When a child or teen is anxious, the whole family feels it, and often the most powerful change comes from working with the parents, not only the child. Some anxiety in kids is healthy and developmentally normal. It becomes a problem when it interferes with school, friendships, sleep, or family life, or when a child's distress affects the whole family.
What we treat
If selective eating or ARFID is also a concern, see our ARFID and selective eating page.
How we work
SPACE (Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions) is an approach for anxiety in children and adolescents ages 6-17, or sometimes young adults still living at home. Developed at the Yale Child Study Center, SPACE works with parents rather than the child directly. Research shows it significantly reduces childhood anxiety, often without the child ever attending a session.
If you're parenting an anxious child, you've probably adjusted your family's routines to help them feel safer, answering reassurance questions, avoiding certain places, staying nearby at bedtime. These accommodations come from love. They can also maintain anxiety. SPACE helps parents gradually reduce them in a structured way, while learning new ways to communicate confidence and support.
While SPACE is enough on its own for some children, others benefit from working directly with a therapist using ERP, CBT, or ACT. This is especially common for OCD, panic disorder, or specific phobias. When your child is willing, we can combine both approaches.
What to expect
We start with a thorough assessment of your child's anxiety and how your family has been responding to it. From there we build a path forward together.