CHILD & ADOLESCENT TREATMENT
Anxiety during childhood happens in the context of development.
Children and adolescents are still developing the skills to understand their emotions, tolerate discomfort, and navigate increasingly complex demands and experiences. Anxiety can become intertwined with that process—affecting school, friendships, family life, and the everyday experiences through which confidence and independence develop.
Effective treatment takes development into account. What a child can understand and practice independently, where parents need to be involved, and how treatment extends into school and everyday life all change with age and developmental level.
Conditions Treated
Anxiety is a normal part of childhood and adolescence. Treatment may be appropriate when anxiety causes significant distress or begins to interfere with school, friendships, family life, or everyday activities.
Separation Anxiety
Difficulty separating from parents or caregivers, including distress around school, bedtime, being alone, or sleeping away from home.
Generalized Anxiety
Frequent worry about school, family, health, mistakes, or what might go wrong, sometimes accompanied by reassurance seeking, difficulty relaxing, sleep problems, headaches, or stomachaches.
Health Anxiety
Persistent worry about illness, physical sensations, or something being wrong with the body, often accompanied by checking, reassurance seeking, or repeated questions about health.
School Avoidance
Anxiety that makes getting to school, staying at school, or participating in the school day increasingly difficult, sometimes leading to frequent absences or request to leave early.
Selective Mutism
Consistent difficulty speaking in certain settings, such as school or social situations, despite speaking comfortably in other environments.
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Intrusive thoughts, fears, or “not right” feelings accompanied by rituals, checking, reassurance seeking, repeating, avoidance, or other behaviors a child feels driven to do.
Social Anxiety
Fear of judgment or embarrassment that may show up as avoiding peers, hanging back in groups, difficulty speaking up, or avoiding social and performance situations
Specific Phobias & Emetophobia
Intense fears of particular situations or experiences—including vomiting—that can lead to significant distress, avoidance, or changes in everyday routines.
Individual Treatment & Parent Involvement
Treatment is adapted to the child's age, developmental level, and clinical needs, using evidence-based approaches including cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and exposure and response prevention (ERP).
Parent involvement is tailored to the child and the treatment. Depending on age and clinical needs, parents may participate in sessions, support treatment between sessions, or learn ways of responding to anxiety and OCD that reinforce the work their child is doing.
For some children and adolescents, treatment may instead be conducted primarily through parents.
Learn more about Parent-Based Treatment →
Coordinated Care
When clinically appropriate, I collaborate with pediatricians, school personnel, psychiatrists, and other providers to support treatment across settings.
Coordination may include addressing school avoidance, supporting treatment strategies in the school setting, or collaborating with prescribing clinicians when medication is part of a child's care.
Coordinated Care
When clinically appropriate, I collaborate with pediatricians, school personnel, psychiatrists, and other providers to support treatment across settings.
Coordination may include addressing school avoidance, supporting treatment strategies in the school setting, or collaborating with prescribing clinicians when medication is part of a child's care.
Considering treatment for your child or adolescent?
If you're considering treatment for your child or adolescent, complete the consultation inquiry form to arrange a complimentary initial call and learn more about the practice and next steps.
Telehealth in Maryland and participating PSYPACT states.