Do you feel like you're walking on eggshells around your child’s OCD or anxiety? Many well-meaning parents adjust routines, offer reassurance, or help avoid triggers—only to see anxiety grow stronger.
This 9-session workshop will help you break the cycle of accommodation and build your child’s long-term resilience using SPACE (Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions), an evidence-based approach from Yale.
🔹 Learn to:
✔️ Set firm but compassionate boundaries
✔️ Reduce reassurance and avoidance behaviors
✔️ Strengthen communication and family dynamics
✔️ Manage setbacks with confidence
✔️ Prioritize self-care to stay strong
Developed by Dr. Eli Lebowitz at Yale, SPACE is a parent-focused treatment that helps caregivers shift their responses to a child’s anxiety or OCD—without requiring child participation. By changing how caregivers respond, SPACE has been shown to significantly reduce symptoms and improve family well-being.
💡 SPACE helps caregivers:
✔️ Reduce accommodations while maintaining empathy
✔️ Improve confidence in handling anxiety-related behaviors
✔️ Support their child’s independence and resilience
SPACE (Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions) is designed for parents and caregivers of children (ages 7-16) struggling with anxiety or OCD. By changing how caregivers respond, SPACE has been shown to significantly improve symptoms in children, even without direct child participation.
Common Anxiety Disorders Addressed with SPACE:
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) – excessive worry about everyday things
Social Anxiety Disorder – intense fear of social situations or judgment
Separation Anxiety Disorder – extreme distress when apart from caregivers
Panic Disorder – sudden, intense episodes of fear and physical symptoms
Specific Phobias – strong fear of particular objects or situations
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) – intrusive thoughts and compulsive behaviors
Selective Mutism – difficulty speaking in certain social settings despite being able to speak in others
This workshop is highly recommended for:
✔️ Parents and caregivers of children ages 7-16 experiencing anxiety or OCD
✔️ Grandparents, extended family, or other support figures involved in the child’s care
✔️ Any caregiver looking for practical, evidence-based tools to reduce family stress and empower their child
All caregivers are encouraged to attend to ensure a unified and consistent approach.
9 Sessions
This workshop is broken down into 9, hour long structured sessions to address the impact of OCD and anxiety on the entire family.
Week 1: Introduction to SPACE, OCD, & Anxiety
✔️ Understand anxiety and OCD in children
✔️ Learn how parental accommodations maintain anxiety
✔️ Build connections with other participants
Week 2: Parental Awareness & Commitment
✔️ Reflect on emotions and challenges as a caregiver
✔️ Align with other caregivers to create a unified approach
✔️ Commit to reducing accommodations in small steps
Week 3: Assessing Accommodations
✔️ Identify and analyze current parental accommodations
✔️ Understand how accommodations impact long-term recovery
✔️ Recognize patterns and plan for gradual change
Week 4: Creating a Support Plan
✔️ Develop specific, practical strategies to reduce accommodations
✔️ Set achievable goals and identify your support system
Week 5: Communicating with Your Child
✔️ Learn how to empathize while explaining changes
✔️ Practice scripts to reduce accommodations supportively
Week 6: Implementing Change Gradually
✔️ Roll out changes step-by-step
✔️ Monitor progress and adjust strategies
Week 7: Managing Setbacks
✔️ Prepare for challenges and potential backlash
✔️ Develop coping strategies for escalations
Week 8: Reinforcing Parental Self-Care
✔️ Discover the importance of self-care and nervous system regulation
✔️ Learn strategies to manage parental anxiety or guilt
Week 9: Review and Maintenance
✔️ Reflect on progress and build long-term confidence
✔️ Develop a plan to maintain and grow your successes
✔️ Learn how to set firm but loving boundaries that reduce OCD’s grip on your child
✔️ Break the cycle of reassurance and avoidance while strengthening your relationship
✔️ Get expert-led strategies based on SPACE, an evidence-based parent training model
✔️ Feel more confident handling meltdowns, resistance, and setbacks without giving in
Dates: Tuesdays, Starting January 20, 2026
Time: 7PM-8PM CST
Location: Live via Zoom
Investment: $60 per session | $540 for 9 sessions
Payment Plan Available – Can be paid in installments
💙 Sliding scale & pro bono spots available – email erinvenker@ocdmn.com to apply.
🧠 1 in 5 children will experience significant anxiety before adulthood. (National Institute of Mental Health)
🔄 Over 90% of parents of anxious children engage in accommodations that unintentionally reinforce anxiety. (Lebowitz et al., Yale Child Study Center)
💡 SPACE research shows that children experience significant anxiety reduction when parents change their responses—even without child participation in therapy. (Lebowitz, 2019)
⏳ Untreated anxiety disorders in childhood often persist into adulthood and increase the risk of depression and other mental health conditions. (Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 2018)
🚸 OCD affects 1 in 200 children, yet it often goes unrecognized or misdiagnosed for years. (International OCD Foundation)
🛑 Avoidance strengthens anxiety. While avoidance might bring short-term relief, it actually makes anxiety stronger over time. (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy research, APA)
❤️ Parents CAN make a difference. When caregivers reduce accommodations, children become more resilient, independent, and better equipped to manage their anxiety. (Yale Child Study Center, 2019)
FAQ section
You've got questions. We've got answers.
That’s okay! SPACE (Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions) is a parent-based intervention, meaning your child does not need to attend therapy or participate in this workshop for it to be effective. Instead, you’ll learn strategies to change how you respond to your child’s anxiety, which research shows can significantly reduce symptoms and improve family dynamics.
This workshop is designed for parents and caregivers of children ages 7-16 struggling with anxiety or OCD. It’s a great fit if:
✔️ You feel like you’re walking on eggshells around your child’s anxiety.
✔️ You find yourself offering constant reassurance or adjusting routines to prevent meltdowns.
✔️ Your child’s anxiety seems to be getting worse despite your efforts.
✔️ You want to reduce stress in your home and feel more confident in your parenting.
Yes! SPACE has been shown to be effective for children with a range of anxiety-related challenges, including:
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
Social Anxiety Disorder
Separation Anxiety Disorder
Panic Disorder
Specific Phobias
Selective Mutism
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
It’s common for children to resist changes at first—but that doesn’t mean the approach isn’t working. The workshop will teach you how to set boundaries while remaining supportive so you can handle setbacks with confidence. You’ll also receive scripts and strategies to help you communicate changes to your child.
Unlike traditional therapy that focuses on the child’s participation, SPACE focuses on parental responses. Research from Yale shows that when parents change their approach to their child’s anxiety, symptoms significantly decrease—even without direct child involvement.
Yes! In fact, it’s encouraged. The more consistent caregivers are in their approach, the more effective the strategies will be. Grandparents, extended family members, or other key support figures are also welcome.
Each session builds on the previous one, so attending regularly is recommended. However, if you need to miss a session, you’ll have access to session notes and key takeaways to stay on track.
Yes! We offer payment plans and have a limited number of sliding scale and pro bono spots available. Please email erinvenker@ocdmn.com to apply.
The workshop consists of 10 weekly 60-minute sessions, with an optional sibling session. Sessions are designed to be practical, so you can immediately apply what you learn at home.
By the end of the 10 weeks, you’ll have a personalized plan and the skills to continue supporting your child’s progress. You’ll also receive resources and recommendations for ongoing support.
Heidi Lohman is a Licensed Professional Counselor with over 15 years of experience supporting adolescents and young adults, including extensive work in school mental health settings. She is passionate about creating a warm, affirming therapeutic space where clients feel safe, valued, and empowered to be their authentic selves. Heidi works from a trauma-informed and relational lens, emphasizing the mind-body connection, the importance of collaborative care, and integrating the SPACE (Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions) model. She has specialized experience treating eating disorders, including ARFID, and is committed to helping clients and families navigate these challenges with compassion and evidence-based strategies.
Halen Bower specializes in helping children, adolescents, and families navigate anxiety and OCD. With 15 years of experience teaching yoga and mindfulness, she integrates movement, relaxation, and nervous system regulation into therapy. Halen takes a person-centered, play-based approach, incorporating cognitive-behavioral techniques to support emotional resilience. She is passionate about guiding parents in reducing accommodation and fostering lasting change for their children.