Treatment

It is important to keep children/adolescents in school, although they may fight it. Missing school reinforces anxiety, rather than alleviating it.

A strong working relationship between the family and the youth's school officials is an integral component of a successful treatment program.

Strategies such as the following may be utilized:

• Individualized exposure sessions: With gradual exposure to the feared situation, children learn to change their fearful response.
• Peer generalization experiences: Children with social phobia practice their newly learned skills with non-phobic peers which increases their ability to use their new skills outside the treatment setting.