[ELH05]

I've heard it being mentioned and written about but I'm not really sure what people mean when they say their child has a spirited personality ?

[in(s)ane]

IME it means the child has behavioural issues which the parent does not wish to acknowledge

[CocobeanLillylov...]

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IME it means the child has behavioural issues which the parent does not wish to acknowledge

Hehe

[Jemstar]

It means that the child has overly strong emotions and reactions to things. For example, my 7 year old bounces off walls when he's happy (I'm actually not exaggerating), when he's sad he can cry for hours, when he's angry... Well it's pretty expressive. Spirited children feel things very deeply, they are highly senstitive to feelings and the world around them, they can also be extra sensitive to noise, crowds, new situations etc, but they are NT (generally speaking).

(I sometimes also think it means they are a PITA on a particularly bad day with my spirited child. Lol)

And item, there was a time when I would have agreed with you, until I had a spirited child. I spend a great deal more time managing his behaviour and acknowledging his issues, worrying about him and working with him than I do my other two children to ensure he doesn't end up that child with 'behavioural issues.' and I much prefer to call him spirited than a PITA (even if I might think it in my head), much of it is finding a way to describe behaviour with a less negative spin.

This post has been edited by Jemstar: 04/01/2013, 11:28 PM

[SeaPork]

I use it occasionally when describing my son instead of saying that he's a bugger of a kid who drives me up the wall.

I have also used it as a teacher when writing reports.

[liveworkplay]

I agree with Item

[SusieGreen]

IME it means the child has behavioural issues which the parent does not wish to acknowledge

[YodaTheWrinkledO...]

what item said.

Otherwise, other similar descriptors would include
- livewire
- enthusiastic
- feisty
- passionate
- beligerent (if you get them at the wrong time)
- more extreme in their expression of emotion
- larger than life

[KnightsofNi]

I use it to describe my DD. It is my way of saying that my DD is a stubborn, very independent, active, spitfire of a child.

[in(s)ane]

Jemstar, I do take your point.

In my defence I'm recovering from a 'holiday' with a family whose child clearly needs some extra help. Like pretty obvious ADHD and very subtle but problematic ASD traits. The family just kept saying 'he's a lovely little boy' and I just wanted to scream!

FTR I have a now sub-clinical ASD, gifted little guy with anxiety, so I do get how exhausting it is trying to manage it all. It just upsets me when people stick their heads in the sand rather than deal with/help their child *sigh*