Gifted Children

Written by Rexanne Mancini


There has been much discussion onrepparttar difficult child. Let’s look atrepparttar 110709 gifted child. Not to imply that gifted children aren't difficult ... as a matter of fact, I holdrepparttar 110710 belief that most difficult children are probably gifted and therein lies a part of their social problem. For clarity, let's refer torepparttar 110711 gifted child in this article asrepparttar 110712 one who excels at academics and extra curricular activities of an extraordinary nature. My older daughter has a friend, Megan, who is highly gifted ... highly gifted being a step grander than gifted inrepparttar 110713 public school system. In her special class, she has massive amounts of homework, incredibly difficult assignments and a rigorous school schedule, including mandatory extra hours. Her after school activities include piano lessons, singing lessons (she's great!) and any other challenging activity she can persuade her parents to pay for. Megan is an incredible child ... sweet, personable and kindhearted. We rally round her with each new accomplishment. This is a child who clearly shines in her highly gifted classes and is happy to be there.

My older daughter is very bright, too. OK, bragging but she really is! ;-) She was pegged by her preschool teachers as destined forrepparttar 110714 gifted groups in elementary school. Well, turns out she was never tested, which, in California, must be done only onrepparttar 110715 request of her teachers. She graduates with honors each year but her social life is much too important to her and she has never shownrepparttar 110716 focus or passion for learning that other gifted and highly gifted children we know have demonstrated.

Febrile Seizures

Written by Rexanne Mancini


While fever isrepparttar body's natural defense against infection, approximately five percent of children have what are classified as "simple" febrile seizures while running a fever.

If anyone has a child who suffers from febrile seizures, take heart ... 99 percent of children outgrow them byrepparttar 110708 time they are six years old and there are generally no ill after effects.

Febrile seizures can occur in babies as young as three months old. Whenrepparttar 110709 child is running a fever, a seizure brought on byrepparttar 110710 sudden rise of their body temperature can overtake them.

Febrile seizures look like epileptic attacks and they are one ofrepparttar 110711 most frightening events a parent can live through. These seizures happen only when a child has a fever and are not a precursor to epilepsy, although in about 1 percent of cases, febrile seizures are an indication of more complicated neurological problems.

When my older daughter was 18 months old, she had her first febrile seizure. Thankfully, I had read about them and knew what was happening. The first episode lasted less than two minutes and byrepparttar 110712 timerepparttar 110713 paramedics arrived, she was sleeping peacefully. I wish I could say that was her last febrile seizure. She had at least ten more inrepparttar 110714 following four years, withrepparttar 110715 last episode occurring when she was five-and-a-half-years-old.

While we tried to learn everything there was to know about these seizures,repparttar 110716 best explanation any doctor had was that they were hereditary. Sometimes I wonder aboutrepparttar 110717 genetic conclusions doctors jump to. As far as my husband and I knew, no one in our immediate families had recurring febrile seizures, nor did our younger daughter ever have a febrile seizure. As we were told by numerous physicians to expect our other children to have them too, we were enormously relieved when we were spared yet another 5 years of anxiety and living in fear ofrepparttar 110718 dreaded fevers.

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