If you …
- are concerned about your 3 – 12 year old
- need help understanding and responding more effectively to their anxiety
- want to learn what you can do to help your child build skills
… parent coaching can help
Do you feel like you are being held hostage by your child’s anxiety? Do you need to change plans, skip work, spend inordinate amounts of time soothing, reassuring, placating, pushing? Are your other children resentful of their anxious sibling? Is there conflict between you and your spouse? Have you tried everything you can think of and still, your family remains stuck?
Anxiety appears in many forms: tears, stomach aches, refusal to do things, the need for excessive reassurance, avoidance, difficulties with sleep, with eating, with transitions, with change. But whatever form it takes, anxiety follows a predictable pattern. Learning to recognize this pattern – and the reinforcement loop that holds anxiety in place – is the first thing we’ll do.
Wherever you are in your own understanding of anxiety, there is plenty you can do to help your child. The first step is reframing your goal, moving from, “I need to help my child feel less anxious” to, “I need to help my child learn to feel anxious, and do X, Y, or Z anyway.” Learning to function alongside anxiety (rather than trying desperately to make it go away) is the key to breaking free. So, we’ll talk about how to do that. How to change your relationship with anxiety, and help your child do the same.
Parent Coaching is not therapy. It can supplement therapy, or precede it, but it is not a replacement. I cannot diagnose your child, nor will I treat them directly. Instead, Coaching is an educational resource for you, an adult who loves and is trying to support an anxious child.
Parent Coaching takes place on Zoom. I am on the west coast (Pacific Time Zone), but I see clients from around the world. Most parents elect weekly meetings to start, but there are no hard and fast rules. We can meet at whatever frequency suits your needs and your budget.
Some parents want just a session or two to better understand their role in helping their child build skills. Others want ongoing appointments to help them walk the path. Either option is fine; you don’t have to decide in advance. We will meet as often as you need to meet, for as long (or short) as you want, and then we will be done.
Ready to begin?
Please:
- Fill out the Parent Coaching Intake Form.
- Review and electronically sign the Parent Coaching Service Agreement.
- Pay for your initial appointment.
Once you have completed these three steps, I will reach out to you to schedule.
What about therapy?
If you are looking for therapy rather than Parent Coaching, please note that I no longer provide CBT (or therapy of any kind). If you were referred to me directly, please return to the person who made the referral to ask for additional names. I am not able to provide referrals to families I have never worked with so please do not contact me asking for a referral. I can, however, provide some ideas about finding a therapist.
Unsure?
If you think Parent Coaching might suit you but you aren’t ready to commit to a session, please email a brief description of your situation and the question that is holding you back.