Is there any other aspect of identity which we would routinely suggest should be hidden, not just from others, but from the self?
I agree. People treat you strangely if you acknowledge giftedness. Over the past year, I participated in several gt parent seminars put on by our school district. Presumably, many parents in the room were at least MG. When I openly acknowledged being a gifted adult, people treated me like I was at a stereotypical 12-step program and I had acknowledged an addiction for the first time. People came up to me and told me how proud they were that I could acknowledge my giftedness and thanked me for being open. Really?!
My parents recognized that I was gifted before kindergarten and my grade school suggested grade acceleration multiple times. I have scored in the 99th percentile on almost every standardized test I have ever taken and recognize myself in much of the reading I have done on giftedness. Why is it strange for me to acknowledge this as part of myself? I see it as a fact like I have brown eyes. It is not something that I ponder, it just is. It would take a lot more energy to deny it.
