Most people aren’t prepared for how complicated elder care, power of attorney, and inheritance can get until they’re deep in it trying to make the right call with very little guidance.

Justin Weidenfeld talks with financial planner Elliott Appel, who shares what it was really like to care for his father through a long illness and all the decisions that came with it. What do you do when a parent refuses help? How do you handle bills that are piling up in a shoebox? And what happens when money shows up in your account and you’d rather it hadn’t?

Elliott walks through the tough moments and the steps that made a difference, from choosing the right power of attorney to working with elder care consultants. He also opens up about the strange, often unspoken feelings that can surface around inheritance. This is a conversation for anyone facing the slow, emotional work of supporting aging parents or planning for the kind of future that no one wants to talk about but everyone eventually faces.

Episode Breakdown:

00:00 Introduction: When Grief Meets Money

02:56 Elliott’s Personal Grief Journey

08:49 Financial Planning During and After Loss

14:50 How Elder Care Consultants Can Help

17:50 Autonomy, Caregiving, and Letting Go

23:40 Durable Power of Attorney: What You Need to Know

40:44 The Emotional Weight of Inheritance

54:01 Inheritance Guilt and How to Move Forward

Links

Connect with Elliott Appel:

Book: https://a.co/d/cPud2x1

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@elliottmappel

Blog: https://kindnessfp.com/blog/

Newsletter: https://kindnessfp.com/newsletter

Connect with Justin Weidenfeld:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justin-weidenfeld/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-currency-of-grief-podcast/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecurrencyofgrief_podcast

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thecurrencyofgrief

Website: https://www.ironbridgewc.com/team/justin-weidenfeld

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm