Are you an Indigo? The concept of the Indigo Child is based on the belief that certain children have a perception, intelligence and skill set beyond their years and some believe their abilities approach paranormal levels. Whether these beliefs of precociousness are reasonably founded or not, is still a matter open to debate.
The typical Indigo Child has some enviable traits that any parent would be pleased to see in their own offspring, such as a high intelligence quota, sharpened intuition to almost psychic ability along with a quick wit and the ability to learn everything they are taught without having to repeat a single lesson.
Well that’s just great, right? However, the Indigo Child also possesses a few quirks that the average parent would prefer their child to be without, such as being argumentative, rebellious, quick to point out other people’s shortcomings, a precocious approach to school and an aversion to being told what to do with an over developed sense of entitlement. Ouch!
Recognizing the Indigo traits
An Indigo personality will reveal itself at an early age, some theories as early as birth. Forget trying to ignore an Indigo baby’s cries, they are demanding and insistent. They are watchful, learning new skills and movements almost instantly and have a curious talent for gaining attention.
The fledgling Indigo persona likes independence, clever games that tax the mind and motor skills, will prefer building sets and high achievement challenges to watching babyish cartoons or dressing dolls.
Indigo likes to get its own way and shows indifference to authority, so parenting an Indigo child requires creative discipline and a talent for finding a number of acceptable alternatives to the word “no.”
The Spiritual Aspect
Those who believe in the Indigo effect also contend there is a heightened sense of spirituality in Indigo children which is also attributed to the growth of spiritual activity in the world such as the development in followings of Yoga, paranormal abilities such as ESP and telepathy, the so-called “Sixth Sense,” that unexplained knowledge of matters outside the normal realm of a child’s environment combined with an almost spiritual serenity that says: “I am special and I know it.”
Some enlightened parents see the possibility of having an Indigo child as an opportunity to develop a gift. Others see their child’s leaning toward temper tantrums and a bossy, over-developed ego as a nuisance and a worry and seek advice from medical or psychological professionals to help them deal with the fallout.
It is a known fact that many children who exhibit appalling behavior from pre-school onward develop into highly motivated, intelligent, successful executives. Are they Indigos? Are you an Indigo? Do you recognize yourself here?
Some Indigo children are suspected or even diagnosed with Autism, ADHD, an allergic reaction to sugar, additives and certain foods. Indigo purists believe this is all stuff and nonsense and recommend leaving the child to develop at their own pace and within their own sphere of acceptability, free of the conventional disciplines that serve only to stultify and limit the child’s natural gifts.
Opinions and Critics
There are always those who feel they recognize typical Indigo behavior as the symptoms of dysfunctional parenting or possibly the “Barnum Effect,” also known as the “Forer Effect,” which takes a specific set of behavioral activities and compartmentalizes them to apply to a whole range of people when in fact they are merely generalizations that could apply to nearly everyone. Critics also point out that there is no medical or scientific evidence to prove that Indigo children exist.
Children who are attributed with the Indigo personality traits tend to fare badly in large comprehensive or academy learning environments where there is inadequate streaming and where their “special demands” tend to be viewed with a stern eye, often put down to willfulness, disobedience and rudeness. All true on the face of things of course but if the Indigo theory carries any weight, imposing stern discipline on such children is just a waste of time and resources.
Extreme opponents to recognizing the Indigo effect accuse parents of such children of evading the issue of responsible guardianship, posing the question that such people are simply seizing the relatively safe Indigo label to avoid having to face up to the possibility that their child is suffering from a mental illness or anti-social behavioral disorder that might be corrected with either expensive medical treatment or uncomfortable discipline.
Other opinions, especially from the older generation, outline typical behavior traits from childhoods in days gone by, when typical Indigo activity was unheard of along with temper tantrums in the schoolroom, refusal to comply with instructions from teachers and parents, that destructive and demanding personality for which Indigo children are known… They argue that such behavior was not tolerated in those days, and neither did Indigo exist as a possible explanation for such conduct, ergo Indigo is just rubbish, nonsense, an excuse for poor parenting.
A Convenient Label?
Perhaps they are right. Perhaps Indigo is a passing fad, a convenient label for the use of parents who cannot be bothered to look after their children’s social behavior: “Look, our child is an Indigo Child and therefore needs to be cut a whole lot of slack.”
Indigo kids are gaining ground when it comes to being accepted by society as “special.” Schools are becoming progressively accepting of children whose needs should be catered to by specially trained educators with an understanding of how to deal with difficult children requiring kid glove handling. Are they Indigos? Or are they simply a pain in the neck with regard to discipline and need Boot Camp rather than understanding and a gentle hand? Are they really Indigos? Are you an Indigo? If you think you know better than anyone else about just about anything and have an almost spiritual sense of perception; if you think you can achieve anything you set out to achieve without breaking a sweat and you hate being told what to do, perhaps you are.
Whatever you believe, the Indigo phenomenon is being seriously and formally debated: In Hawaii in 2002, an Indigo conference drew the attention of 600 participants as well as being the subject of several movies and documentaries.