Child & Adolescent Counseling
As parents, we want to keep our children safe and will do anything to alleviate their anxiety and distress. But, what if trying to decrease that anxiety is actually making them more anxious in the long run? By constantly preventing our children from feeling anxious, we are teaching them that anxiety is scary and bad. We are teaching our children that they can’t handle anxiety and that any acceptable level of risk or uncertainty is to be avoided.
So, what would it be like if we changed that message? What if we taught our children that anxiety is an emotion that isn’t all that bad and that we have to learn how to live with it? What if we taught our kids to lean into their anxiety?
At the North Suburban Center for Anxiety, we empower children (8+), adolescents, and families with the necessary skills to lean into their anxiety and face their fears.
Treatment consists of the following:
Initial, comprehensive assessment with parent/guardian and child that evaluates a client’s history, functioning, presenting concerns, and treatment goals
Individualized treatment plan for anxiety, OCD, and related disorders that is tailored to meet the child’s needs
Skills-based approach that teaches clients to challenge their irrational thoughts, modify their fear-based behaviors, and ultimately decrease their overall anxiety
Parental attendance in session to improve parents’ understanding of skills and to increase generalization of skills outside of session
Parent coaching on how parents can best support their child
Frequent consultation with the client’s schools, doctors, and outside providers to provide consistency of care and to help maintain gains outside of session
Sessions in the office, in the home, at school, in a restaurant, at a mall, or wherever anxiety may be experienced and exposures may be helpful
Areas of Specialization
Anxiety Disorders
Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Social Anxiety
Panic Disorder
Panic Attacks
Agoraphobia
Selective Mutism
Specific Phobia (fear of vomiting, blood, needles, flying and driving)
Separation Anxiety
Obsessive Compulsive & Related Disorders
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
Hoarding
Skin Picking (Excoriation)
Hair Pulling (Trichotillomania)
Parent Coaching
Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions (SPACE): Parent-based treatment program
Associated Symptoms
Depression
Stress
School Refusal
Perfectionism
ADHD