Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Twice Exceptional strange behaviors..

Hi,
i just joined this forum. I need some help/advice
or just anyone's thoughts on a problem that we are having.
OK.. i will start from very beginning..
We have twin girls, they are 11. One is in gifted program through public schools, another is in regular class.
My gifted girl was having some issues lately.
At least she started talking about this lately
(possibly was masking this for a while).
She is very sensitive and imaginative person.
So.. she is saying that she is having some weired visions about people.. like legs chopped off or other scary things. What she is more concern and afraid that she is not "normal". She is usually pretty paranoid about health ..."is everything ok with me?".. is very frequent question.
She knows a lot (probably more that she can comprehent).
She is a great student, but in social situations
is not doing well. usually she will stay with younger kids (she is short) and maybe because she is not well socially advanced being 11 year old.
She is just not being herself lately. Do not know what triggered this, but she looks depressed, lost a lot of interests in food (she likes food)
and other things.
My next step is to go a talk to her pediatrician first (without the girl)
Anyone.. any other suggestions, experiences ???
thanks

Hi Goldopg,
Welcome. My younger brothers are fraternal twins - they were a pleasure to watch growning up. I'm curious - are you're girls identical or fraternal? Are there other children in the family also?

Please say more about the gifted program in your daughter's school. Is it self contained or a pull out program - if so, for how many hours a week.

What kinds of testing have been done on your daughters? Is your daughter "nicely gifted, highly gifted, wildly gifted or terrifyingly gifted? (My terminology) Would you guess that you are accurate in your perception, or prone to underestimationg/overestimating? Do you have other family memebers who are identified as gifted? What was your childhood like around this issue?

How worried are you? Does your daughter "mention" suicide? Does she have friends at school? Outside of school? Do the other kids pick on her "enough" for it to be a problem?

What do your girls do in the summer? Are they close to each other? Competitive? Polar opposites?

What do other family members think? I hate it when, as a mom, I'm the first adult to "pick up" on a problem that no ones else even notices - but I guess that goes along with the job description.

Trinity - ((encouraging smile))

Hi Trinity,
i just checked that site, thanks for the reply. I will answer all of you questions later today.

thanks

Girls are fraternal twins, and we also have an older daughter, who is already on her own.
My twin girls are very different, one is very grounded, organized and have good, "normal" abilities.
Another (one in gifted program), is disorganized, have frequent mood changes and very demanding. She would never accept "no"
for an answer. On another hand she is loving, funny and still loves her staffed animals.
About gifted program.. i do not have an experience with other programs, so i do not know what to say. Seems like focus is on an enhanced math curriculum mostly.
math olympiads are frequent activities. She is pretty much A student all around. How gifted is my girl.. need to test her IQ.. do not know now.. Seems like
pretty gifted to me. I have a brother who is very gifted (got his Ph.D. in early 20 th), so i kind of know what to expect.
Still.. i am worried that my girl is getting paranoid with some thoughts that she is having. She looks happy one moment, and than i can see that she is thinking about other, disturbing her things.
She did mention ones that she doesn't understand why people commit suicide. She loves TV. She gets a lot of information from it. Now I am thinking that she is getting more that she can comprehend.

Hi Goldopg,
I just joined this forum this morning and the first post I read was yours, and it kind of jumped out at me. Your daughter sounds as if she may have Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. My 13 year old has had this most of her life, though it is well under control these days. It's a very treatable condition, but horribly miserable for the sufferer. My daughter had "bad thoughts" of dead bodies and such for years, and has had obsessive worries about her health her whole life. The repetitive worrying about "am I ok?" sounds like classic OCD. I am not trying to freak you out, but thought you might want to ask your pediatrician's opinion. Generally, with OCD, kids hide 95% of what they are worrying about, and what you see is only the very tip of the iceberg (the other stuff is so weird or embarrassing that they don't want to admit to it - they are usually so worried that they are crazy). I'm a moderator of an ocdandparenting group on Yahoogroups.com - it's a great source for more info and advice.
Take care!

Hello Goldopg,

I agree with Emily, it sounds like your daughter needs to get in to see a therapist, being one myself I encourage you to make an appointment with your pediatrician and ask for a referral to a child psychiatrist. The earlier her symptoms are handled the better her outcome will be. Way to pick up on your mommy instincts.

Hello Emily and Kim,
thanks for the advice.. I went and talked to
girls pediatrician yesterday.
yes, he did recommended a good doctor/counselor.
I will make an appointment asap.

talk to you soon