How to have those awkward conversations around estate planning
Woman sitting beside table while talking with her old mother

Do you know you need to start your estate planning but have little idea where to begin? Are you overwhelmed, intimidated or perhaps even paralyzed because you don’t understand the process? Are you afraid of looking silly in front of a trust and estates attorney because you don’t understand the key terminology? Do you want to help your parents with important aging issues but don’t know how to begin the conversation in a comfortable way? Then Catherine Hodder’s new book is for you!

Catherine manages to demystify the estate planning process. She outlines 10 easy steps to getting your affairs in order. As an attorney who specializes in trusts and estates, Catherine is able to take complex legal issues and simply them into easy-to-understand, easy-to-follow steps. Furthermore, she provides real-world scenarios from her own family as well as her clients. These practical examples are invaluable because they shed light on issues or questions we might otherwise not think of.

If you think you might benefit from the 10-steps part of the book, then you are really going to love the second half about the sometimes-awkward conversations to have with your parents. Catherine uses a combination of humor, compassion and common sense to tackle the subject of how best to initiate conversations with your parents about sometimes thorny topics. She includes conversation starters as well as lists of questions that will really help you get to the heart of the matter in short order. She includes tips for dealing with siblings as well as stubborn parents. Again, her real world experience and actual stories make this section a must read!

Catherine’s book is well researched, practical, concise and easy-to-read. The information and insights could be real game changers for any family wanting to educate itself about estate planning and how best to deal with aging parents. I highly recommend that you add it to your summer reading list today!

You can also read an interview with Catherine.


Eileen Edmunds

Eileen Filliben Edmunds, JD/MBA is a cancer advocate and was awarded the Susan G. Komen Award for her efforts. She most recently served as the Executive Director of the Delaware Breast Cancer Coalition.

Written by Guest Author
The Caregiver Space accepts contributions from experts for The Caregiver's Toolbox and provides a platform for all caregivers in Caregiver Stories. Please read our author guidelines for more information and use our contact form to submit guest articles.

Related Articles

Popular categories

Finances
Burnout
After Caregiving
Housing
Relationships
Finding Meaning
Planning
Dying
Finding Support
Work
Grief

Don't see what you're looking for? Search the library

Share your thoughts

0 Comments

Share your thoughts and experiences

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Join our communities

Whenever you want to talk, there’s always someone up in one of our Facebook communities.

These private Facebook groups are a space for support and encouragement — or getting it off your chest.

Join our newsletter

Thoughts on care work from Cori, our director, that hit your inbox each Monday morning (more-or-less).

There are no grand solutions, but there are countless little ways to make our lives better.

Share your insights

Caregivers have wisdom and experience to share. Researchers, product developers, and members of the media are eager to understand the nature of care work and make a difference.

We have a group specifically to connect you so we can bring about change.