Later Life Dustings: preparing and planning for the later part of life

The process begins with an individual psychotherapy intake, either in the office or through telehealth. This initial session allows us to discuss your needs, concerns, goals, and circumstances and determine whether these services are an appropriate fit.

Following the intake, a treatment plan may be developed that incorporates psychotherapy as well as therapeutic support in the home when clinically appropriate.

Individual psychotherapy is tailored to your specific needs and goals. Evidence-based and supportive therapeutic approaches may be used to address anxiety, grief, trauma, life transitions, changing roles, family concerns, and the emotions that can arise while preparing for later life.

Therapy can provide a space to explore difficult thoughts and feelings while helping you identify what is meaningful to you and how you want to live the next chapter of your life.

Couples therapy may be incorporated when partners are navigating later-life decisions together.

Sessions may address differences in priorities, communication difficulties, decisions regarding belongings or living arrangements, caregiving concerns, changing roles, and other issues that can arise as couples plan for the future.

Later-life planning can sometimes bring longstanding family dynamics and disagreements to the surface.

Family therapy may help improve communication, establish appropriate boundaries, address conflict, and create a more collaborative process when family members are involved in decisions regarding belongings, transitions, caregiving, or future planning.

Meaningful possessions often carry memories, relationships, grief, identity, and personal history. Decisions about these items can therefore be much more emotional than they initially appear.

The therapist's role is to provide emotional support, facilitate decision-making, help manage feelings that arise during the process, and assist with communication when family members are involved.

The therapist is not acting as a professional organizer, estate liquidator, moving service, or cleaning service.  A plan and skills may be needed to help with the process.

For some clients, in-home therapeutic support may be incorporated while sorting through personal belongings and making decisions about what to keep, give away, donate, sell, or pass on to loved ones.  

Later-life planning may also include conversations about personal wishes, values, legacy, relationships, and how you would like important matters to be handled in the future.

Topics such as advance health care planning, wills, trusts, estate planning, or other legal and financial preparations may be discussed when relevant. When specialized assistance is needed, clients will be encouraged to consult the appropriate medical, legal, financial, or estate-planning professionals.

The therapist does not provide legal, financial, or estate-planning advice and does not make these decisions for the client. Therapy may instead help clients process the emotions, fears, family dynamics, and personal values associated with these decisions as well as help through the stress of the process.

Telehealth and in-office psychotherapy are primarily used with in-home sessions available as needed.

These sessions can provide additional support for concerns such as anxiety, grief, unresolved trauma, family conflict, emotional reactions that arise during the downsizing process, or difficulties completing agreed-upon goals between sessions.

Telehealth may also provide an opportunity for an out-of-area family member or loved one to participate in a session when clinically appropriate and desired by the client.

In-home therapeutic services may be incorporated as needed based on the client’s goals, clinical needs, and treatment plan. Not every session needs to take place in the home, and the frequency of in-home visits may vary throughout the course of treatment.

In-home sessions can be especially helpful when emotional difficulties arise while sorting belongings, making decisions about meaningful possessions, preparing for transitions, or addressing family concerns within the home environment.

These services are intended to provide therapeutic support during the process rather than ongoing household organization, cleaning, moving, or estate-management services. In-home visits may be used periodically and combined with telehealth or in-office psychotherapy as clinically appropriate. 

When psychotherapy services are covered by a client’s insurance plan and the therapist is an approved provider, eligible services may be billed to insurance in accordance with the terms, limitations, and requirements of the individual plan.

Insurance coverage generally applies to medically necessary psychotherapy services and typically covers one psychotherapy session per day (no longer than 60 minutes). Extended in-home services or additional time beyond the covered psychotherapy session may not be reimbursable by insurance.

Any services or time not covered by insurance are the client’s financial responsibility. Fees for non-covered or extended services will be discussed with the therapist in advance, as the applicable private-pay rate may vary depending on the amount reimbursed by the client’s insurance plan. Additional information regarding fees is available in the Payment and Insurance section of this website.

Insurance participation, benefits, and reimbursement vary by plan, including Medicare plans. Clients are encouraged to verify their individual benefits and coverage directly with their insurance carrier before beginning services.

In-home therapeutic services are generally available within approximately 20 driving miles of El Dorado Hills, California, including:

Folsom • Cameron Park • Shingle Springs • Rescue • Orangevale • Granite Bay • Gold River • Rancho Cordova • and surrounding communities

Exact availability is based on the client's address, travel distance, scheduling availability, and clinical appropriateness.