Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy is a "gut feeling" good enough?

Depends on who you mean by "the specialists."

DW and I have certainly consumed a TON of expert, scientifically-guided literature on the nature of children like our DD. It's been very helpful for understanding, and also for getting in front of particular issues, by being able to recognize them early. So in that sense, yes, we trust the specialists.

We're also open to listening to qualified individuals who have met and evaluated our DD, with the caveat that they're only seeing a small glimpse of her, so we're interested in anything they say which rings true with our experience with her, and challenge anything they say which we find contradictory.

When "the specialists," are the staff of DD's school, that's where our credentials trump theirs. Their bachelor's and master's degrees in education fields are outranked by our doctorates in DD-ology.

ETA: To answer the question of the thread title, though, we never consider "gut feeling" alone to be enough. It's usually a good indicator that we've noticed something wrong subconsciously, and we need to start exploring it. Eventually, we need to be able to translate that feeling into genuine concerns.