SPACE Training
Parent-Based Treatment for Childhood Anxiety and OCD
What is SPACE?
SPACE treatment stands for Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions and is a family-based intervention for children and adolescents with OCD and anxiety developed by Dr. Eli Lebowitz at the Yale Child Study Center. This treatment involves educating parents on how to help their child face their fears and anxieties in a supportive and empowering way. SPACE shows parents how accommodation is different from support, and allows parents to learn concrete strategies to eliminate maladaptive parenting behaviors.
Helps with Common Anxiety Disorders
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
Separation Anxiety
Social Anxiety
Generalized Anxiety
Specific Phobias
Illness and Health Anxiety
Panic Disorder and Agoraphobia
Selective Mutism
SPACE Training in Boulder and Fort Collins
SPACE Training is provided in both Boulder and Fort Collins offices and is offered as a one-on-one training for parents in need.
What is covered in SPACE training?
SPACE treatment focuses on helping parents understand the role they play in their child's symptoms, which is often a quite large role in OCD and Anxiety disorders. Unfortunately, the best intentions can lead to dependence in anxious children, and emotional regression. SPACE teaches parents strategies to promote their child's independence and resilience.
Through these concrete training modules, parents will reduce accommodation behaviors that may inadvertently reinforce their child's anxiety. The goal of SPACE treatment is not necessarily to strengthen the parent-child relationship, but rather build the child's confidence and coping skills without the parents. SPACE aims to help parents with burnout and reduce the impact of OCD and anxiety on the family. Training is focused on changing the behaviors of the parents, teaching them how to respond more supportively to their anxious child and to reduce the accommodations they have been making to the child symptoms.
How does it work?
SPACE treats children and adolescents with anxiety disorders and obsessive-compulsive disorder. The child is the patient, even though they are not expected to attend SPACE training. The parents are the ones who attend and it is the parents’ behaviors we are changing, not the childs. We treat the child’s OCD and anxiety through changing the behaviors and responses of the parents.
How long is the program and how much does is cost?
SPACE is offered by two of our fully licensed clinicians:
For our Fort Collins office, SPACE is offered by clinical director Lacey Pacheco, LPC-S.
For our Boulder office, SPACE is offered by Kairos founder, Natalia Aiza, LPC.
The program runs for 10 sessions, each session is 1 hour in duration.
Each session, including the consultation, is $250 and includes both parents or caregivers.
How do I get started?
To discuss your specific needs and goals, our intake process for SPACE training consists of a 45 minute coaching consultation with Lacey or Natalia to determine if SPACE is a good fit. After the consultation session, you can schedule your first SPACE training session and continue once a week for the duration of the program.