We're really struggling right now, as DS16 has had a slew of issues. I don't know how to separate any of this out anymore - what's gifted kid stuff, what's potentially something 'more' (he likely has ADHD, but is also being treated for Lyme and Bartonella, both of which could result in the brain fog and difficulty with paying attention; its quite possible he's somewhere on the spectrum, etc). He's always been pretty quirky, and we're really seeing how badly his social skills are lagging... He truly doesn't have any real friends, which is heartbreaking. He's lonely and isolated, and it is not just from covid (although I'm quite sure that made things worse). He's just started seeing a therapist, has a great medical doc, and we're committed to doing whatever we can to get him the help he needs. If we can keep him from breaking in the meantime.

I'm actually here to ask advice about a therapist for *me*. Those here who see someone themselves, how important/useful is it to find someone who has a knowledge of gifted kids? Given all the things (cuz of course I have my own stuff too...), I don't know if it really matters, but it might help to provide insight and context, especially with the guilt over the 'I should have dones' from when the kids were younger (DYS14 is incredibly intense, to put it mildly; but she's much more typical in almost every way, and has lots of friends). And who can at least understand how some of DS's issues might be from the neurodiversity we know he has vs another we speculate about... (and there could be many, from PANS to ASD or ADHD, etc.)