Oh say can you see! The end of summer is already in sight…crazy.
Our concept this month is a doozie. For those of you who are not yet familiar with Dabrowski’s Overexcitabilities, you are about to be introduced.
Kasimierz Dabrowski, a Polish psychiatrist, developed the concept of “overexcitabilities”, referring to a person’s heightened response to stimuli and can occur in up to five areas: intellectual, imaginational, emotional, sensual, and psychomotor. Some experience this in all areas, others in maybe just one or two.
What this means, is that our children very often experience things in concentrated doses. They are easily agitated or overstimulated. They cry, throw fits, and have a hard time working things out with other children.
There are two very important things to remember here. The first is that it is not necessarily a bad thing to experience these “overexcitabilities”. A good experience will be felt that much more deeply. They may be more sensitive and aware of other’s feelings. Depth of emotion can also lead to amazing artistic creations.
The second is a tool that I have found particularly helpful in dealing with these overexcitabilities. The problems can’t really be dealth with when they are in the middle of experiencing them. If your child angers easily, you need to talk to him/her when calm. Teach them what to do when their minds are able to process it, not when their emotions have taken over their logic. In addition, you may want to create a “code word” that you can say when you see they are not doing well at all. This word can act as a trigger to get through their emotions to their logic. It is intended to remind them of what they should do when they become overexcited. Ours is a silly word to add the element of humor that may help dispel the situation as well.
For more information on this, read through pages 22-25 in A Parent’s Guide to Gifted Children
Next month’s topic: How to start the new school year off right!