late summer/fall 2021 group offerings

I am happy to offer a number of groups this Fall.  

• All groups will be held on ZOOM.
• Participants must commit to all group sessions.
• "Back to School Jitters" and the PAGES group do not require an assessment before participation.
• The 8-week treatment groups do require a thorough assessment prior to participation - this includes a parent only session (one hour) and a child session (one hour).  The total fee for these two sessions is $420.  A proper assessment is essential to make sure that patients are well suited to group treatment and to allow me to tailor each group to the cohort of kids enrolled.  
• Cost is $100 per group meeting (e.g., parent group is $400 total)

Back to School Jitters 
August 17 @1-2

This one session group, mostly geared to kids starting middle school, will cover typical back to school concerns - getting lost, figuring out lockers, and who to eat lunch with!  Kids are also welcome who have been out of school due to COVID or who are starting at a new school this Fall.

Teen OCD Group
8 Sessions, Date & Time to be decided (beginning Sept 2021)

This group, geared to 9-12th graders diagnosed with OCD, will begin with two sessions of psychoeducation.  We will learn what maintains OCD over time and what we need to do to change it.  Each participant will then be coached to build a hierarchy that will guide their treatment.  Subsequent sessions will involve exposure to feared situations, strategies for reducing compulsions, and discussions of how to live a meaningful life without OCD.  

Teen Anxiety Group
8 Sessions, Date & Time to be decided (beginning Sept 2021)

This group is geared to 9-12th graders diagnosed with anxiety disorders besides OCD.  This includes generalized anxiety (excessive worry), social anxiety, specific phobias, illness anxiety, and panic disorder.  The group is not suitable for kids whose main difficulty is trauma.  The group will begin with two sessions of psychoeducation.  We will learn what maintains anxiety over time and what we need to do to change it.  Each participant will then be coached to build a hierarchy that will guide their treatment.  Subsequent sessions will involve exposure to feared situations, strategies for reducing safety behaviors, and discussions of how to live a meaningful life without anxiety.  

*** For kids whose main difficulty is excessive perfectionism, Dr. Ledley will suggest joining either the teen OCD group or the teen anxiety group, depending on clinical presentation.  

Middle School Social Anxiety Group
8 Sessions, Date & Time to be decided (beginning Sept 2021)

This group is geared to 6-8th graders diagnosed with social anxiety.  We will learn what maintains anxiety over time and what we need to do to change it.  Each participant will be coached to build a hierarchy that will guide their treatment.  Subsequent sessions will involve exposure to feared situations, strategies for reducing safety behaviors, and discussions of how to live a meaningful life without anxiety.  We will have many important discussions about topics like where to find friends and what makes a good friend and how to initiate and maintain conversations, 

Parent Anxiety Group: Education and Support (PAGES GROUP)
4 Sessions
Runs on a rolling basis, next session to start on Sept 15th @ 10am 

This four-week group, held on Zoom, offers parents the opportunity to learn about why anxiety is maintained over time and what they can do at home to start to change it.  Weeks One and Two were primarily "education" with tons of learning packed into two hours!  Weeks Three and Four were tailored to "support" group members' unique needs.  You ask, I answer!  Topics covered in prior groups have included anger/difficult temperament; social anxiety; perfectionism; raising independent, resilient kids; and sleep challenges. 

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