About us

“Intellectual giftedness” sure sounds like a wonderful thing, doesn’t it? It certainly can be, but it can also feel more like a curse than a gift. For those who are gifted but don’t understand what this means…who don’t know why they tend to react more strongly to various stimuli, or more generally why they often struggle to fit into conventional educational, social, and workplace systems…life can be very difficult. In many cases, extremely so.

Basically, what it means is that in addition to being highly intelligent, greater interconnectivity between different areas of the brain translates into enhanced cognitive ability, greater sensory awareness, and heightened intensity. Nothing mystical, nothing supernatural…just an enhanced “wiring” that leads to qualitative differences in how gifted people experience, learn, and think. In other words, being gifted certainly doesn’t mean that you’re “broken” in any way. But the stress of a lifetime spent trying to fit in, without understanding why it’s so difficult, can wear a person down.

This is where many gifted people begin to experience real problems.

Very few mental health professionals are specifically trained in this area. As a result, misdiagnosis is not uncommon, with some of the more frequent labels being ADD, ADHD, Bipolar Disorder, and Depression (of course, a gifted person may also have one or more of these conditions). When misunderstood, this can lead to inappropriate treatment, which in some cases interferes with healthy development, and in others causes psychological harm.

Gifted people exist in virtually all walks of life. They may be leading major corporations or living on the streets…they are university professors and high school dropouts. No two paths are the same. What they do share is a mind that is meaningfully different from the norm, along with a set of challenges that tend to show up across family, social, educational, relationship, and career contexts. In simple terms, they often find themselves thinking beyond the boundaries of the discussion or situation at hand, regardless of context.

Some common traits:

Intuitive empathy…a strong ability to sense and relate to others’ feelings
Strong moral and ethical orientation…often accompanied by a low tolerance for dishonesty or injustice
Introversion (not all, but many)
A need to serve a greater purpose
Perfectionism…high personal standards, often paired with self-doubt (“imposter syndrome”)
Heightened sensitivities…difficulty with prolonged exposure to chaotic environments, competing sounds, or visually intense settings
Easily bored by routine or small talk; energized by meaningful or intellectually engaging interaction
Frustration when others do not see or acknowledge factors that feel clearly relevant
Insatiable curiosity…a need to understand how things connect at a deeper level
A strong connection to surroundings, particularly in nature

Whether you have been identified as gifted or not, if you relate strongly to much of the above, I would encourage you to explore connecting with others like you. If you haven’t already experienced this, you may find the gifted community to be among the most warm, supportive, and interesting groups you’ll encounter.