Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions (SPACE)
Treatment Program for Parents of Anxious Children
What is SPACE?
SPACE stands for Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions. Developed by Dr. Eli Lebowitz at the Yale Study Center for parents of anxious children, SPACE is an evidence-based treatment. Numerous research studies show that SPACE treatment reduces children’s nervous behaviors after their parents have received it. SPACE treats various anxiety problems in children and teens. These include separation anxiety, social anxiety, generalized anxiety, fears and phobias, panic disorder and agoraphobia, selective mutism, and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
You can read more about the treatment and research here.
How does SPACE work?
During the course of the SPACE treatment, parents learn about how anxiety develops in children and how to change their approach to address their child’s anxiety. Parents learn to respond to their child in a supportive way and reduce accommodations for the child’s anxiety symptoms. Jill individualizes treatment for each family. The goals of treatment include your child feeling less anxious and functioning better, as well as other improvements to how you and your family are feeling and functioning.
What SPACE services do you offer at Kentlands Psychotherapy?
Dr. Jill Jacobson, our Parenting and Adult Therapist holds training in the SPACE treatment. She offers this support to parents of anxious children and teens as part of her comprehensive, therapeutic parenting support services. She individualizes the treatment to your family’s needs and can support you in addressing your own anxiety and other mental health needs during the program. There is also an option for one of our child or teen therapists to work with your child simultaneously so you both feel supported throughout the process.
Questions? Are you wondering if SPACE fits for your family? Schedule a brief introductory phone call or email Dr. Jill Jacobson (JJacobson@KentlandsPsychotherapy.com) to learn more.
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