My oldest DS9is a very anxious kid and we have decided, just before the transition to middle school to have him see a psychologist who does CBT and has a good reputation for working with gifted kids. The trigger was DS as saying things like "I have so many problems I do not want to live any more" and I a afraid of hurting myself on purpose like touching a hot plate."
CBT was recommended for us for a kid that was cognitively advanced. The therapist does use play, though, too. At this point, I have no idea what it is exactly they are doing and whether it is helping or he is is just in a good phase (he has crazy up and downs and we never really are able to tease things apart) but DS loves going and insurance covers it, so it's just the drive that is annoying, and we will keep going for a while.
The first irrational fear he had, before he was two, was balloons, later expanded to any large round object like globes. Also very loud machines like hand dryers in public toilets, kitchen mixers, vacuums etc. Before he turned three, he started being afreiad of death. We have gone through to dogs, hippopotamuses (long story), natural disasters, irrational fears of what might happen if he can't find his science worksheet...there is always something new.
A great tip I got from a another parent of a gifted child, similar to what aeh suggested a therapist might do, was saying, forcefully, that it was not his job to worry about most of this stuff but mine. As in, you are not even allowed to get married before you are 18, so you are not allowed to panic now at the age of four whether you are ever going to find a wife. Somehow, it helped.
Last edited by Tigerle; 05/22/16 12:57 PM.
