Anxiety disorders are now recognized as the most common emotional disorder in the U.S. as well as in 16 out of 17 countries surveyed by the World Health Organization. The soaring trend towards anxiety has been accelerated by stress and threats, such as terrorism, natural disasters, economic recession, school shootings, pandemic illness, and divisive politics. These threats to children’s security, which also include divorce, bullying, and violence in the media has produced a “shell shocked” generation suffering from anxiety in many cases. Our challenge is to recognize anxiety in children and help them cope.

In this webinar, participants will grasp how anxiety develops in children and adolescents, and acquire practical treatment strategies that can be applied immediately in their professional work. Seven key anxiety disorders will be addressed: separation anxiety disorder, panic disorder, overanxious disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, social anxiety disorder, phobias, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Emphasis will be on integrative psychotherapeutic interventions involving insight-oriented, cognitive-behavioral, mind-body, solution-oriented and family systems approaches.

This training is worth six (6) continuing education hours.

An application for 6 continuing education hours has been made to the Maine Board of Alcohol and Drug Counselors.

Objectives of the Training:

• Explain how anxiety develops in children and adolescents using the “three ingredients” blueprint
• Distinguish between “normal” and “abnormal” anxiety
• Identify the personality traits and cognitive style of anxious children
• Describe the key features of six child/adolescent anxiety disorders
• Apply effective interventions for each of six child/adolescent anxiety disorders

Agenda for the Day:

Morning I: Nature and Causes of Anxiety 8:30-10:15

• Why, how and when anxiety develops in children
• Three ingredients in all anxiety disorders (temperament, personality style, stress)
• The “anxiety personality”—assets and liabilities
• Foundation skills for managing stress and anxiety

Break 10:15-10:30

Morning II: Treatment Strategies 10:30-12:00

• Separation Anxiety Disorder: graduated exposure, helping parents let go
• Panic Disorder/Agoraphobia: “Floating Technique”

Lunch 12:00-1:00

Afternoon I: Treatment Strategies 1:00-2:15

• Generalized Anxiety Disorder: interventions for replacing worry with positive cognition
• Obsessive-Compulsive and Related Disorders: types of obsessions, purpose of compulsions, exposure and response prevention (ERP)

Break 2:15-2:30

• Afternoon II: Treatment Strategies 2:30-4:00
• Social Phobia: self-esteem causes and interventions, group therapy
• Specific Phobias: Using virtual reality in exposure therapy
• Trauma- and Stressor-related Disorder: ACE studies, treatment goals and methodologies

About the presenter:

Dr. Paul Foxman is Founder and Director of the Vermont Center for Anxiety Care, a private outpatient practice in Burlington, Vermont. He has over 40 years of professional experience in a variety of settings, including hospitals, community mental health centers, graduate schools in psychology, and private practice. Dr. Foxman is the author of Dancing With Fear (1996) and The Worried Child (2004), the Clinician’s Guide to Anxiety Disorders in Kids and Teens (2017), as well as other publications on the topic of anxiety including a co-authored casebook, Conquering Panic and Anxiety Disorders (2003). His most recent book is Traumas and Triumphs (2022).

Dr. Foxman’s education includes Yale University (B.A. in Psychology), Vanderbilt University (Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology), pre-doctoral internships at the Department of Psychiatry at Mt. Zion Hospital in San Francisco and the Kennedy Child Study Center in Nashville, and training seminars at the San Francisco Psychoanalytic Institute.

In 1985 Dr. Foxman co-founded the Lake Champlain Waldorf School in Shelburne, Vermont, now flourishing from kindergarten through high school. As a frequent workshop presenter as well as expert on radio and television shows, Dr. Foxman is known for his knowledge and clarity of thought, sense of humor, and engaging speaking style.

Register here