SPACE Therapy for Parents

SPACE (Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions) therapy is a structured, evidence-based treatment designed to help parents of children, teens and young adults struggling with anxiety, OCD or related challenges reduce and manage symptoms. Instead of working directly with the child, parents develop strategies to change and replace behavior patterns that unintentionally reinforce anxiety. SPACE was developed by Dr. Eli Leobowitz at Yale and has been clinically proven to reduce children, adolescents, and young adults’ anxiety while working exclusively with parents to help their children break the cycle of anxiety-reinforcing behaviors and foster resilience.

How SPACE Therapy Works:

• It helps parents reduce accommodation behaviors (actions to prevent or soothe a child’s anxiety).
• Teaches parents how to respond with statements that are both supportive and encourage independence and mastery.
• Provides strategies for parents to effectively handle meltdowns, tantrums, avoidance, and reassurance-seeking without reinforcing anxiety.