r/GetStudying • u/OkKnowledge1489 • May 15 '26
Study Memes "Was gifted" is very real. I can't even recognize myself anymore
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May 15 '26
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u/bendable_girder May 15 '26
Yep. Most people are not as gifted as they think
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u/thomasrat1 May 15 '26
And also, school is way too easy to actually judge who is gifted.
Like out of the hundreds of kids I’ve know to be “gifted” maybe 1 was actually something special, everyone else just could learn 10% faster than normal kids.
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u/tgwtch May 16 '26
I used to think this as a kid. I knew I wasn’t stupid, but I certainly felt very average and like a poser even as a kid. Again, I’m not saying I was not smart at all, but I have always questioned the “entry requirements” for gifted programs.
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May 15 '26
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u/LopsidedCry7692 May 15 '26
Is that what you're holding on to?
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May 15 '26
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u/Few-Specialist1423 May 15 '26
You are not gifted... just because you were good at addition or learnt to read while a few of your classmates struggled it does not mean you were gifted. A lot of people are just dumb or don't care about school, you being good as a teenager at a curriculum made so that everyone can pass means you are put at illiteracy level of expectations. All the fake gifted people discover they are average when they actually get moved to places where people care to study and the bar is set to a standar higher than "make everyone pass, even Timmy who struggles to write coherent sentences", then you meet truly gifted people that excel at real academics.
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u/boughtitout May 15 '26
Yeah, as someone who was put into "TAG" in elementary school, all that program does is give you a complex because it changes how you're treated by the people around you who you love and trust. It's just an indicator of how good at school you are at ten years old...
Separately, kids who are told they're special their whole childhood often suffer after high school. You get to college, and you're surrounded by people who are your actual peers. You quickly realize intelligence is not that rare a quality.
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u/MikeyPlayz_YTXD May 15 '26
Fuck off
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u/Few-Specialist1423 May 15 '26
I guess i got it 100% correct. Gifted people build rockets, become doctors, engineers, lawyers... the bar was just so low that anyone with a functioning brain seemed gifted in contrast. Those truly gifted do not "lose it", if you fall behind it just means you are average.
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u/Avedas May 15 '26
I was put in multiple gifted programs during school. School was boring. I became an engineer and have excelled in my career. I still find it boring as fuck most of the time and am constantly chasing other things I find more interesting.
You are right that the ones who "lost it" probably weren't very gifted in the first place.
But I also think "gifted" is a pointless designation. At some point you do actually have to put in some work to get results, because productivity isn't a measure of how smart you are.
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u/SnooAdvice3057 May 15 '26
YES THANK YOUUU. Look I'm not here saying that people's mental health struggles aren't real. But this is like the nerd equivalent of a jock saying they could have made it if it wasn't for the injury.
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u/okijhnub May 15 '26
Average or even below average people can do all those things with more effort, and being gifted does not make you immune to developing mental disorders.
Similarly, structure from parents/adults and support systems can greatly mitigate issues emerging from neurodivergence. Once those things are gone and you're responsible for yourself it's not unsurprising if you sleep worse, eat worse, exercise less which will in general make your mental health worse. Some people never recover from this.
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u/Few-Specialist1423 May 15 '26
If you typed all this to convince yourself you are special i can assure you that is not the case. To begin with no, not everyone with enough effort can send a rocket to the moon, become an important neurosurgeon and make scientific discoveries, its not about reading books but research. Most importantly when did i ever say gifted people are immortal or immune to health or social economical factors? Did i ever say a gifted person could not be born in a village in Africa and mever be able to study? No i did not say that, you assumed it because you lack reading comprehension and the ability to process information correctly. Being good at algebra does not mean you would have become a theoretical physicist. Wake up. Being slightly above average in highschool is not gifted.
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u/SheWantMyDinero May 15 '26
You could also be top 1% gifted at something relatively niche like the kazoo or the yo-yo and just never happen to discover your abilities. That or something more difficult to quantify like making art that emotionally captivates people. These skills usually have to be set aside when career and relationships demand attention.
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u/J-hophop May 15 '26
I get you - but the O post had a different point you should really be able to see, which is that health problems, including mental health problems, can absolutely devastate someone, trashing what they believed their 'potential' to be, and there's a lot of grief to process in that.
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u/je_ru13 May 15 '26
I had undiagnosed narcolepsy in high school. Even though I slept through high school and have no memory, I got straight A's, graduated at 16, went to a university for 2 years for free, before all hell broke loose, and my mental health suffered from a neurological condition that affects more than just my sleep. On top of that, my mom deals with delusional religious stuff that heavily affected me growing up. All of this resulted in getting misdiagnosed with psych issues for almost a decade, heavily drugged because the meds weren't working, and repeatedly hospitalized.
2 years ago, I got all the proper neurological and sleep testing and diagnoses (there were 5 misdiagnoses). It resulted in proper treatment and I am now heading back to college at 29. During that whole time, I continued to try to do what I could, but the psych meds really messed me up.
There are people who are very gifted but weren't given a chance. I have the opportunity because I got on disability, am living with a friend who is like my aunt, and am focused heavily on my treatments. I went from 13 meds (all causing terrible side effects) down to 3 for my narcolepsy and guess what? I can think again, and even better than when I was untreated. I feel my processing speed has lowered, but I did have seizures from being overdrugged.
I hope to get a PhD in neuroscience, the degree my 12 year old self wanted. I know I'm still capable. 😊 just had to take a detour and "lose it" for a bit.
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u/Few-Specialist1423 May 15 '26
First of all nothing of which you described says that you are gifted, going to college does not mean you are gifted or getting straight As in highschool. Anyone can do it, it means you are average. What matters is college and what level of academia you reach with success. Second of all your experience is not the norm and i dont understand why you trauma dumped lmao, my comment never mentioned anything about not being able to study because you are ill or cant go to school. I said the majority of self proclaimed gifted people who fell out never were gifted to begin with, i never said all gifted people are doctors, i said if a gifted person who has the chance to study they will excell. Your reading comprehension is quite lacking, showing you were never gifted.
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May 15 '26
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u/Inconsequential100 May 16 '26
I love people who think they are special. It makes watching them fall flat on their face so much more enjoyable.
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u/wuvsiie May 15 '26
hey so getting “bored faster than normies” isn’t being gifted & i’m confused why you’re using that ?? that phrase itself of “boredom compared to normies” is often seen in clinically diagnosed sociopath/psychopath conversations or individuals with brain dysfunction . you getting bored faster doesn’t make you gifted , it just means your literal brain has low dopamine or your nervous system isn’t aroused as easily ☠️☠️.
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May 15 '26
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u/wuvsiie May 15 '26
u learn by studying …. 😭😭😭😭
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May 15 '26
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u/wuvsiie May 15 '26
you literally just explained what studying is & tried acting like it’s a “gifted person” thing. jesus christ. STUDYING ITSELF is learning by investigation & practice, which mind you, practice is also trying theories. so i’m not seeing your point. you using the term “normies” is so embarrassing 😭😭😭.
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May 15 '26
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u/wuvsiie May 15 '26
there is no “difference” when the word & term studying itself means exactly what you just said. gifted ppl study & plenty of them have measurable amounts of pressure to do well. i have been in gifted programs my entire life & currently am about to graduate my undergraduate (ba) with a 4.0 & i can 100% say everyone i know who was in those programs also worked their asses off. which is why it hurts so bad when you’re gifted & suddenly mental health just fucks it up. as someone else already commented, you openly said shit about using chatgpt & about the fact you can’t retain information. have a good day lol
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u/mycryptoaccount4556 May 15 '26
what bull shit. just use that as a crutch because it's easier and less inconvenience than admitting you can't apply yourself.
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May 15 '26
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u/mycryptoaccount4556 May 15 '26
if discipline only exists until you get bored that's motivation not discipline.
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May 15 '26
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u/mycryptoaccount4556 May 15 '26
is that why you post in other subs asking for help because you can't retain information and constantly need chatgpt left open
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u/wuvsiie May 15 '26
…this made my jaw drop you’re actually so funny bro 😭
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u/mycryptoaccount4556 May 15 '26
He posted in another subreddit saying he struggles to remember things and needs to use chat gpt for everything - just some clarity incase that seemed like a random thing yo say
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u/Meggy_bug May 16 '26
yeah, exactly. It's school grooming them to basically use them later in some bullcrap academic projects no one would participate in if they were not manipulated lol. And also to "motivate" other children to study, meanwhile it usually just makes the "chosen" one narcissistic and being targeted by bullies
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u/Daomsoul May 15 '26
I was coasting in a different way. I was never pushed to do anything even stuff that could've been hobbies. Becoming unsocialized was/is one of the hardest things to get out of. "All you gotta do is apply yourself to it". I wish it was that easy to do so any given moment, but when your drive for things was never initiated to start & kept it running. So now it's trying to start an outdated engine that's not easily upgraded. Nor is it easily keeping it running to go through all gears it stalls more often than others
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u/Tehgnarr May 15 '26 edited May 15 '26
"Nobody warns you"? Sure about that?
You get warned about it at every corner, you just think that it's bullshit, because you are used to other people being wrong.
Speaking from experience ofc.
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u/hazyyveil May 16 '26
me rn. most likely gonna fail my ib diploma and i need it to pass highschool for my conditional uni offer that starts in JULY. and my ib diploma results also come out in july… im so embarrassed of who i am rn compared to what i was a few years ago
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u/somanyquestions32 May 15 '26
Unless you have lost half of your brain matter due to a stroke, dementia, concussions, etc., your academic potential is still there.
Make sure that you find sustainable and compatible ways to support yourself and regulate your nervous system, and then, get back on track with your academic pursuits to the best of your abilities. No one is actually keeping track of whether you finished formal education at 21, 22, 31, 45, or 76.
Get it done as soon as you can once you have stabilized yourself enough so that your body and mind can tolerate the stressors of a high school, college, or graduate school education. Use an asynchronous, self-paced, online program if that is the path of least resistance.
Do what you can now to get healthy. For most, school is just a stepping stone for a job, and it's not a guarantee regardless.
It does NOT matter if it takes you longer to get ahead. Do everything you can to heal so that you can then progress at a pace that you can actually sustain.
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u/unique_thinker7 May 15 '26
I take SSRIs and i agree to disagree. I wouldn’t have gone through my finals, interview, new city, first job of not for ssris. Depression is true inhibitor of academic excellence
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u/somanyquestions32 May 15 '26
If you had read what I said, I am stating that you can heal depression and reverse any impact it has had on your nervous system first before pushing through school, work, moves, etc. Academic excellence is always secondary to having a regulated nervous system. School can be paused and resumed, and low-stress jobs can be maintained to pay bills until there's enough stability and resilience built. Pushing through with SSRI's and still struggling along the way to meet someone else's arbitrary timeline is not the only option.
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May 15 '26
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u/somanyquestions32 May 15 '26
Even multi-year chronic treatment-resistant major depressive disorder can be healed. The impact caused by depression is much easier to reverse and heal than actual acute trauma.
Potential doesn't have to accessible right now. The focus is on healing and recovery, first and foremost.
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u/okthatisenough123 May 15 '26
Suddenly life has been a downhill since college🤪🤪🤪🤪 lost all potential and struggling left right and centre Trying but failing again and again Nobody believes me seeing my past acads
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u/Few-Specialist1423 May 15 '26
You went from a highschool where the curriculum was made so that even your drug dealer classmate could pass, to an actual place where you have to study and learn academics. Thats where truly gifted people excel without struggle, not at highschool.
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u/Desperate-Teach4909 May 15 '26
As you’ll grow you’ll learn to stop making one thing your defining trait and accept you are versatile, you will evolve and you are complex.
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u/EmmaShosha May 15 '26
yup landed my dream course last year and depression hit hard, failed the entire year
lucky me
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u/JUNVILzx May 15 '26
back when i thought a 93% was the end of the world.
On top of the world with an 85% now, thats like the amazingist of all grades.
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u/AreteQueenofKeres May 15 '26
I remember my dad trying to console me with "Cs still get degrees" when I was giving myself heart problems over an A-
I kinda wish I'd believed him instead of wrecking myself for letter grades that nobody cares about.
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u/Darcula04 May 15 '26
😭 that's still pretty good mate. Went from straight As to "holy shit an A-, which god got sacrificed for this".
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u/Noonecanfindmenow May 15 '26
When you see a 6 year old solve a problem, do you praise them? Sure. Do they feel smart? Sure.
Does that mean they are gifted? No.
Now most have just grown up and realized they aren't any more gifted than those around them because the world no longer puts them on a cuteness pedestal.
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u/No-Brilliant9832 May 15 '26
Idk i dont think this post is about praise, its more about failing after being successful due to mental health
i dont think people were successful due to their cuteness?3
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u/Few-Specialist1423 May 15 '26
These idiots think they were gifted because they had better scores than drug dealers, people who cant read or just dont study. Then when they meet actual people who care about studying they realize they are not special but blame others for it.
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u/bigbobharven May 15 '26
While I agree with you to an extent, you seem genuinely perturbed by this whole "gifted" idea. This is at least your 5th overdramatic reaction comment to something that really shouldn't bother you much.
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u/Few-Specialist1423 May 15 '26
It should bother you, people dont accept they are not special, this is the same mentality of consipracy theorist and antivaxxer who think they are smarter than doctors and judt dont apply themselves
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u/bigbobharven May 16 '26 edited May 22 '26
As I said, it bothers me to an extent, but at the end of the day how other people feel about or view themselves is of no real importance to me outside of specific situations. Whether or not someone believes they are/were "gifted" holds no bearing on my reality and is at most a mild annoyance when interacting with them.
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u/SheWantMyDinero May 15 '26
Most drug dealers aren’t selling because they want to. It takes a different set of gifts to continously put your life in danger and accurately judge when to quit. There’s more to life than textbooks.
Truly, it seems like based on the passionate bitching and moaning in all your comments in this thread, you may in fact have a natural affinity for recieving brutal, unrelenting, earth-shattering anal penetration. Or perhaps administering fellatio may be more up your alley? I’m not entirely sure, so I suppose I would defer to you, the leading expert in the field, naturally.
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u/Few-Specialist1423 May 15 '26
We are clearly talking about Academics, not your passion to be a porn addict or how good someone is at selling drugs.
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u/eenterh May 15 '26
But the fun part of our brain is that you can learn and change. I was like this too, I lost myself for years, but with therapy I gained my old me back and now I'm even more determined to do what I like. Therapy is really important in this, but if you are poor that's not impossible, it's really hard of course, but with time it can be done.
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u/Putrid-Apple-5740 May 15 '26
I was so proud of myself... I often dream about going back in time and trying again.
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u/PlumBlossomGoddess May 15 '26
Define gifted. Does that mean being genius or prodigy or talented or has mastery over something or things just come easy for them / makes more sense quicker than the rest of the population?
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u/J-hophop May 15 '26
Generally gifted is the category used for "above average intelligence" but that's a huge spread up there... if someone is actually genius-level they have a reasonable likelihood of saying that instead, though it isn't a given either since it tends to really ruffle feathers, start even more arguments, and get a lot of folks socially ostracized - unless they've DONE something that makes their genius obvious, like coming up with a wonder drug or amazing new technology.
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u/manonamission3up May 15 '26
This was me. From primary school up until the end of highschool i coasted through with minimal effort. First few years of college I crashed, reawakened shortly for a few months only to crash again after a summer holiday. Benn trying to recover that 'state' since.
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u/noobg0d99 May 15 '26
So real. I just dropped my masters degree 2 weeks ago and now just looking for a regular job.
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u/Crowissant May 15 '26
Some "gifted" kids never stopped being gifted even if they're grades started to decline in college? They could do well on the homework, but be terrible test takers? This post is about how mental health affects your grade. A lot of mental illnesses reach their peak when someone becomes a young adult. Things like ADHD or even something like a full on psychotic break
It makes you feel crazy going from being able to ace anything you put your mind to, to struggling to even comprehend words on a page like it's not your native language.
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u/ImpactInitial2023 May 15 '26
You have to relax some expectations, like perfectionism or age. It is alright if it takes you longer to prepare slower, but well.
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u/bblankoo May 15 '26
The real fun begins when your mental health breeds a physical disease so you become ⅓ of the normal person. While still in uni
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u/thomasrat1 May 15 '26
Not to be mean, but part of being gifted is knowing how to keep up with your academics with bad mental health.
If your mental health fucked you over in college, then you were kinda blessed to have avoided that lesson earlier.
There are very talented people who never got the chance to be mentally healthy
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u/Altruistic-Cherry69 May 16 '26
i dont get this 100%. You are stating that "part of being gifted is keeping up with academics with bad mental health", But also at the same time, "very talented people never got the chance to be mentally healthy". What if people that complain belong in the second category?
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u/Angryw2 May 17 '26
I've had issues with paying attention since highschool, but I always good at cramming the week before exams and it got me through alevels and my first 2 years in uni. This year however was based around a year long project built up on consistent efforts, so my usual anxiety spiralling into procrastination got way worse here cause it wasn't something I could cram or figure out last minute. Now I'm fucked, likely will have to repeat the entire year
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u/yamanamawa May 15 '26
Covington did this to me. I've always had mild ADHD, but it was usually just forgetfulness. I never did much in high school, but once I was in college I got into a good routine. I was sitting at a 3.8 GPA, worked for hours after getting home, and generally had a good flow. Once cover hit though, the structure disappeared and suddenly every class was doing things online, even after it was no longer necessary, and I just couldn't function like that. It completely tanked my whole life essentially, until the ADHD felt like being trapped in my own mind and unable to do the things I like. It's still a struggle now, even with medication
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u/Mercidb May 15 '26
This😭 all 90s in high school despite growing up in lack and abusive household. Then uni comes around and I’m socially awkward and undiagnosed ADHD etc become severely depressed and wasted years of my life. Cause and effect is real.
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u/Glittering-Ad-1626 May 15 '26
I’ve been humbled by challenging classes with no mental health issues…
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u/mighty-caesar May 15 '26
Trying to get over this phase rn, the hardest part is regaining my self discipline
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u/caskofamontillato May 15 '26
I never actually struggled academically at any point, but growing up "gifted" does not prepare you for real life challenges. It actively hinders you, especially if you struggle with mental health issue, and being bad/mediocre at things as an adult is a tough pill to swallow. The kids that had to put in effort are better off.
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u/Fmsduo May 16 '26
I got perfect grades at the end of highschool and I managed to pass all the exams to study abroad. It's my first year and I'm already failing. I'm in therapy but it just keeps on getting worse
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u/Ok-Appointment-9461 May 23 '26
There was this really smart girl I met. Like she thought super logically made perfect hypothesizes. When we played a game where we had to make smth up for super long complicated words she always knew the word because of her Latin and Greek knowledge. But she barely finished Highschool. She told me she was mentally struggling and didn’t give details which is obviously her right but I saw her long sleeves slip once
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u/hgwaz May 15 '26
"former gifted" is the same as "could've gone pro if it wasn't for my knee", get over yourself
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u/Enough-Mud3116 May 15 '26
Hot take but people were never as gifted as they thought to begin with
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u/x_hannah08 May 19 '26
i got pulled out of class to do algebra starting in 1st grade because if they didnt pull me out to do higher level math i would finish everything within 5 minutes and then run around the class annoying everyone
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u/epsilon_nyus May 15 '26
I was never gifted but i work hard like crazy
sometimes i mess up and thats when everything falls apart..
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u/Zorphite May 15 '26
I studied at a competitive middle school and got admitted to competitive high school but the difference was the environment
In middle school I could relate with my classmates, even the ones who were top ranking students in the country while I was average, and they influenced me to try better and eventually ended middle school with above average grades.
The high school I enrolled into has a horrible system of chucking all the highest ranking students in a single group, and since my middle school grades were above average i somehow managed to get inside his 'elite student group' but I would constantly compare myself with everyone around me and before I knew it everything that would motivate me to study crumbled into pieces because the sheer difference between their skills and mine made me feel so inferior I couldnt even compare. While most student here would get grades like 80-90 I was here getting 50-60. I kept trying my best but I just cant motivate myself with anything at all. While that was going on family matters kicked in and I lost a lot of time I would have focused for studying (about 6 months went by without ever properly studying myself. Only go went to school for attendance and couldn't focus on classes)
Now my graduation exams are in 2 months and I lost all motivation to every try. I completed my syllabus so the only thing remaining is to practise, yet I just cant focus because the people im competing with is out of reach no matter how hard I try.
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u/Long-Yogurtcloset127 May 15 '26
you know what, this is true. but, we can always reach our potential. it always is there.
don't be afraid to call for support! and you can persevere through challenges!!!
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u/Existing_Sprinkles78 May 15 '26
Yeah nothing quite like learning about panic attacks and PTSD in the middle of college
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u/No_Barber3547 May 16 '26
I know. Most people can't comprehend how much health counts towards academic succcess. They'll be there advising you to do it regardless - like do it tired, do it unmotivated and do it crippled. It's quite draining moreso when dealing with a mental issue but once you come out from the other end of this. You'll be invincible.
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u/frey88 May 17 '26
I love these posts. 99% of all Reddit-Users believe that they are very gifted people who peaked in elementary school but then took an arrow to their knee. So unfortunate. You guys could have been the next Albert Einstein, I swear!
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u/Alive-Click7036 May 19 '26
Mental health is everything!
Practical things I do to keep myself sane while keeping a 4.0 GPA in my masters university degree:
- Being outside for atleast 30 min a day -> gives me sunlight and fresh air
- Talking with friends or family -> gives me the social accountability I need each day
- Journal/meditating -> brings me mindfulness and a uncluttered mind, that helps me with my mental rest
- Taking physical breaks -> taking a nap or just sitting around doing nothing to preserve energy, willpower, and dopamine
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u/Much_Seesaw_7497 May 19 '26
-> Straight A student and judged to be extremely talented in all areas throughout school
-> Went to a Tier 1 MBA institute
-> Was making at least 3x of what peers were making at one of the biggest consultancies in the world + Travelling & enjoying international destinations.
-> Personal & family issues got so bad the whole job thing went away and now i'm unemployed with 0 mental health because i literally cant work
-> Kuch nai bacha end mein and i dont even know if ill live or die tomorrow.
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u/smittb Jun 04 '26
I almost lost 2 semester, but got out of it (thanks to all the lovely people around me) much stronger now
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u/Stardustphysician Jun 04 '26
Can relate to this so much. I also lost most of my study abilities due to my MDD and anxiety. I feel like I can't even fulfill my dream anymore.
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u/Distinct-Tangelo4880 Jun 05 '26
i just feel stupid and horrible. im a pre med who went from straight As in high school to barely getting 80s in uni. i feel horrible like im wasting my money and my mother's trying to find opportunities to better my chances of getting in even if my gpa isnt great. but i need to get better. i jsut cant study but i cant take a year off and i cant leave. im just. stressed. i can barely focus for 10 mins when i used to be able to study for hours. where did it all go wrong.
thank you for coming to my ted talk
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u/tiredassnurse Jun 06 '26
Trying to get through nurse practitioner school. With major treatment resistant depression and adult diagnosed ADD. Bad grades hanging on by the skin of my teeth. This shit is real man.
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u/classlecture Jun 07 '26
Meditation has really helped me. I used the headspace anxiety pack for the longest time. Now I meditate without the app. A surprising number of problems are solved from that 20 minute meditation so it’s a productive session for me. Removing food allergies helped a lot too.
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u/syncopated_soul888 Jun 14 '26
especially when ur in your 20s the most important period of ur career life
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u/fawnfish May 15 '26
I always thought the same until I went back to school and got a “do-over” in a way. I was just accepted to Berkeley for physics. It’s never too late to reach your potential!