Interesting thread.
We moved a lot and I always associated any difficulty "fitting in" with being the new kid -- not with being gifted. Although the frequent moves were traumatic at the time, I credit them with making me more adaptable and strengthening my social skills. Like Annette, I am sure I "dumbed myself down" to a degree.
I taught myself to read before I was three and was an avid reader of anything and everything throughout childhood, including the cereal box. But I didn't take it upon myself to learn other things on my own. I was happy to just go above and beyond with the class assignments and was an obedient "A" student.
By my teens, I really got into theater and hung out with the theater kids in junior high and high school. The junior high years were the worst. That was the one time I was labeled as a "geek" and treated like an outcast, but even then I had one or two close friends (who were not gifted). In high school, I was generally socially accepted. I was voted "most likely to succeed" which translated to "smart kid that isn't despised" at my school. And I dated guys in college -- don't know why my parents let me get away with that, in retrospect.
I went to a challenging college and was surprised that classes seemed to come easier to me than to others. Later, I graduated at the top of my class in law school and eventually became a successful partner in a large law firm. After a dozen years, I tossed that career aside to become a stay-at-home mom. I sort of felt like there was nowhere else for me to go with the job and my "mom" job felt more important and fulfilling to me.
My DH was also gifted, but also athletic. He very much dumbed himself down, identified with the jocks, and still would rather throw a ball than engage in intellectual pursuits. Which makes it even more irritating when he beats me at Scrabble, but I digress...
Our DD is like my DH in that she enjoys sports and is not the bookworm that I was. For that reason, I don't fear her not fitting in so much as I worry about her dumbing herself down (and underestimating her own potential). So many potential pitfalls!
