"Blurred Lines" is a perfect SYMBOL for where we are @ re: some "Developmental Disabilities," "Mental Illnesses" & maybe even some examples of "Giftedness"
The "Blurred Lines" between Some developmental Disabilities & Mental Illnesses
[& "Some Ideas" about giftedness]
Some additional context -- before we begin
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Val's Take
For some people, like myself, our society is pretty much a NIGHTMARE. The CLUSTER of SKILLS that typically go together don't match me. I'm either so bored I'm CLINICALLY DEPRESSED or so INCREDIBLY ANXIOUS because I don't have the abilities to meet the expectations -- especially when it comes to organizational abilities. Nobody thought I had a DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITY growing up -- Hey, I was Valedictorian of my H.S. class & graduated Top 10 Seniors & Phi Beta Kappa @ a state university. Well, for over 20 years I had done very well compensating for various issues -- and they really didn't have the tell-tale ADHD spikiness [& Lord knows I worked my butt off trying to mask various issues including intense emotionality, disorganization, and psychomotor overexcitability in my hands.] 
Ultimately, I would be greatly tested by my environment. I have not spent 40 years in the wilderness -- BUT close.
A lot of these disorders -- mental illness and developmental disability are much more overlapped than we have previously realized. Further, it can be really hard for us to recognize that someone with a HIGH IQ is struggling with a DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITY. All of this has A LOT OF IMPLICATIONS including PUBLIC POLICY IMPLICATIONS. |
NIH-funded researchers discovered that people with disorders traditionally thought to be distinct -- autism, ADHD, bipolar disorder, major depression and schizophrenia ----share common genes.
www.seng.org
According to SENG, INTENSITY and Over-Excitabilities -- Emotional, Intellectual, Psychomotor, Imaginational, etc. --- are the hallmarks of giftedness. Well guess what -- it is looking more & more like those INTENSITIES & Over-Excitabilities may have negative health consequences for some people. |
Some Mental Illness: Genes x Environment x Age
 Pitzer College -- Claremont, California
Hyper Brain, Hyper Body: The Trouble With High IQ
[Orchid: We think this probably applies to most people with "Overexcitabilities" &/or different types of "giftedness" --probably not just High IQ]
A new study in the journal Intelligence reports that highly intelligent people have a significantly increased risk of suffering from a variety of psychological and physiological disorders. Lead author of the study, Ruth Karpinski, says the findings have implications both for the study of intelligence and for psychoneuroimmunology, which examines how stress responses to the environment influence communication between the brain and immune system. “Our findings are relevant because a significant portion of these individuals are suffering on a daily basis as a result of their unique emotional and physical overexcitabilities. It is important for the scientific community to examine high IQ as being front and center within the system of mechanisms that may be at play in these dysregulations,” she says. Karpinski and her colleagues developed a hyper brain / hyper body theory of integration. It posits that individuals with high cognitive ability react with an overexcitable emotional and behavioral response to their environment. Due in part to this increased awareness of their surroundings, people with a high IQ then tend to experience an overexcitable, hyperreactive central nervous system. https://neurosciencenews.com/iq-hyper-brain-body-7720/ |
What are the developmental & mental health ramifications of being "gifted?"
Orchid: We often have a very simplistic notion of "good" & "bad." We would submit it MAY NOT be uncommon for giftedness & developmental disability/mental illness to go together. Further, perceived "Giftedness" MAY BE -- the brain's attempt to compensate for deficits. Intense Emotionality ironically can actually fuel reasoning that could be used to overcome deficits. But that Hyper Emotionality & Intellectual activity MAY actually damage the Immune System & ultimately the Brain. Additionally -- if you have autism, ADHD, depression, bipolar or schizophrenia --- according to NIMH you likely already have common genes that share risk gene pathways for the immune system and epigenetic changes. Of course, there are SO MANY FACTORS and SO MANY FACTORS playing on any one Individual. We don't necessarily think this is THE ANSWER -- BUT we do think this possible interplay bears additional investigation. |
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Dr. Peters uses a "hypothetical" of a young student who has high logic and reasoning abilities, and low emotional regulation.
Most attorneys do have high logic and reasoning abilities, and a surprising large percentage have low emotional regulation. Many if not most defendants have low emotional regulation. Some Jailhouse Attorneys have logic and reasoning abilities comparable to some attorneys. |
Asynchronous Development In Gifted Children-- AND The Need for ACCOMMODATIONS That's right -- some gifted kids and adults need ACCOMMODATIONS. Of course, the point is that PEOPLE come in unusual packages & PEOPLE need ACCOMMODATIONS. [Warning: This video does use the R-word] University of Michigan: Cells of people with Bipolar Disorder are developmentally different than the cells of people without Bipolar Disorder. |