#Adhd and gifted kid burnout full

This exacerbates parents’ stress, as they are aware that their child’s emotional and educational needs are not being met.

#Adhd and gifted kid burnout full

However, if neither the giftedness nor the associated disorder is identified, then the child cannot benefit from interventions for either of their exceptionalities, which are necessary for them to develop to their full potential. Finally, it is also possible that the giftedness and the attention disorder hide each other, called the masking effect. Conversely, the attention disorder may be so strong that the child underperforms, masking their giftedness. The giftedness may be so strong that the child performs well, masking the difficulty created by the ADHD. Identifying a twice-exceptional child is all the more difficult since the condition manifests itself in different ways for each child. They must have it recognized as equally valid as other vulnerabilities and must insist that an intervention plan to meet their child’s needs be drawn up during their child’s assessment, then put in place. As a result, it is not uncommon for these parents to be perceived as perfectionist, demanding and challenging.įor example, the lack of knowledge about twice-exceptional children in some primary and secondary schools means that many parents must inform the teaching staff about their child’s condition. As a result, parents of these exceptional but vulnerable children need to advocate for their child’s special needs in the school, community and even political spheres. Indeed, it may be difficult to conceive that a gifted child could also, for example, have learning difficulties. Their parents face prejudice from teachers, doctors and family. Gifted and ADHD children experience both realities simultaneously. Yet parents of gifted and ADHD children experience both of these realities simultaneously, which often means facing prejudice from teachers, doctors and family. Parents of children with attention deficit disorder find that their child’s rate of development may be below average. Parents of gifted children often find their child’s early development sets them apart from their peers. In addition, their stress affects the social, emotional and behavioural development of their child.Ĭhildren on individual education plans: What parents need to know, and 4 questions they should ask Parents are at greater risk of developing physical and psychological health problems, such as depression and anxiety, and they generally experience more marital conflict. It is a real burden for the parents of gifted and vulnerable children. This stress is explained by the gap between the perception of parental expectations and the resources available to them. (Shutterstock) Intense parental stressĪlthough the reality of twice-exceptional children is unknown to the general public and even to health professionals, the daily stress that parents of these children experience in their role is entirely overlooked. We are interested in the experience of these parents and, more specifically, in the relationship between their stress levels and their sense of how effective they are as parents. Juliette is a first-year doctoral student in psychology at the University of Sherbrooke working Mathieu’s laboratory. These parents face many challenges on a daily basis, which exacerbate parental stress. Parents have to deal with their child’s difficulties in adjusting, and psychological, social and behavioural problems that may come with being twice exceptional. Their parents, however, know that something needs to be done. The number of twice-exceptional children in Québec is estimated to be between 20,000 and 30,000, but their exact number is unknown because it is difficult to identify them. While giftedness is a strength, being twice exceptional creates a vulnerability for a child. With the new school year underway, some parents will have a harder time than others because of a little known, but very real phenomenon: their child is “ twice exceptional.” These children have both the potential for high achievement (“gifted”) and a one or more disabilities, such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or generalized anxiety.