SPACE Treatment in Santa Monica
Help Your Child Overcome Anxiety
Is your child's anxiety causing major disruptions in your family life? Do you find yourself making constant accommodations and going to great lengths to "rescue" your child from their fears and worries? If this sounds familiar, you're not alone - and there's a revolutionary treatment approach that can help.
Introducing SPACE
SPACE, which stands for Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions, is an evidence-based program pioneered at the Yale Child Study Center. Unlike traditional therapy where your child has to participate in sessions, with SPACE you as the parent take an active role in learning skills to manage your child's anxiety.
Breaking the Cycle of Accommodation
When children struggle with anxiety disorders like OCD, separation anxiety, social phobia, and others, parents often inadvertently reinforce the anxiety through accommodations. This could mean:
Sleeping next to your child with separation issues, night after night
Repeatedly checking for signs of illness for a child with health anxiety
Enabling avoidance of feared situations like school or social events
While the accommodations provide temporary relief, they send the message that the child cannot handle the anxiety on their own. This creates a cycle where anxiety worsens over time as the child becomes more dependent on accommodations.
When Child Therapy Isn't an Option: SPACE
Getting children to open up and actively participate in therapy can be extremely challenging, especially when they are:
Ambivalent or resistant to the therapy process
Unmotivated or unready to confront their anxiety
Too young to fully engage in individual treatment
For these situations, SPACE treatment offers an effective frontline approach to supporting children struggling with anxiety, fears, and related challenges.
Empowering Parents for Positive Change
With SPACE, your child does not need to attend therapy sessions. Instead, parents/caregivers become active participants, learning strategies to:
Respond to their child's anxiety in a supportive, understanding way
Reduce accommodations that may be enabling the child's anxiety cycle
Promote resilience by building the child's confidence to cope
Through these strategies, your child starts to internalize the belief that they have the strength to face their fears. You remain deeply involved but shift from rescuer to supporter.
This parent-based treatment is especially recommended for younger children who require significant emotional support and involvement from parents.
What Does SPACE Involve
Parents (ideally one or both parents/caregivers) attend approximately 10-12 sessions, either in-person or virtually. The treatment course will be customized to your family's specific needs, but typically includes:
Initial sessions to understand your child's anxiety symptoms and patterns
Guidance on implementing supportive responses to your child's anxiety
Strategies for gradually reducing accommodations enabling the anxiety cycle
Potential sessions inviting your child for behavioral observation/assessment
Frequent monitoring to adjust approaches and duration as needed
Treatment length, frequency of sessions, and specific interventions are carefully tailored to provide your child the best outcomes. Throughout the process, you remain fully involved as the agent of change, supported by our clinicians' expertise.
Transformative Results
Clinical trials show SPACE is as effective as therapeutic approaches where children directly participate. More importantly, it fosters independence and resilience that can have lifelong positive impacts.
For many parents, SPACE represents a lifeline - a chance to help their child in a compassionate yet empowering way. Our therapists deeply understand the burdens and emotional difficulties that come with childhood anxiety. We're here to coach you step-by-step through this journey.
Take The First Step Today
Childhood should be a time of joy, growth, and treasured memories - not consumed by anxiety. Help your child get their childhood back by scheduling a consultation for SPACE.
