Narcissism and the World

Climate Psychology, degrowth, Gifted Therapy, Giftedness, Healing, Narcissism1 Comment

At the core of structural personality disordering is a rigid coping strategy which was very functional for restrictive developmental environments, but which later in life causes all kinds of trouble for the person in contexts which don’t require that rigid form of coping. We all know narcissism from our own healthy narcissistic development as children, but we also know its more toxic forms from cultural/collective narcissism, and from any of the unhealed narcissistic wounds that remain alive in us as individuals, in our own relationship to ourselves and in our relationship to others and the world. Healing narcissistic wounds is available for many of us, and our individual healing contributes to profound systems change, as intergenerational, cultural and collective narcissistic wounds are crying out to be tended to and repaired. This article explores all this and gives resources for further discovery and recovery.

Productivity, Potential, and Holistic Thriving

HealingLeave a comment

The focus on productivity is important for certain tasks at certain times, but it’s only one part of a holistic expression of our potential. If we conflate productivity with potential, we lose out on many rich aspects of our full selves, such as joy, rest, play, unstructured exploration and purposeless creativity. Trauma, culture and internalized ideologies can prime us toward a dysfunctional relationship with productivity, and thus with our understanding of our true potential. Jennifer explores these themes and shares resources for change in this article.

Tools for Rediscovering Your Ecological Intuition

Consciousness, Ecological Giftedness, Emotions, Healing, Psychology, Tools for Positive ChangeLeave a comment

Our world relies on the domestication of other species, yet we often don’t realize the degree to which we’ve also domesticated our own minds, bodies and emotions. It can be hard to feel beneath our conditioning and get in touch with our emotions, even when our survival depends on them. Now more than ever, we need tools and practices to access and feel our feelings so that we can reconnect with the power of our ecological intuition and find our courage to act for our survival. This article gives tools and a reflection process for “rewilding” your mind, reconnecting with your emotions and rediscovering your own inner ecological compass.

Supporting Gifted People: Guidelines for Therapists & Coaches (and Advice for Gifted Clients)

Coaching Process, Gifted Coaching, Giftedness, Healing, Psychology, Recommended Reading1 Comment

It is essential that therapists, coaches and other helping professionals know what giftedness is, how to recognize it in clients, and how to best support their gifted clients. Anyone helping a gifted person is, by necessity, helping a gifted mind – and gifted minds work in unique ways, have unusual needs, and grow in unconventional directions. Here are some guidelines for helping professionals and the gifted clients they support.

Gifted Adults & Second Childhoods: Revisiting Essential Stages of Development

Growing Up, Healing, Psychology1 Comment

Growing up without knowing we’re gifted can be like growing up in a distorted mirror. For many gifted adults, learning about their giftedness brings them back to a “second childhood” in which they can rediscover themselves in more authentic ways. They can develop socially and personally in ways they weren’t able in their “first childhood”. In this article, originally published on InterGifted’s blog, Jen explores with us how we can best navigate the essential developmental stages of our “second (gifted) childhood”. 

Encouraging Positive Change through Gratitude

Consciousness, Gratitude, Healing, Personal Effectiveness, Tools for Positive Change3 Comments

Clients often come to me in a state of agitation, impatience and panic (real or existential, sometimes both), wanting a “magic solution” for their current dilemma – which is, in fact, a microcosmic representation or symptom of their overall life dilemma. And while I really do have a “magic solution” to share with them, it’s never what they expect, and like any good magic trick, it takes practice to master. The magic solution? Gratitude.

Did You Grow Up Too Fast? The Myth of Premature Maturity

Abuse Recovery, Consciousness, Growing Up, Healing, Personal Effectiveness1 Comment

The little girl with no needs. The little boy who takes care of mom. Premature maturity, is in fact, no escape from having needs or needing to be taken care of. It is not an escape from being a child, and it is in fact, not often maturity at all. Premature maturity is something else more painful: it is our childish attempt to buy (negotiate) a sense of security in a world of confusion, chaos, pain, death, illness, and feelings of loneliness and abandon. If we are just mature enough, maybe someone will care, will love us, will help us. Or if we are just strong enough, maybe the family can stay together, mom can get better, dad will love us, we’ll find our place in life.