I have made a discovery! In an effort to help one of my children with emotional issues, I came upon Genius Coaching here in the Phoenix area. Their approach is positive, and addresses many aspects of my child–not just the emotional side. As per my research of gifted children, I knew both of these things to be extremely important.

I am not only allowed to sit in with my child during our coaching sessions, but encouraged to do so. Together we talk very honestly, yet purposefully in a positive way. Each characteristic, such as being strong-willed, is treated as good thing, and my child learns that he is not being “fixed”, just educated how best to use the traits he naturally has.

Many gifted children suffer from depression–for many reasons. Some depression comes from environmental training, but much comes from how his/her brain is wired. Patterns of thought create pathways in our brains, and are widened with use. If your child is wired for negative thinking, those pathways will widen as they are used and become much harder to ignore or deviate from. It will take training to change directions. One of my favorite techniques is using the word “no” positively. Confusing? The idea goes like this: As negative self-talk begins (or comes from an outside source like children at school or negative adults), have your child say internally or outloud, “No. I am not stupid. I am capable and very good at this. I have already learned this about myself.” Have them say it as many times as they need to. The word “no” stops the negative thought, and allows for a change of direction, much as a stop sign in the road does.

Because our physiology greatly impacts our emotions, it is very important to pay attention to our bodies. Be aware of what we eat, and make sure we get a certain amount of movement each day. Watch your child to see how they react to activity. Does it help them be happier throughout the day? Are they more content? The more sensitive your child is to needing activity, the more critical it is that they do so. It is also essential that both the right and left sides of the brain are engaged together. Many children are disconnected, and are off balance emotionally because of it. There are very simple ways to help the two sides of the brain reconnect, and I encourage you to do research to understand what those ways are.

It is an amazing process as a parent to break your own negative chain of thoughts regarding your child. The power that comes from children thinking positively of themselves is a significant thing, and is multiplied exponentially when a parent begins to do so on their child’s behalf as well. Good luck on your endeavors to do so!

Debbie Niu
HSG President