Anxiety Wellness Center of Chicagoland (AWCC) provides services to individuals across the lifespan. Because of the specialized nature of the treatment at AWCC, it can be implemented to accommodate any age.
Children/Adolescents
It is very common for children and adolescents to display symptoms of anxiety and related disorders. When these are observed and become problematic, engaging in treatment early sets the child/adolescent up for the best opportunity for successful symptom management. This also provides children and their parents with the tools necessary to manage symptoms if they manifest themselves in other ways in the future.
When working with children, parent/guardian collaboration is often required. Parent sessions may also be recommended to provide the best treatment for the child. These sessions may be scheduled regularly, or on an as-needed basis, depending on the needs of the child and the treatment plan.
It may also be the case that a child suffering from an anxiety disorder does not want to accept help. This puts parents in a very difficult position, understanding that their child is in need of help, but is not willing to engage in the process. In this case, Dr. Bauer will work diligently with the parents to educate them about the anxiety disorder and what treatment would require. At this point, Dr. Bauer is willing to continue working with the parents in effort to help reduce accommodations so the anxiety disorder to reduce the impact it has on the family as a whole.
Adults/Spouses
When working with adults, spouses or other involved individuals will be incorporated into the treatment as relevant and necessary to help achieve the best results. Often, it is beneficial for spouses to understand the education about the anxiety disorder and the treatment of CBT to better understand the struggle and goals of their loved ones. There may also be times when a spouse or a loved one unintentionally reinforces the anxiety. In these situations, they will be coached on how to respond in a way that supports their loved one and not their loved one’s anxiety. Finally, as anxiety can often take a toll on a relationship of any nature, Dr. Bauer believes it is important to help everyone understand the difficulty of these disorders.