Positive Disintegration

We’ve added Quick Bites to our podcast offerings to allow Chris and Emma the opportunity to discuss topics of interest with brevity. In episode 38, the first Quick Bite episode, they tackled the issue of regret. How do we confront past decisions that haunt us? How can we use the feeling of regret as an opportunity to move forward and transform ourselves? First, we talked about the evolution of the...

In episode 37, Chris and Emma talked with Marni Kammersell, a 2e adult, doctoral student at Bridges Graduate School, and parent of three 2e children in Colorado. We started this episode by discussing our concerns about how overexcitabilities are sometimes interpreted in the gifted community. Parents of gifted and 2e children sometimes discover the OEs and stop there without exploring the types of...

*Note: Chris will not be returning to Yunasa. In episode 36, Chris and Emma discussed Yunasa, a camp for gifted and twice-exceptional children offered by the Institute for Educational Advancement. Working at Yunasa and spending time with everyone involved is a highlight of Chris’s year. Chris has worked at Yunasa West four times since 2019 and shared what it’s been like to speak with the campers a...

In episode 35, Chris and Emma talked with Dr. Patricia Gatto-Walden, an American licensed psychologist with offices in Colorado and Florida. Patty applies the theory of positive disintegration in her practice with the highly and profoundly gifted. Patty studied with Dr. Michael M. Piechowski as a graduate student when he taught at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in the late 1970s, and...

**Content warning**: Please be aware that this episode contains sensitive topics such as addiction, death, suicide, and trauma. In episode 34, Chris and Emma talked about mental health. The episode is a part of SENG’s outreach efforts for Mental Health Awareness Month. We discussed the theory of positive disintegration as an invaluable tool for reframing our personal beliefs. How can big emotions...

In episode 33, Chris and Emma talked with David Sweeney, a fellow traveler on the path to authenticity. Identified as gifted late in life, David shared his introduction to positive disintegration, his understanding of giftedness, and insights into how trauma early in life shaped his abilities. We discussed discovering the theory of positive disintegration and overexcitabilities, dealing with sensi...

In episode 32, Chris and Emma talked with Sophia Elliott, parent, advocate, and host of the Our Gifted Kids podcast. We covered a wide range of topics in this conversation, from learning about Dąbrowski’s theory, neurodiversity, and giftedness to education, policy, and parenting challenges. We also covered storytelling, podcasting, and the value of sharing our personal experiences. Sophia talked a...

In episode 31, Chris and Emma talked with Celi Trépanier, author, blogger, and parent, about the gifted community and the challenges of raising gifted kids and being a gifted adult. Together, we talk about the importance of friendships, connections, and support within the gifted community. Celi was Chris’s first friend in the gifted world. Celi held space and supported Chris during those first yea...

In episode 30, Chris and Emma were joined by Katy Higgins Lee, MFT, a therapist and clinical supervisor in private practice in Santa Rosa, California. She works with neurodivergent adults with a focus on giftedness and twice-exceptionality. This episode is our contribution to Neurodiversity Celebration Week . We learned about the terms neurodiversity and neurodivergence, and the appropriate applic...

In episode 29, Chris and Emma discussed The Ugly Duckling , the classic fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen, from the perspectives of giftedness, neurodivergence, and positive disintegration. We discussed aspects of our personal journeys and the impact of discovering Dąbrowski’s theory, and how these relate back to themes in the tale. Some of the themes we cover include—the realization in our 40...

In episode 28, Chris and Emma were joined by Kate Arms, JD, PCC, for a discussion on what positive disintegration looks like in organizations and workplaces. How are organizational dynamics similar to positive disintegration in individuals? Kate’s approach to her work is one where the business itself, or the “system,” is considered the coaching client, and she observes not only the individuals but...

In episode 27, Chris and Emma were joined by Dr. Tracy Winter, an ICF-credentialed coach with a PhD in Human Development. In her coaching practice, she works with neurodivergent adults and specializes in the gifted / 2e population. We talked about Tracy’s dissertation research on gifted adults “being seen,” where most of her participants fell into two groups: they were not seen as gifted, or they...

In episode 26, we continued the conversation with Nth Bar-Fields and Joi Lin in the second half of our two-part series about their experiences as profoundly gifted individuals. In Part 2, we talked about health and mental health issues, including experiences with substances and addiction. We discussed how being neurodivergent can also lead to diversity in the realm of physical health and how medic...

In episode 25, Chris and Emma were joined by Nth Bar-Fields and Joi Lin. This fascinating and fun discussion was too long for one episode, so we’ve split it into two for your listening enjoyment! Nth is a co-founder of Elysian Trust , and Joi is a doctoral student in Gifted Education Leadership at the University of Denver. Chris joined Nth and Joi in March 2022 for a panel session called Experienc...

Content warning : This episode includes sensitive topics such as depression, intrusive mental imagery, and suicidal ideation. Please also note that our guest was known as Lance at the time of recording, but later changed their name to Seph. In episode 24, Chris and Emma were joined by Seph Johnson (recorded as Lance), a college student from Colorado with a deep interest in Dąbrowski’s theory of po...

In episode 23, Chris and Emma were joined by psychologist Jennifer Harvey Sallin, founder of InterGifted, a worldwide community and support organization for gifted adults. This conversation is a celebration of gifted diversity in adulthood! We talked about what giftedness can look like in adults, how it manifests, and the great range of diversity within giftedness. Jen shared her model of giftedne...

In episode 22, Chris and Emma talked with Bob Yamtich, a coach who uses Nonviolent Communication to build poise, joy, self-connection, and choice. We talked about Nonviolent Communication with Bob, as well as empathy, needs, and strategies. We discussed shared connection and living in a shared reality, as well as connection requests. This is a primer in NVC with someone who lives it and uses it as...

In episode 21, Chris and Emma were joined by Marc Smolowitz, a director, producer, and executive producer who is currently in post-production on THE G WORD, a feature-length documentary that aims to be the most comprehensive film ever made on the topics of gifted, talented, and neurodiverse education across the United States. We were happy to talk with Marc and help celebrate THE G WORD's second a...

This episode wraps up year one of our podcast! It has been a privilege to share Dabrowski’s theory with our audience, and we want to thank you for listening and becoming a part of our community. In episode 20, Chris and Emma explored the values that guide the Dabrowski Center , a new nonprofit organization dedicated to the advancement of the Theory of Positive Disintegration through advocacy, educ...

In episode 19, Chris and Emma were joined by Stephanie Tolan, an author and long-time advocate and champion of the gifted. This episode was inspired by Stef’s chapter in the book Living with Intensity called “What We May Be: What Dabrowski’s Work Can Do for Gifted Adults.” We’ve had enough feedback from listeners to know that we needed a deeper dive into the theory’s levels of development and that...

In episode 18, Chris and Emma were joined by Rachel Fell, a coach, consultant, educator, and guide working with creatives, thinkers, leaders, and groups to create perspective change that achieves real-world results. The focus of this episode was on disintegration, giftedness, neurodivergence, and trauma. We discussed nervous system differences, definitions of trauma, and the importance of embracin...

In episode 17, Chris and Emma were joined by Elizabeth Mika, a Polish-born psychologist and expert on the Theory of Positive Disintegration. Elizabeth shares how she first became interested in Dabrowski’s theory as a teenager in Poland, how it inspired her to go into the field of psychology, and her journey into working with the theory once she immigrated to America. Our conversation covered a wid...

In episode 16, Chris and Emma were joined by Dr. Shelagh Gallagher, for a discussion of overexcitability (OE) and openness to experience (OtE), based on her paper which compares the two frameworks. Shelagh is an independent consultant in gifted education and President of the National Association for Gifted Children. We discussed the controversy in the field of gifted education about OE and OtE, an...

In Episode 15, Chris and Emma were joined by Melissa Bernstein, co-founder of Melissa & Doug Toys and author of LifeLines. We learned about Melissa’s inspirational journey to self-acceptance and living authentically after spending decades of her life suffering from existential depression and angst. Melissa discovered Dąbrowski’s theory in her late 40s and described the relief she felt from learnin...

In episode 14, Chris and Emma were joined by Dr. Michele Kane, an educator, storyteller, and long-time Dąbrowski enthusiast. She has done wonderful work tending relationships in this community, and she shared herself with vulnerability and courage in this episode. Some of the topics touched on include the reality that learning about the theory changes your relationship with yourself, how well the...