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Before You Go

What to know before you go.

Two short checklists: one for your first therapy appointment, one for your colon screening.

Before your appointment

What to know before you go.

Two appointments, two short checklists. If your doctor gives you different instructions, follow theirs.

Up here

Your first therapy appointment

Before

  • Find someone through your health plan, your EAP, your doctor or someone you trust. Mayo Clinic
  • Check what your plan covers, any session limits and the fee. Paying out of pocket? Ask about a sliding scale. APA
  • Think about what you want to talk about. “I don’t really know” is a fine place to start.

In the room

  • Expect questions, and maybe a form, about your physical and emotional health. It can take a few sessions to settle on an approach. Mayo Clinic
  • Sessions usually run 45 to 50 minutes. APA
  • What you say stays private, except in rare cases like an immediate safety risk. Ask if you want the details. Mayo Clinic

Worth asking

  • “What kind of therapy do you do?”
  • “Have you worked with things like this before?”
  • “How many sessions might this take?”

Not a fit? Try someone else. The right fit matters, and switching is normal. Mayo Clinic

Down there

Your colon screening

If it’s an at-home test

  • Get the kit from your doctor, collect a sample at home and send it to the lab. FIT is once a year. A stool DNA test collects a full bowel movement, every 3 years. CDC
  • A positive result means you need a colonoscopy to finish screening. CDC
  • Before you test, ask your insurer how they cover that follow-up colonoscopy. Some bill it as diagnostic, with your usual deductible. American Cancer Society

If it’s a colonoscopy

  • Tell your doctor every medicine, vitamin and supplement you take. NIDDK
  • You may skip high-fiber foods for a few days, then go on clear liquids for a day or more: broth, plain coffee or tea, pulp-free apple juice, water. Skip anything red or purple. NIDDK
  • The prep is a laxative, usually the night before and the morning of. Finish all of it. If you can’t, call your doctor’s office. NIDDK
  • Line up a ride home. You can’t drive after sedation. NIDDK
  • The procedure usually takes under an hour, plus 30 to 60 minutes of recovery. Most people are back to normal food the next day. NIDDK

Worth asking

  • “Is this billed as screening or diagnostic?”
  • “Is everyone involved in network, including anesthesia?”
  • “If you remove a polyp, will I owe anything?”

On private insurance, removing a polyp during a screening colonoscopy should not add out-of-pocket costs. Medicare can charge coinsurance. American Cancer Society

Bring one page with your questions on it, so you don’t forget them in the room.

Download the 45 Check-In