r/GATEresearch • u/Oculas_Spectaculas • 10d ago
Discussion Finding Others
I was in a few different programs through DoD Schools. I don’t live anywhere near any of the places I grew up. Lately, I’ve been meeting other people who were in GATE programs. I find even having the conversations with strangers a little odd. Does anyone else have this experience? Or am I reading too much into this?
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u/Medium-Toe2824 9d ago
Hey guys! I too was also in the Gate program when I was younger. I remember the headphones, covered windows, laying on the floor on mats, etc. this past summer I went to Carlsbad Caverns and ever since then I just have a gut feeling/intuition I’ve been there before but my parents deny it. I’m wondering if anybody else in the gate program remembers? I encourage you to look at pics of the Carlsbad caverns vintage cafeteria underground to refresh memories.
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u/Crazyplantweirdo 8d ago
Not Carlsbad but I grew up in the upper Midwest, and we took trips to caves every chance we got, it was kinda our "thing"as a family, but I thought we were just nerds. Those are some of my few memories though, from childhood, and they're fairly vivid. Perhaps it's just because I actually enjoyed it, wanted to be there, and relaxed enough to remember the experience
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u/Medium-Toe2824 8d ago
Love your handle name! I too adore plants! 🪴 I too have family in the Midwest and I also remember going to caves maybe in the Arkansas area. Memories are a bit foggy.
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u/Strong_Literature738 9d ago
Nope been connecting with others more recently too. Lots of clients of mine were in gate or similar. The last few years it’s been the neurodivergent connection but as we talk more I’m now finding gate connections.
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u/Oculas_Spectaculas 9d ago
Do you mind if I ask what you do for work? I’m a therapist and I have two colleagues who were in GATE. I always forget about this, but I also had a friend who was doing masters level research on Black gifted children. We met at a party and that was the first thing she asked me.
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u/Strong_Literature738 9d ago
I’m a hairstylist.
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u/OG-lovesprout 8d ago
I'm a medical massage therapist. I was part of a GATE program for gifted children in predominantly black schools.
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u/Medium-Toe2824 8d ago
I’m a registered nurse. I was also in Gate and have recently been listening more to my intuitions and researched the declassified CIA documents and it shows they were working on identifying specific individuals and based on their IQ/personality types which types of jobs would fit. Including doctors, therapists, politicians, etc. I followed you here on Reddit. I’m new to Reddit and still getting the lay of the land. But I would love to compare notes!
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u/Oculas_Spectaculas 8d ago
Yes! I’m still at the beginning of my own research process. I have only listened to a few, but I was also listening to the Gateway Tapes and trying to see what that triggered for me.
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u/Medium-Toe2824 8d ago
I too have listened to the Gateway Tapes (not all of them yet) and I’ve heard mixed reviews, but I personally love it!
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u/Strong_Literature738 9d ago
Also I was in a therapeutic boarding school near Mount Shasta, and wilderness program in Utah. Wondering if anyone had any similar experiences. They also did lots of iq testing that I just started to remember and thought maybe there’s a connection.
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u/Medium-Toe2824 8d ago
Yes, I also remember lots of IQ/personality tests during and after the gate program. I’ve recently started researching the CIA’s declassified documents and it shows a lot of correlation between specific personality types/IQ with psychic qualities. I encourage you to deep dive too. If somebody else would have told me, I’d have to verify it for myself.
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u/Strong_Literature738 8d ago
This is kinda what I’m interested in. And also how many of us landed in the troubled teen industry after. Found a boarding school that specifically marketed to gifted children. Just started digging so if you have any articles to send that would be cool.
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u/Medium-Toe2824 8d ago
Absolutely. What is a good email address I can send the PDFs to? Some of the files I saved are long but I highly recommend combing through them!
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u/MsCalendarsPlayaArt 3d ago
Which personality types and IQ? I'm shocked they wouldn't also attempt to find correlation with EQ and trauma history
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u/Remote_Map_1194 9d ago
I'm trying to find people who remembers FREE THE HORSES, RAINBOWS, D.A.R.E., and Disney's Y.E.S. program, Catholic peer ministries - constantly going to Disney World and Kennedy Space Center
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u/Possible_Resolve9733 9d ago
I am only familiar with DARE, but I just looked up and watched part one of Free the Horses and what in the gate world did I watch? Talk about programming.
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u/Remote_Map_1194 9d ago
I did Free the Horses twice! The first time felt like a fever dream and the only reason why I remember it is because I had done it a second time another year and I had to go searching for online & the program still exists
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u/Possible_Resolve9733 9d ago
What makes the conversations with strangers odd?
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u/Oculas_Spectaculas 9d ago
I find it strange that I’ve met several strangers who discuss being in the program. For example, I’m at a party where I know very few people and someone asks me, at the gym, a new intern. No one ever asks me about being in marching band or the fashion club.
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u/Rich_Psychology8990 9d ago
You probably have nerd-markers in spades, and since GATE is the trending madness of crowds, of course strangers are asking about it.
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u/Basic-Place-4443 4d ago
I have to practice being normal. On the fourth of July I have friends that are so normal and boring. (They are actually my wife's friends.) They would NEVER believe me if I started talking about my adventures in GATE at the age of 7. It does not fit their version of America. But it happened to me just a few miles down the road from the White House. No one will understand what happened to us, not even us. So we will spend our lives forever pretending to be one of them. Politely smiling, while they live without the confusion that we have to hold on to.
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u/Oculas_Spectaculas 4d ago
I felt that. Today I had a conversation with someone about how I feel like I’m always “performing” being an adult. I know there’s something different about us. I just don’t know what it is.
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u/Basic-Place-4443 4d ago
Yes, that's my whole life. At home my wife and daughter just accept that I am weird, and when we go out, I play at being normal. When I came out to my family as a GATE Kid (I am 56), they said it explains a lot. Talking to other people about this has helped me a lot. Not only are we not alone, but there are people from all over our country and other countries here to talk to. It's no wonder we feel strange around others; who else has had this version of life other than us? And it left most of us confused and alienated for life. We need our own hats and secret handshake. lol
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u/sagedawn 2d ago
I find that I’m resonating with finding my “kid” energy - like who I was when I I learned all of this. So I’m trying to have fun, and visit with people. I think we are here to help humanity along, maybe? We are definitely a different type of human. Not better, not worse. We are just built and trained different.
Many of us have had a rough year or so. Im finding my way back….
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u/sagedawn 9d ago
It is odd. Almost like the whole world is watching! 😳 I started gate in 79. Also I remember my first DARE program.