Anxiety Therapy for Children
in Eden Prairie, MN
Looking for an anxiety therapist for your child in Eden Prairie, MN who feels warm, supportive, and truly understands what you’re going through?
If anxiety is affecting your child’s daily life, relationships, or sense of calm, you don’t have to manage it alone.
At Creekside Counseling, we provide anxiety therapy for children, teens, and women, including moms navigating chronic worry, overwhelm, and emotional exhaustion. Our therapists offer both in-person sessions in Eden Prairie and virtual therapy across Minnesota, meeting you where you are and moving at a pace that feels safe and sustainable.
Anxiety therapy at Creekside Counseling may be a good fit if your child or teen:
Feels overwhelmed by worry, fear, or constant “what if” thoughts
Shows signs of anxiety in their body, emotions, or behavior, such as tension, restlessness, or frequent reassurance-seeking
Gets stuck in cycles of overthinking, emotional shutdown, or avoidance
Struggles with transitions, school stress, friendships, or everyday expectations
Would benefit from therapy that feels supportive, relational, and non-judgmental
Anxiety can look different for everyone and therapy helps uncover what’s beneath it.
Common Reasons Parents Seek Therapy for Anxiety for their Child or Teen
Constant worry, racing thoughts, or difficulty relaxing
Panic symptoms, irritability, or emotional overwhelm
Trouble sleeping, concentrating, or feeling present
Anxiety related to trauma, relationships, parenting, or life transitions
Feeling disconnected from themselves or unsure how to cope
What Anxiety Therapy Looks Like for Children and Teens
Therapy here isn’t about fixing you. It’s about creating space to understand your anxiety and respond to it with compassion.
Our anxiety therapy sessions are:
Collaborative, grounded, and conversational
Focused on building emotional safety and trust
Designed to offer both insight and practical tools you can use in everyday life
Our Therapeutic Approach to Anxiety Therapy
Our therapists use evidence-informed, trauma-aware approaches tailored to each client’s needs. These approaches help clients regulate anxiety, build emotional resilience, and feel more connected, while honoring each person’s lived experience.
-
CBT helps children understand how thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are connected. In therapy, kids learn to notice negative or self-critical thinking patterns that often show up with depression and practice more balanced, supportive ways of thinking. CBT also helps children build coping skills for managing sadness, low motivation, and emotional overwhelm in everyday situations.
-
EMDR can be helpful for kids whose depression is connected to stressful or overwhelming experiences. This approach supports the brain in processing emotional memories that may be keeping sadness, fear, or hopelessness stuck. EMDR for kids is adapted to be age-appropriate and may include movement, drawing, or other child-friendly techniques to help children feel safer and more regulated.
-
ART is a gentle, structured therapy that helps children work through distressing memories or emotional experiences without needing to talk through every detail. This can be especially helpful for kids who have trouble putting feelings into words. ART supports emotional relief, improved mood, and a stronger sense of control over thoughts and feelings.
-
This approach focuses on building a strong, trusting relationship between your child and their therapist while helping kids identify strengths and small, achievable steps forward. Rather than focusing only on problems, solution-focused therapy helps children notice what is already working and build confidence as they move toward emotional stability and hope.
-
Play therapy helps children express and work through anxiety using activities that feel natural and safe, such as play, art, movement, or storytelling. For kids who have difficulty explaining worries with words, play therapy supports emotional regulation, confidence, and coping skills in a developmentally appropriate way.
How Can Therapy Help Treat Childhood Anxiety?
Over time, therapy supports lasting change, not just short-term coping.
Anxiety therapy can help your child or teen:
❋ Understand what’s driving their anxietyTherapy helps children make sense of worries, fears, and stressors in age-appropriate ways so anxiety feels less confusing and overwhelming.
❋ Build resilience and emotional resilienceOver time, children gain self-trust, coping skills, and confidence to handle challenges with greater calm and flexibility.
❋ Reduce avoidance and emotional overwhelmTherapy supports children in facing fears gradually and safely, helping them feel more capable and less stuck in anxious patterns.
❋ Learn tools to calm their nervous systemKids build practical coping skills to help regulate emotions, handle stress, and feel more in control during hard moments.
Our Providers
-
Elisabeth Emmerich
OWNER, MA, LPCC, RPT™
Elisabeth helps women navigate anxiety, perfectionism, and the lingering effects of childhood trauma, while also supporting kids and teens through anxiety, trauma and life transitions. As a mom of three, she brings firsthand understanding of the pressures of motherhood to a warm, compassionate, and practical approach that helps clients untangle old patterns and create meaningful change.
-
Marina Mitcheltree
MA, LPCC
Marina supports children, teens, and families navigating anxiety, behavioral challenges, and life transitions. She specializes in early childhood mental health, child-parent relationships, and play therapy, and is passionate about empowering women and supporting BIPOC communities. As a mom, she brings personal insight into the challenges of parenting while creating a compassionate, practical space for families and individuals to heal and grow. -
Laura Muench
MSW, LICSW
Laura specializes in early childhood, autism support, and parent-child relationships, helping families navigate behavior challenges, anxiety, and life transitions. With a strong focus on connection and attachment, she takes a warm, practical approach to supporting both children and parents. Laura especially enjoys working with young children and guiding families toward more confidence, stronger communication, and meaningful, lasting change.
-
Alyse Yoder, MSW, LICSW
Alyse specializes in helping children ages 8 and older, teens, and young adults navigate anxiety, self-esteem, identity exploration, relationship challenges, and life transitions. With a calm, compassionate, and relational approach, she creates a supportive space for clients to build confidence, better understand themselves, and feel comfortable being who they are.
-
Alexis Owings, MA, LPCC
Alexis specializes in helping children and families navigate anxiety, big emotions, behavioral challenges, self-esteem, and relationship difficulties. Using Child-Centered Play Therapy (CCPT) and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), she helps children develop coping skills, build confidence, and strengthen connections with their families.
Your Questions, Answered
-
Common signs include excessive worry, avoidance, stomachaches, trouble sleeping, irritability, or difficulty separating from parents.
-
Therapy teaches children how to understand their anxious thoughts, regulate their emotions, and build confidence in stressful situations.
-
Some mild anxiety may improve with time, but persistent anxiety often benefits from professional support to prevent it from worsening.
-
Children as young as preschool age can benefit from therapy, depending on their needs and developmental level.
-
You can support your child by maintaining routines, modeling calm behavior, and reinforcing coping strategies learned in therapy.
