Facing Your Fears: Group Therapy for Managing Anxiety in Children with High-Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorders

Anxiety is one of the biggest challenges faced by children with high-functioning autism spectrum disorders and Asperger syndrome. Help them conquer their fears—and participate more fully in home, school, and community life—with this innovative group therapy program for children 8–14 years old and their parents.

Ideal for small groups of 4–5 children but also effective in one-to-one therapy, this proven, ready-to-use program is a must for mental health professionals who work with children and families in clinical settings. Developed to address the specific needs and challenges of children with high-functioning ASD and Asperger syndrome, Facing Your Fears works because it

• targets specific fears or worries that interfere with day-to-day functioning at home and school
• actively involves parents in every session—the key to helping children make progress and ensuring that families provide skillful, sensitive support
• is backed by more than 7 years of funded research, including two clinical trials with positive outcomes
• engages children with memorable, age-appropriate strategies for defeating anxiety, from creating "worry bugs" to filming movies of themselves facing their fears
• gives children repeated opportunities to practice their social interactions with others
• uses the highly effective principles of cognitive behavioral therapy
• helps children and parents generalize the skills they learn in group to other settings

Facing Your Fears includes everything professionals need to run a successful program—a Facilitator's Manual, one Parent Workbook, and one Child Workbook. With the Facilitator's Manual, group leaders will get complete guidance on conducting each session: clear step-by-step instructions, materials lists, goals, sample schedules, and helpful hints for running sessions smoothly.

The Parent Workbooks and Child Workbooks (also sold separately in packs of 4) give children and families a wide variety of creative activities to help them fight fears and worries head-on, both inside and outside the group setting. And the included DVD inspires and motivates kids with sample movies of real children facing their fears.

Essential for every mental health professional working with children with ASD, this innovative program will help families struggling with the burdens of anxiety and increase children's odds for lifelong academic and social success.

Audrey Blakeley-Smith, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Pediatrics, JFK Partners, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, School of Medicine, 13121 East 17th Avenue, C-234, Aurora, Colorado 80045

Dr. Blakeley-Smith is a licensed clinical psychologist and has worked in the field of developmental disabilities since 1996. Current research interests include the assessment and treatment of comorbid mental health issues in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) and the development of peer-mediated interventions in school settings. She is a co-investigator on a National Institute of Mental Health study to train outpatient clinicians in the delivery of theFacing Your Fears program. She is also a clinician on a Health Resources and Services Administration–funded study using telemedicine as a medium to treat anxiety in children with ASDs in underserved communities in Colorado. Dr. Blakeley-Smith is currently the principal investigator on a school-based study exploring the use of peer-mediated interventions to reduce rejection and increase inclusion of children with ASDs, funded by The Organization for Autism Research.

Susan Hepburn, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Pediatrics, JFK Partners, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, School of Medicine, 13121 East 17th Avenue, C-234, Aurora, Colorado 80045

In addition to her work at the University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, School of Medicine, Dr. Hepburn is the director of research for JFK Partners, which is the University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities at University of Colorado. Dr. Hepburn is actively involved in intervention and developmental research and has published more than 40 articles in peer-reviewed journals. As a clinical psychologist, she has worked with many children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), their families, and school teams, particularly in the development of coping as well as other adaptive behavior skills. Dr. Hepburn is currently the principal investigator of a Health Resources and Services Administration–funded study to explore the use of telemedicine to treat anxiety in children with ASDs in underserved communities in Colorado.

Shana Nichols, Ph.D., Founder and Director, ASPIRE Center for Learning and Development, 63 Old East Neck Road, Melville, New York 11747

Dr. Nichols is a licensed clinical psychologist and researcher and has worked in the field of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) and child development since the mid-1990s. She has received research and service grant support for work in sexuality, puberty, healthy lifestyles, and ASDs, and is the author of several peer-reviewed research articles and invited papers.

Dr. Nichols currently specializes in adolescence and growing up, dual diagnosis and mental health, assessment and evaluation, and the experiences of females with ASDs. She is lead author of the bookGirls Growing Up on the Autism Spectrum: What Parents Should Know About the Pre-teen and Teenage Years (Jessica Kingsley, 2008), with Gina Marie Moravcik and Samara Pulver Tetenbaum. Dr. Nichols has worked as a clinician, researcher, administrator, graduate training supervisor, advisory board member, trainer, and consultant in a wide variety of settings including outpatient clinics, residential programs, schools, and the community.

Judy Reaven, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Pediatrics, JFK Partners, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, School of Medicine, 13121 East 17th Avenue, C-234, Aurora, Colorado 80045

Dr. Reaven is a licensed clinical psychologist and has been the director of the Autism and Developmental Disabilities Clinic of JFK Partners since 2001. She has worked in the field of developmental disabilities as a clinician, researcher, and educator since 1985. Clinical and researc