Spirituality Among Older Adults: An Exploration of the Developmental Context, Impact on Mental and Physical Health, and Integration into Counseling

Abstract

Older adults may face many existentially related developmental challenges such as confronting their own death, forgiveness, coping with the loss of others, finding meaning and purpose in life, physical illness and limitations, decreases in social support networks, and adjustment to retirement. This article explores the unique developmental spiritual needs and changes among older adults. Several developmental contextual models related to these unique spiritual changes in older adulthood are discussed. The impact of spirituality and religion on the physical and mental health of older adults is also examined. Finally, several techniques to integrate spiritual and religious issues into counseling with older adult clients are delineated along with an illustrative case example.

KEYWORDS:

• Spirituality
• older adults
• developmental
• counseling