Gifted Children and Primary Reflexes

You might be wondering why we’re talking about gifted children in the context of retained primary reflexes. After all, aren’t gifted kids the ones who breeze through everything without trouble?

Not quite. While gifted children often demonstrate above-average abilities and high intelligence, this doesn’t mean they are immune to neurodevelopmental challenges – such as retained primary reflexes.

Gifted individuals are characterized by significantly high intelligence, multiple above-average abilities, and a qualitatively different way of thinking and brain functioning. This unique neurocognitive profile often manifests in distinct patterns of perception, emotional experience, understanding, and behavior (Stehlíková, 2016).

Psychologist Dalibor Špok offers a comprehensive description of gifted personality traits on his website. He categorizes these traits into six key areas:

• Overexcitability

  Gifted individuals show heightened sensitivity in systems responsible for processing sensory, emotional, and cognitive stimuli. Their nervous system reacts more strongly and more intensely to input than in the general population.

• High Cognitive Abilities

  They score in the highest ranges on intelligence tests. Speed of thought, depth of analysis, and the ability to see multiple perspectives simultaneously are common characteristics.

• Divergent and Nonconformist Thinking

  Gifted people often generate original, creative, and unconventional solutions or opinions. Their high sensitivity and strong internal values contribute to their independence and innovative thinking.

• Exceptional Perceptivity

  Their heightened perception and deep information processing can lead to extraordinary creativity but may also result in hypersensitivity to light, sound, tactile stimuli, or smells.

• High Energy and Intrinsic Motivation

  Gifted children tend to have immense inner drive and a fast-paced rhythm, constantly seeking change, novelty, and challenges. Routine or repetitive tasks quickly exhaust them. Their pattern of fluctuating focus and energy can sometimes mimic symptoms of attention disorders.

• Emotional Sensitivity

  Increased emotional reactivity may lead to difficulties in relationships – especially in situations where others do not understand the depth or intensity of their emotional responses.

Giftedness and Nervous System Sensitivity

Giftedness isn’t only about high IQ – it’s also about a unique way of perceiving and responding to the world. Experts like Dalibor Špok and giftedness specialist Jana Stehlíková point to the frequent presence of overexcitability, a concept introduced by Polish psychologist Kazimierz Dąbrowski. This heightened responsiveness can involve emotions, sensory input, physical movement, or imagination.

This raises an important question:Could these sensitivities and signs of internal overload be linked to retained primary reflexes, such as the Moro reflex?

Primary reflexes that should have naturally integrated in early childhood can, in some children, remain active. This may interfere with sensory integration and emotional self-regulation – leading to symptoms such as hypersensitivity to light or sound, distractibility, chronic fatigue, or emotional instability. Interestingly, these same symptoms can also be observed in some gifted children.

Compensation Instead of Support

One of the biggest challenges for gifted children is their ability to compensate for their weaknesses. Thanks to their high intelligence, they often develop coping strategies that help them mask developmental delays or struggles. On the surface, they may appear average – so their true difficulties go unnoticed. As a result, they may become “lost treasures” of society (Smítková, 2017).

This is especially true for twice-exceptional children – those who are both gifted and have a learning difficulty, ADHD, autism spectrum disorder, developmental language disorder, or another form of neurodiversity. Their academic performance tends to be uneven, and they may struggle with completing assignments, handling time pressure, or coping with fear of failure. Consequently, they are often misidentified as average learners.

When Giftedness Masks Challenges

Retained primary reflexes may be one of the hidden factors affecting gifted children – and yet, because they manage to function just well enough, no one thinks to investigate deeper. But compensation is exhausting and not always sustainable – especially during times of stress, illness, or major change.

These children may have “good days,” when everything goes well, and “bad days,” when their coping strategies collapse. This inconsistent performance can take a toll on their self-confidence and motivation. Many begin to believe that their “good days” were just luck – and that they are not truly capable.

Brain Development Starts with the Basics

The connection between early brain development, primary reflexes, and cognitive potential is emphasized by Dr. Ranko Rajović, physician, neuroscientist, and founder of the NTC Learning System. In his work, he stresses that healthy brain development and the growth of intelligence begin in early childhood – and a key component of this is the integration of primary reflexes.

If these reflexes persist, they may limit the child’s full potential – even in the case of highly gifted individuals.

Sources:

• Volemanova, M (2013 a 2019). Přetrvávající primární reflexy. Statenice: INVTS s.r.o.

• Stehlíková, J. (2016). Nadané dítě a rozvoj jeho nadání. Praha: Portál.

• Špok, D. (2018). Nadaní dospělí: Praktický průvodce životem s výjimečnými schopnostmi. www.daliborspok.cz

• Smítková, M. (2017). Dvojí výjimečnost: Vysoký potenciál a specifické poruchy učení.

• Silverman, L. K. (2008). Giftedness 101. New York: Springer Publishing.

• Rajović, R. Jak rozvíjet inteligenci dítěte hrou: NTC metoda. Praha: Edika.