GROUP Therapy
Caregiving for your Anxious Child
Starts September, 2022
A quick word from Dr. Zia
Caregiving for your Anxious Child – September 2022
This child and parent group will help parents to feel more effective in managing their child’s anxiety, and also provide children with coping strategies they can rely on to help regulate themselves independently of caregivers.
This group is run by Dr. Zia Lakdawalla and involves the following:
- Gain an overall understanding of anxiety and how it develops.
- Discover strategies to respond to your child’s anxious feelings and behaviours.
- Meet the emotional needs of your child while helping them to face their fears.
- Learn how to increase your anxious child’s resilience.
✔️ Your Child’s Age is 3 to 7
8 weeks, every Wednesday at 10 AM (EST).
Start Date:
September 28, 2022
Wednesdays at 10 am (EST)
The parent component of the group uses a Supporting Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions (SPACE) approach that has been demonstrated to be as effective as 1-on-1 cognitive behavioural therapy. It is a well-researched and targeted parent intervention for treating anxiety symptoms and disorders in children. You will learn the theory and framework for how anxiety functions in children and come away with long-lasting tools to create self-confidence and resilience in your child.
Group Outline:
Session 1: What is anxiety? And what have you tried to help your child?
Session 2: How to support your anxious child
Session 3: Introduction to common parent traps related to childhood anxiety
Session 4 to 6: How to target areas that will increase your child’s coping and inform your child about your plan
Session 7: Tracking progress, troubleshooting and more targets.
Session 8: Reviewing progress and planning for long-term success.
Materials:
These will be provided to you, available online using any device, phone, tablet or desktop.
✔️ Your Child’s Age is 8 to 11
VIRTUAL Parent group:
Tuesdays at 12 pm (EST) beginning September 27, 2022
IN-PERSON Child Group:
Mondays at 4:30 pm (EST), beginning September 26, 2022
This 8-week concurrent child and parent group is designed to help parents and children learn the skills and tools necessary to cope with childhood anxiety. The parent component of the group uses a Supporting Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions (SPACE) approach that has been demonstrated to be as effective as 1-on-1 cognitive behavioural therapy. It is a well-researched and targeted parent intervention for treating anxiety symptoms and disorders in children. The child component of this group uses a cognitive behavioural approach with children and teaches practical tools and strategies for managing anxiety independently.
Group Outline:
PARENT GROUP
- Session 1: What is anxiety? And what have you tried to help your child?
- Session 2: How to support your anxious child
- Session 3: Introduction to common parent traps related to childhood anxiety
- Session 4-6 : How to target areas that will increase your child’s coping and inform your child about your plan
- Session 7: Tracking progress, trouble shooting and more targets.
- Session 8: Reviewing progress and planning for long term success.
CHILD GROUP
- Session 1: Icebreakers and Introduction to anxiety
- Session 2: Anxiety and the natural urge to avoid
- Session 3: Calming your body- learning the tools to calm your physiology
- Session 4: Understanding anxious thinking- False alarms vs. Real alarms
- Session 5: Challenging your thoughts- Become a thought detective!
- Session 6: Making a plan for coping and Introduction to facing your fears.
- Session 7: Facing your Fears Part 1
- Session 8: Facing your Fears Part 2
Materials:
These will be provided to you, available online using any device, phone, tablet or desktop.