Living with Intensity: Understanding the Sensitivity, Excitability, and Emotional Development of Gifted Children, Adolescents, and Adults

by Susan Daniels, Michael Piechowski

Overview

Gifted children and adults are often misunderstood. Their excitement is viewed as excessive, their high energy as hyperactivity, their persistence as nagging, their imagination as not paying attention, their passion as being disruptive, their strong emotions and sensitivity as immaturity, and their creativity and self-directedness as oppositional. This book describes these overexcitabilities, as well as strategies for dealing with children and adults who experience them. It also provides essential information on Dabrowski's Theory of Positive Disintegration. Learn practical methods for nurturing sensitivity, intensity, perfectionism, and much more.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780910707893
Publisher:	Gifted Unlimited
Publication date:	10/23/2009
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	320
Sales rank:	179,108
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Susan Daniels, Ph.D. is a professor, an author, a consultant, and an educational director of Summit Center, a psychoeducational center that specializes in the needs of gifted, creative, and twice-exceptional children. She has been a professional development specialist for over twenty years, regularly providing workshops and training on creativity, the social and emotional needs of gifted children, and visual learning and teaching. Susan is co-author of Raising Creative Kids and co-editor and co-author of Living with Intensity. Her latest book, Visual Teaching and Learning: An Essential Guide for Educators K-8 was released in August, 2018, and it is a comprehensive guide to visual learning strategies and activities for the 21st century classroom. Susan is co-founder and director of Camp Summit for the Gifted where she teaches creative arts with an emphasis on mixed media and self-expression. She enjoys working with mixed media and simple line drawings in her own visual journals. Susan lives in Berkeley, California.

Read an Excerpt

Because they can be so greatly stimulated, and because they perceive and process things differently, gifted children are often misunderstood. Their excitement is viewed as excessive, their high energy as hyperactivity, their persistence as nagging, their questioning as undermining authority, their imagination as not paying attention, their passion as being disruptive, their strong emotions and sensitivity as immaturity, their creativity and self-directedness as oppositional.

They stand out from the norm. But then, what is normal?

It is of course unfortunate that something exceptional, something that is outside the norm is often looked upon as being abnormal, and that "abnormal" usually means annoying or bad, whereas "normal" means mostly acceptable or good. We forget that these notions come from a statistical convention, the bell curve, which does not tell us what is good and what is bad.

In statistics what is average constitutes the norm. The norm has a defined range that includes the majority of cases. The average income is normal because that's what the majority of people earn, yet is it a good income? Many consider it insufficient, and therefore inadequate. It is an example of something that is normal and yet it is not quite good enough. What we value as good income is above the norm. A similar case can be made for intelligence. The majority of people are within the normal range of intelligence, but this is not sufficient for all situations or circumstances, for example average intelligence does not guarantee acceptance or success in graduate school. Statistical norms are a poor guide to what is good.

Psychology, inits origin, based its models on physics as an ideal. Had psychology chosen life science as its model-after all people are living beings-the concept of what is normal would not be the average, but rather what is well-functioning, that is, in good health. Optimal, in life sciences, is often quite different than statistically average or normal, yet optimal functioning is what we hope people will strive for. Such optimal functioning is a major thrust of this book.

Table of Contents

Foreword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi
Sal Mendaglio, Ph.D.
Part One. Kazimierz Dabrowski, Overexcitability, Giftedness,
and Developmental Potential . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Chapter 1. Embracing Intensity: Overexcitability, Sensitivity,
and the Developmental Potential of the Gifted
Susan Daniels, Ph.D., and Michael M. Piechowski, Ph.D. . . 3
Chapter 2. Dabrowski's Levels and the Process of Development
Susan Daniels, Ph.D., and Michael M. Piechowski, Ph.D. . . 19
Part Two. Understanding Intensity: Practical Applications for Parents, Teachers, and Counselors. . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Chapter 3. Nurturing the Sensitivity, Intensity, and
Developmental Potential of Young Gifted Children
Susan Daniels, Ph.D., and
Elizabeth Meckstroth, M.Ed., M.S.W. . . . . . . . . . 33
Chapter 4. Inner Awakening, Outward Journey:
The Intense Gifted Child in Adolescence
P. Susan Jackson, M.A., R.C.C., and
Vicky Frankfourth Moyle, M.A., L.P.C., L.M.H.C. . . 57
Chapter 5. The Emperor Has No Clothes:
Exquisite Perception, Stress, and the Gifted Child
Annemarie Roeper, Ed.D. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Chapter 6. Dabrowski's Theory: Possibilities and
Implications of Misdiagnosis, Missed Diagnosis,
and Dual Diagnosis in Gifted Individuals
Edward R. Amend, Psy.D. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Chapter 7. Integrating the Intense Experience: Counseling and Clinical Applications
P. Susan Jackson, M.A., R.C.C., and
Vicky Frankfourth Moyle, M.A., L.P.C., L.M.H.C. . . 105
Chapter 8. Overexcitability, Giftedness, and Family Dynamics
Susan Daniels, Ph.D. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
Chapter 9. Petunias, Perfectionism, and Level of Development
Linda Kreger Silverman, Ph.D. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Part Three. Still Gifted After All These Years-Lifespan
Intensity and Gifted Adults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
Chapter 10. Advantages and Challenges of Lifespan Intensity
Ellen D. Fiedler, Ph.D. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
Chapter 11. Annemarie Roeper: Nearly a Century with Giftedness
Michele Kane, Ed.D. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Chapter 12. Living One's Spirit Song: Transcendent
Experiences in Counseling Gifted Adults
Patricia Gatto-Walden, Ph.D. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
Chapter 13. What We May Be: What Dabrowski's Work
Can Do for Gifted Adults
Stephanie S. Tolan, M.A. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225
Part Four. Current Research and Future Directions . . . . . . . 237
Chapter 14. Building Firm Foundations: Research and Assessments
R. Frank Falk, Ph.D., andNancy B.Miller, Ph.D. . . . . . 239
Chapter 15. Under Construction: Continued Applications of Dabrowski's Theory of Positive Disintegration with the Gifted
Susan Daniels, Ph.D. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261
Appendix A. Overexcitability Questionnaire - Short Form
(OEQ Short Form). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
Living with Intensity
Appendix B. Overexcitability Questionnaire - Revised
(OEQ-REV) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271
Author Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287
Topic Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291
About the Authors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299

What People are Saying About This

Barbara Jackson Gilman

"Living with Intensity is a can't put it down exploration of the multi-faceted sensitivities/intensities of gifted children and adults, which fuel their personal growth--if they are NOT misunderstood. It will assist all parents, teachers, and clinicians to understand and nurture the complex combination of intellectual advancement and overexcitabilities gifted individuals present, and avoid tragic misperceptions and misdiagnoses."--(Barbara Jackson Gilman, M.S., Associate Director of the Gifted Development Center, Denver, CO)

Miraca U.M. Gross

"A detailed and insightful perspective on intensity throughout the lifespan. The section on adolescence should be compulsory reading for parents, teachers and counselors."--(Miraca U.M. Gross, Professor, Director: Gifted Education Research, Resource and Information Centre (GERRIC), The University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia)

Kendra Kett

"This book is a lifesaver for the gifted population...it presents a clear and concise overview of their inner and outer worlds, how they think and process, how they can and cannot express themselves, what is needed in their environments in order for them to thrive and offer up their unique and needed contributions to the world...I couldn't put it down because of the affirming recognition I felt in this book...the book offers enormous breakthroughs for anyone in this category who may have been living in the shadows of constant criticisms or living on the fringe for their 'differentness.'"--(Kendra Kett, Author of The Pinwheel Girl Takes Flight)

Susan Berry

"Living with Intensity provides something for everyone who lives or works with gifted children and adults. With chapters devoted to clinical work with the gifted, family dynamics, issues affecting specifically adults who are gifted, and research studies and applications, Daniels and Piechowski have provided a noteworthy and even essential contribution to the field of giftedness."--(Dr. Susan Berry, Psychologist who works with gifted children and their families, Glastonbury, CT)

Steven I. Pfeiffer

"A valuable resource for anyone working or living with a person who is gifted. Dabrowski's concepts of overexcitabilities and positive disintegration are helpful in understanding what might otherwise seem like inexplicable behaviors among some gifted children and adults. Living with Intensity, an apt title, provides practical insights to guide educators, psychologists, and parents."--(Steven I. Pfeiffer, Ph.D., ABPP, Professor and Director of Clinical Training, The Florida State University)

Editorial Reviews

"Dabrowski's concepts of overexcitabilities and positive disintegration are helpful in understanding what might otherwise seem like inexplicable behaviors among some gifted children and adults." - Steven I. Pfeiffer, PhD, ABPP, Professor and Director of Clinical Training, The Florida State University
"A detailed and insightful perspective on intensity throughout the lifespan. The section on adolescence should be compulsory reading for parents, teachers and counselors." - Professor Miraca U.M. Gross, Director: Gifted Education Research, Resource and Information Centre (GERRIC), The University of New South Wales
"... a wonderful exploration of the multi-faceted sensitivities/intensities of gifted children and adults.... It will assist parents, teachers, and clinicians to understand and nurture the complex combination of intellectual advancement and overexcitabilities ... and avoid tragic misperceptions and misdiagnoses." - Barbara Jackson Gilman, M.S.,Associate Director of Gifted Development Center, Author of Academic Advocacy for Gifted Children
"This book is an ideal companion to Dabrowski's Theory of Positive Disintegration (2008). ... some nice examples of working with (not against, or trying to fix) intensity." - Leslie Forstadt, Ph.D., in Roeper Review
"[A] great addition to a "gifted" library." - Christine Fonseca, author of Emotional Intensity in Gifted Students and 101 Success Secrets for Gifted Kids
"On the topic of emotional intensity and sensitivity... Living with Intensity [will] be helpful to you in terms of offering concrete strategies to use." - Center for Talent Development Director, Paula Olszewski-Kubilius
"Living With Intensity has served as the guiding tome for our work with gifted children at our K-8 school. It has framed for our faculty the central paradigm of our work- beginning with the rich inner life of the gifted child and building powerful learning opportunities and programming that engages their deep, natural interest in the world from there. For educators and parents working with our complex and brilliant children, there may not be a single work as important as Living With Intensity." - Eric Robertson, Ed.S, Head of School, Mackintosh Academy, Pamela Andreas Campus

From the Publisher