Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy how to find a counselor who understands giftedness

There HAS to be a counselor in this country that understands profoundly gifted teen boys. How do I find that perfect person?? I am looking for professional help guiding my sons through existential depression issues that come and go, through figuring out how to handle their intensities in real-life situations as the years go by. It could all be through skype/email, so geographic location doesn't matter. I appreciate any leads or suggestions anyone has for finding help. My 15-year-old, especially, is struggling sporadically with depression to the point that he shuts down and scares the school administrators. It is only happening once every couple of months, but he deserves help...

Welcome!

Hoagies Gifted Education Page is often a good starting point:
Psychologists, Professionals

The SENG website (Supporting Emotional Needs of the Gifted) is also a good resource. You may be interested in this article: Tips for Selecting the Right Counselor or Therapist For Your Gifted Child, by James T. Webb, Sept 14, 2011

Ha ha. I've wondered this a lot the last few years. Hoagies doesn't list anyone near me (skype/email wouldn't be a good fit for us right now). And lots of psychologists and neuropsychs have *told* me that they have lots of experience with gifted children, only to see test results from ds and go slack-jawed telling me they've never *seen* scores that high... but I'm online and I've done enough research to know that these scores aren't that amazing (not bashing my kid - I love him and he has great strengths!! - just being honest that he's pretty far from qualifying for dys, for example). So when someone starts foaming at the mouth because his scores are the best they've ever seen, I have to wonder how much experience they really have with gifted kids... We're on our sixth psych/neuropsych so far, and I *think* she's a good fit, and her areas of research include giftedness, but we've had a few doozies in the past that just left me scratching my head...

Shea - if you find anyone, will you pass the info along? I have a similar kid - doing well at the moment, but I do think understanding giftedness would be helpful when he does hit another existential crisis. We've had a similar call into the principals office to talk about depression... :-(