Separation Anxiety
Intense distress when apart from a parent or caregiver, often showing up at school drop-off, bedtime, or sleepovers.
Childhood Anxiety Therapy
Helping Anxious Children in Roswell & Atlanta
When worry starts running your child's day, the right support can give them their world back. Our child therapists help kids understand their anxiety, build coping skills, and feel like themselves again.
Understanding Anxiety in Children
Anxiety is one of the most common reasons families seek therapy for a child, and it often hides in plain sight. Instead of saying "I feel anxious," a child may complain of stomachaches, melt down at drop-off, refuse to sleep alone, or avoid the things that used to bring them joy. To the adults around them, it can look like defiance, clinginess, or "being difficult," when what's really happening is a nervous system stuck in overdrive.
The good news is that childhood anxiety is highly treatable. With evidence-based care, children learn that anxious feelings are uncomfortable but not dangerous, and that they can face hard things one step at a time. Early support matters: when kids build these skills young, they carry them into adolescence and adulthood.
Our therapists work closely with parents and meet children where they are, using play-based approaches for younger kids and child-friendly cognitive behavioral therapy as they grow. This page is part of our broader children's therapy services.
Signs of Anxiety in Children
Anxiety in kids often shows up in the body and in behavior long before they can put it into words.
Frequent stomachaches or headaches with no medical cause
Trouble separating from you at school, bedtime, or drop-off
Refusing or dreading school, activities, or sleepovers
Asking the same worried questions over and over for reassurance
Meltdowns or shutting down over mistakes and changes in routine
Trouble falling asleep alone or frequent nightmares
Avoiding new situations, social events, or speaking up
Perfectionism and intense fear of getting things wrong
Restlessness, irritability, or difficulty concentrating
Clinginess that feels out of step with their age
Common Types of Childhood Anxiety
Anxiety takes different shapes in different children. We tailor treatment to what your child is actually experiencing.
School Anxiety & Refusal
Dread, tears, or physical complaints around school, sometimes leading to avoidance or frequent visits to the nurse.
Social Anxiety
Fear of being judged, embarrassed, or the center of attention, which can look like shyness, silence, or avoidance.
Generalized Worry
Persistent "what if" worries about family, safety, health, or the future that are hard for a child to switch off.
Specific Fears & Phobias
Strong, lasting fears of things like the dark, animals, storms, vomiting, or medical visits that disrupt daily life.
Panic & Physical Symptoms
Racing heart, shakiness, or a sense of dread, often mistaken for a stomach bug or behavioral problem.
Anxiety also frequently overlaps with OCD, social anxiety, and attention differences. When the picture is unclear, our clinicians help sort out what's driving your child's distress so treatment targets the right thing.
How We Treat Childhood Anxiety
Evidence-Based, Kid-Friendly Therapy
We use cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) adapted for children, helping them externalize anxiety, recognize anxious thoughts, and learn that worry is something they can manage rather than something that controls them.
Gradual, Supported Exposure
Avoidance feeds anxiety. We help children approach feared situations in small, manageable steps, building real confidence through experience, so school, sleep, and social life slowly feel possible again.
Parent Coaching
You'll learn how to respond to anxiety in ways that build resilience instead of reinforcing it. Because so much of the work happens at home, parents are active partners throughout treatment.
Therapists Who Treat Childhood Anxiety
Clinicians with specific training and experience in anxiety, OCD, and child development.
Lauren Sanders, LPC
Certified anxiety treatment professional, pediatric OCD & play therapy
Michaela Hilburn, LAPC
Anxiety, trauma & play-based work with children ages 5+
Kelsey Madsen (Donahue), LPC
Anxiety, behavioral issues & CBT/DBT for kids and teens
Lexi Cooper, LMSW
Anxiety, ADHD, OCD & ERP for children and families
Anxiety Therapy for Children Across North Atlanta
Families come to us for childhood anxiety treatment from Roswell, Alpharetta, Sandy Springs, Johns Creek, East Cobb, and surrounding North Atlanta communities. We see children in person at our Roswell office, and we offer secure online sessions for families throughout Georgia.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I know if my child's anxiety needs treatment? ▼
Some worry is a normal, healthy part of growing up. Anxiety is worth professional support when it is frequent, intense, or starts interfering with everyday life: missing school, avoiding friends, trouble sleeping, daily meltdowns, or physical complaints with no medical cause. If anxiety is shrinking your child's world, an evaluation can help.
Why does my anxious child complain of stomachaches and headaches? ▼
Children often experience anxiety in their bodies before they can name it as a feeling. Stomachaches, headaches, nausea, and fatigue are extremely common physical expressions of childhood anxiety, especially around school mornings or stressful events. A pediatrician can rule out medical causes, and therapy addresses the underlying worry.
How is anxiety treated in young children? ▼
For younger children we use developmentally appropriate, play-based approaches alongside child-friendly cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). Gradual, supported exposure helps children face feared situations step by step, while building coping skills and confidence. Parent coaching is a core part of treatment so progress continues at home.
Could it be anxiety or ADHD, or both? ▼
Anxiety and ADHD can look similar in children and frequently occur together, which is why getting clarity matters. Our article on anxiety vs. ADHD explains the differences, and your child's therapist can help determine what is really going on so treatment targets the right thing.
How are parents involved? ▼
Parents are essential partners. You'll receive guidance on how to respond to your child's anxiety in ways that build resilience rather than reinforce avoidance, plus regular check-ins on progress. Much of the lasting change in childhood anxiety happens through what families practice together between sessions.
Where do you offer childhood anxiety therapy? ▼
We see children in person at our Roswell office, and we offer secure online sessions for families across Georgia. Availability varies by clinician.
Help Your Child Feel Like Themselves Again
Anxiety doesn't have to define your child's childhood. Our experienced therapists can help your family find a way forward.