy, and Expectations Collide — Gifted in Portugal

Some thoughts from Ricardo of Portugal: “All my life I was driven, motivated, sensitive, intense, and hyperactive. I always cried easily with  music, a memory, a movie or a person or animal suffering. I have always searched for beauty in … Continue reading →

What Do Gifted Teens Say About Their Struggles?

The gifted adolescents that I have known grapple with existential depression, anxiety, loneliness, perfectionism, sensitivities, empathy, misdiagnoses, bullying, and serious frustrations with the school system. Here is “one” teen’s voice synthesized from the many that I have met over the … Continue reading →

Tips for Aging Well When You Have a Rainforest Mind (And Overexcitable Hair)

I am in my sixties. That sounds OLD to me. AARP. Medicare. Senior discounts. Golf. Geezerville. But I don’t feel OLD. In fact, other than some possible hidden creeping potential decrepitude (!), I think 60-something is kind of fine. Pretty … Continue reading →

Why Do Gifted Adults Often Deny They Are Gifted?

There are many reasons why you might not believe that you are gifted. Here is what Virginia has to say about it. Does she sound like you? First of all, just so you know, I’m not gifted. I don’t even … Continue reading →

Loving the Wounded Gifted Child Within

When you were a little tyke, you probably had passions, curiosities, quirks, and quests. You may have corrected the adults who didn’t know the difference between crimson and red. You may have wondered why the other kids wanted to be … Continue reading →