The Highly Intuitive Child - by Catherine Crawford (Paperback)

About the Book

Some children can walk into a room and feel "the vibe" instantly in their body. Others may tune into an unspoken family conflict. Growing up in a culture that favors the rational and the five senses can be difficult for gifted children. This book shows parents, teachers, and therapists how to help children embrace their intuitive gifts.

Book Synopsis

Some children can walk into a room and feel "the vibe" instantly in their body. Others may tune into an unspoken family conflict, or tell someone to "be careful" before stumbling into an unknown situation. These may seem to be the normal human qualities of intuition and empathy, but in highly intuitive children (and adults), such traits are supercharged. Growing up in a culture that favors the rational and the five senses can be difficult for gifted children. This book shows parents, teachers, and therapists how to help them -- and those around them -- embrace and exercise their gift. The Highly Intuitive Child covers a wealth of topics including: how to easily identify the intuitive child; how life is different for them; the 10 skills they must master before leaving home; the connections between neuroscience and intuition; what other cultures can teach us about supporting intuitive children; "indigo" children; success stories; and much more.

From the Back Cover

Silver medalists, 2010 Independent Book Publishers Association Ben Franklin Awards

"A gentle and insightful approach to parenting children with highly intuitive abilities or sensitivities. There are pearls of wisdom here. Recommended." - Library Journal

Is Your Child Trying to Tell You Something?

We are all sensitive, intuitive and empathic to one degree or another. But some of us are born more so. The highly intuitive child may pick up on unspoken issues in the home and take on the emotions of friends, absorb the mood in a classroom or in the world at large and even anticipate dangerous situations.
The acutely receptive intuition of these children is always "on," acting as a sixth sense. Because this emotional and sensory input is added to what they take in through the other five senses it can be difficult to cope with, and their sensitivity can result in
- difficulty turning "off" and falling asleep
- deep fears and anxieties that are hard to relieve
- an exaggerated sense of responsibility about healing people or fixing situations
- psychosomatic pains, "spaciness" and difficulty making decisions
- "acting out" stress they take in as anger or "acting in" the sadness or pain of others as depression.
If you recognize these traits in a child, you can help.

Hearing and Helping the Sensitive Child
In this practical guide, therapist and mother Catherine Crawford provides the tools and insight you need to recognize and honor the gifts of the intuitive child in your life while minimizing the challenges that come with them. These include
- 20 questions for identifying highly intuitive children
- 10 teachable skills that reduce or prevent sensory overload
- techniques for reducing stress through diet, exercise, art, play and visualization
- guidance on how and when to seek professional help
You will also find inspiring stories of the intuitive child's journey into adulthood and insights into how cultures around the world embrace the gifts of empathy and intuition. Most importantly, The Highly Intuitive Child gives you what you need right now - ways to understand, nurture and celebrate the richness and complexity of your unique child.

Review Quotes

"Crawford, a marriage-family therapist and registered art therapist, offers a gentle and insightful approach to parenting children with highly intuitive abilities or sensitivities. Conceding that all people have intuition and sensitivity, she argues that certain children are born with these traits functioning at a higher capacity, and they encounter specific challenges such as feeling responsible for others' emotions or absorbing group stress. She does not seek to lessen their sensitivity but rather to teach acceptance and self-help for their authentic nature, while helping parents understand how best to support them. Crawford identifies ten skills that intuitives should master, including differentiating between fears and intuition and distinguishing one's energy from others'. She is especially strong when discussing the value of art in a child's growing development...There are pearls of wisdom here for parents of children on the high end of the sensitivity spectrum, with or without intuitive abilities. Recommended for comprehensive parenting collections..." --Library Journal, Julianne J. Smith, Ypsilanti Dist. Lib., MI

"Crawford, a psychotherapist, approaches her topic from the perspective of a professional who has dealt with many intuitive children during the past 20 years, and also as an intuitive individual herself. Children who are highly intuitive and empathic, she explains, both present and face unique challenges, and parents who are not particularly intuitive themselves may be shocked, perplexed and even frightened by their offspring's unusual gifts. While certain indigenous cultures have long regarded intuitive children in a positive light (such as the Inuit and ancient Mayans), mainstream America--and its parenting books--have avoided the topic, the author claims. Crawford steps up to the plate, dealing with the intuitive child's difficulties at home and at school, and encouraging parents to offer love and acceptance. She explains that empathic children often take on the weight of the world, and may become overly stressed by and sensitive to injustice. In a useful chapter, Crawford outlines 10 important skills that parents can teach intuitive children ranging from learning how to tell the difference between random fears and intuition, to how to turn down the volume on "intuitive antennae." While Crawford's audience may be somewhat limited, she offers sincere support and practical information to parents searching to aid and more deeply understand their highly intuitive child." - Publishers Weekly