We hope that her story will be a first step in understanding the experience of gifted kid burnout and the unique challenges faced by twice exceptional adults. Cate will also talk about how her experience in a gifted program, advanced classes, and the pressure to achieve good results in school led to unhealthy coping mechanisms and a lack of motivation in her daily life. Cate will share her personal experience with burnout as a twice exceptional adult and discuss her journey to finding balance and harmony in her passions and interests. She is an ADHD educator, a certified sex educator, and a disability advocate. Our guest today is Cate Osburn, also known as Catieosaurus on social media. This can lead to lack of study habits and a type of mindset that is not sustainable in the long-term, resulting in burnout. Gifted education programs and advanced classes may not always take into account the social-emotional needs and unique sources of stress for these students. School systems and the current educational environment may contribute to this issue. For twice exceptional adults, who also have a neurodivergent condition, the experience can be even more challenging as they may have unique sources of stress in their daily lives and emotional needs. This burnout can manifest in a variety of ways, such as a lack of motivation, harmful perfectionism, and chronic stress. This belief leads to unrealistic expectations and a lack of emphasis on the development of a growth mindset and good study habits. It is a result of the fixed trait mindset that is often placed on gifted children, believing that their intelligence and abilities are innate and cannot be improved upon.

This phenomenon, known as 'gifted kid burnout,' was first identified by Professor Carol Dweck, author of 'Mindsets,' and has been studied by the National Association for Gifted Children. Gifted programs, often found in grade schools and even at the national level, focus on high achievement and a fixed trait of being 'gifted.' But what happens when these young adults, who were once in gifted classes and AP classes, are faced with the reality of adult life and the expectations of society? They may struggle with a lack of motivation and a harmful perfectionism that can lead to chronic stress. The pressure to always achieve gold star grades and be at the top of the class can be overwhelming. As young adults, they often share a common theme of feeling burnt out and struggling with unrealistic expectations. Gifted kid burnout affects many smart kids and former gifted students who were once in gifted programs.

Former gifted kid burnout