Common Emotional Difficulties of Gifted Children

Gifted children experience a number of challenges and obstacles for healthy development, and it can be difficult to determine if they are using a healthy coping style to manage stress, anger, and other emotional states. Gifted children are often classified as 'highly sensitive persons' (HSP) and have different needs than their non-gifted peers. If you're a parent or guardian of a gifted child, here are the most common emotional difficulties they may experience, along with some tips on handling them appropriately:

Perfectionism.
Gifted children often demand perfectionism in daily life, and this can become difficult to manage in a household that doesn't necessarily adhere to such a strict system. Gifted children can become obsessed with details, and exhibit obsessive-compulsive traits at an early age.
Solution: Help them with learning perspective, and encourage them to make a mistake without feeling 'bad' about it. Over time, they can learn how to prioritize where perfectionism is required, and where it can take a backseat.

Excessive concern about doing the right thing.
Most gifted children have an overdeveloped sense of what is considered to be right and wrong; this is a wonderful trait for decision-making, but can also leave them paralyzed for making the 'right' decision in some circumstances.
Solution: Encourage your gifted child to consider at least three alternative ways or approaches to managing a problem to avoid the self-limiting perspective and help them reduce anxiety.

Questioning everything.
Gifted children are naturally curious, and tend to ask a lot of questions about almost everything that crosses their path. This insatiable curiosity is very valuable for their natural creativity, but can be a hindrance to a simple conversation.
Solution: Offer as many details as possible when you're trying to explain something, and just expect them to ask a lot of questions. Show them how their curiosity can help solve problems and channel it into a creative activity such as writing or painting.