Geriatric Counseling
ABOUT senior care therapy:
Geriatric counseling is a type of psychotherapy that focuses on individuals who are 65 years old or older. The aging process is normal. Although everyone experiences it, it does not mean that it is an easy process. Aging naturally brings physical and cognitive changes which can impact your daily life as you know it, and can restrict your happiness and overall satisfaction with life. Seemingly normal or “easy” tasks, such as cooking, shopping, and cleaning, can become challenging as you age.
Geriatric therapy can help you or your loved one adjust to aging and the various issues that come along with it. Not being able to preserve your independence, whether it is health issues or physical impairments that are holding you back, can trigger many negative emotions. Our geriatric counselors are here to help you navigate and manage these emotions while adjusting to your new norm at the same time.
WHAT ISSUES CAN SENIOR MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELING HELP WITH?
Generally, senior mental health counselors are here to help you or your loved one navigate the later stages of life. It is during this time that many people come to terms with a lot of issues that have occurred and continue to linger in their lives.
SOME TOPICS THAT CAN BE COVERED IN GERIATRIC COUNSELING INCLUDE:
Thoughts about mortality
Grief regarding the loss of friends, friendships, family members, etc.
Grappling with unresolved issues and relationships
Diagnosis of a serious illness
Surgery and the recovery process
Worries regarding future generations (e.g. children, grandchildren, etc.)
Financial insecurity
Loss of mobility, hearing, or vision
Regrets
Other life transitions
We all have something that we wish we could have changed in life. This is not to trivialize what you or a loved one is going through, but to understand that it is part of the human experience. A geriatric mental health counselor is there to help you process any issues you may be dealing with.
HOW TO KNOW IF GERIATRIC COUNSELING IS FOR YOU OR YOUR LOVED ONE:
Aging is a privilege that many people, unfortunately, do not get to experience. While you may be lucky to enter your senior or golden years, this stage of your life also comes along with more complex, intense issues.
One important thing to note is that you or a loved one may not necessarily feel like a senior citizen. You may not resonate with terms used to describe your age group, such as “elderly”, “old”, or “senior”, and that is perfectly okay! Even in cases where it may seem like nothing has physically changed within your body or you do not feel “old”, speaking to a licensed mental health counselor can be beneficial. Challenges that were not issues previously may arise and a geriatric mental health therapist will be there to help you each step of the way while you learn to navigate this new path.
How can geriatric therapy help with life transitions?
Life transitions can be difficult to manage at any age. Big challenges can arrive at any moment in life and, especially when they occur in your golden years, it can be extremely surprising or even utterly disastrous. Even if you live a relatively independent life, you may find having an unbiased professional to offer emotional support while you endure major life changes to be helpful. Many issues affecting the geriatric community can be serious and have life-changing results.
Aging comes with the loss of roles- professional and personal. How can geriatric counseling assist with the effects of this identity loss and general self-image?
It is easy to make something our whole identity whether it is a prestigious job title or the role of being a parent. Work provides us with more than a paycheck, and being a parent is one of the most rewarding jobs in the world. However, when you retire and your children flee the nest, your identity becomes muddled. You may be asking yourself- who am I when I take away all the external factors?
When you have a strong identity to external factors, it can be strongly tied to your overall well-being. Luckily, geriatric mental health counseling can help you peel back the layers to your identity, and work on your self-esteem.
There are four characteristics of a healthy self-esteem:
Realistic and proper personal expectations
A strong comprehension of your skills
The ability to sustain healthy relationships with other people due to the healthy relationship you initially cultivated with yourself
An understanding of your needs and the freedom to express those needs
Self-esteem impacts many things, including:
Your decision-making process
Overall well-being
Emotional health
Relationships
When you have a healthy self-esteem, you:
Understand your strengths and weaknesses and accept them
Express your needs
Feel confident
Stop dwelling on negative or embarrassing past life experiences
Believe that you are on the same level as other people (you are not better than other people and you are not worse than other people)
Say “no” when you feel like saying “no”
Have an overall positive outlook on life
What is the most common mental health problem for the geriatric population?
Many senior citizens experience some type of mental health issue. There is no one type of mental health disorder that senior citizens experience the most.
The most common mental health conditions that senior citizens experience encompass:
Severe cognitive impairment
Mood disorders (e.g., depression)
Depression is a prominent mental health problem for senior citizens. Typically, depression is associated with distress and suffering. Depression can impact other factors, such as impairing your physical, mental, and social functioning. If you or your loved one is struggling with a chronic disease, depression can complicate its treatment.
Depression does not have to be a normal part of growing old. In many cases, it is treatable. As older adults age, depression becomes a widely under-recognized condition and often goes untreated. Do not let the stigma surrounding mental health stop you from seeking treatment for your depression.
An example of senior citizen therapy in action
The truth is, in some situations, there may not be much room for change and you may need assistance in trying to accept this reality. For example, let’s say you and your daughter have not spoken for 10 years. As each year goes by, you are thinking of mending this relationship and finally decide to reach out to her one day, but the conversation does not go as planned. This is an understandably devastating situation where having a therapist to walk you through your hurt may be valuable.
There are many reasons why geriatric counseling may be the correct answer for you or your loved one. If you or a loved one is struggling to come to terms with any transitions that are occurring in your lives, seeking the help of a senior counselor is recommended. The purpose of a senior mental health therapist is to help you feel better about your journey and handle new situations that you would not know how to navigate on your own.
Geriatric counseling also provides the opportunity to change negative thinking patterns and behaviors. While some people may assume that change is not possible as you grow older, we know that to be false. In changing your negative thinking patterns and behaviors, our therapists will also help you develop healthy coping mechanisms.
Does Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) work well for senior citizens?
Of course! CBT is treatment that works for all populations, from children and teens to adults and senior citizens. CBT represents a mental health approach that highlights identifying and improving negative behavior and thinking patterns. These changes will assist you or your loved one in achieving their goals.
CBT includes several cognitive and behavioral techniques. It is a structured form of therapy that is goal-oriented.
CBT can help you do the following:
Change unhelpful ways of thinking and behaving that is detrimental to the success of your goals
Learn beneficial ways of thinking and behaving
Create new positive lifestyle habits which can relieve mental and physical symptoms
An example of how CBT can help senior citizens
Our senior mental health therapists use CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) techniques to help you cope with life transitions and calm the stressors in your life. By employing these methods, our counselors will get to the root cause of your problems while working closely with you to create a realistic treatment plan. Together with your counselor, you will explore what is causing uncomfortability to arise in you and then reframe those thoughts.
Our geriatric therapists make modifications to their therapeutic approach to best suit your needs. Research has proven that CBT is effective for senior citizens, especially when modifications for the age group are made.
For instance, you may have been diagnosed with osteoarthritis. This causes your mind to spiral while you think of worst case scenario situations and your declining health. It may even cause you to question your own mortality. By using CBT techniques, your therapist can help you temper or de-catastrophize those thoughts to create a positive, yet realistic outlook. Essentially, your geriatric therapist would be helping you replace maladaptive thoughts patterns with reality-based information.
How can I convince a senior family member to attend geriatric therapy?
An older person grappling with aging, illness or loss would benefit greatly from talk therapy by having a space to process feelings and develop coping skills. People in the later years of life often struggle with self-esteem due to the loss of roles, both professional and personal, and can use therapy to regain clarity and focus on new life goals. With that being said, it can still be hard for senior citizens to recognize these benefits and want to implement them in their lives. Reaching out for help, let alone admitting that you need help, is not an easy task.
It is not always possible to convince someone to attend treatment, but sometimes there are approaches that can lead a person in the right direction. One way of doing this can be to illustrate a time when your loved one was struggling with an issue, and how seeking out the help of a geriatric therapist could have really helped them deal with that given issue. Often, by posing the question, “What would you tell a friend to do if they were experiencing what you are going through now?” could be helpful as well. These are all powerful moments for change.
Is social support important for seniors facing mental health problems?
Of course! Social support is important for anyone facing mental health issues, but especially for senior citizens who no longer have certain social connections, like those from work for instance.
Social support offers the following:
Informational support (e.g., advice)
Instrumental support (e.g., tidying the house or driving your loved one to and from doctor’s appointments)
Emotional support (e.g., venting emotions)
WHAT TO EXPECT FROM SENIOR THERAPY AT ANCHOR THERAPY:
Generally, the senior citizen community tends to be an overlooked and/or dismissed population. Here at Anchor Therapy, we are determined to make sure that every age group receives the adequate mental health support that they need. It may be easy for some to believe that people in their elder years are not open to change; however, everyone is capable of change no matter their age! People can always alter negative behaviors and improve.
While every person is unique, the approach that our therapists use with their adult clients is extremely similar to the way our clinicians address senior clients. Our therapists are trained to always meet a person where they are which is important when working with clients of any age, but particularly senior citizens. Our geriatric counselors recognize and are sensitive to the changes that occur as one ages.
WHAT ARE THE NEXT STEPS TO START GERIATRIC THERAPY?
WORKING WITH US IS EASY
If you’re interested in geriatric treatment, reach out to us directly by filling out the form below. We have psychotherapists who specialize in helping senior citizens. We have an office in downtown Hoboken, NJ, and provide telehealth (virtual therapy) as well to residents of New Jersey, New York, and Florida.
Our intake coordinator will get back to you with more information on how we can help and to schedule an intake appointment. We will set you up with an experienced licensed geriatric mental health therapist who specializes in what you're seeking help with and who understands your needs.
You’ll rest easy tonight knowing you made the first step to improve your life.
