What if your relationship with Money started long before you ever had a bank account?

Money can be more intimate than sex — yet so many of us fear it, avoid it, or feel a desperate need to control it. That relationship often traces back further than we realize: your first interaction with money, how your parents managed theirs, or whether you were ever trusted to make financial decisions of your own. If you're in midlife and find yourself as the non-moneyed spouse, or wondering whether you'll truly be okay on your own — this episode is for you.

In this episode, I sit down with Jennifer Lee, financial advisor and founder of Modern Wealth, for a grounded, honest conversation about men and women in transition, money, identity, divorce, loss, and what it actually takes to understand what you have and build a life within your means.

We talk about the deeper story behind your relationship with money — the patterns, roles, and unspoken fears that surface the moment finances enter the conversation. This episode is designed to help you create enough Clarity to stop avoiding the numbers and start making financial decisions rooted in your values and what you actually want.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• How to identify your money story — and the patterns it may have quietly created
• Why your earliest money memories still shape your financial choices today
• How divorce financial planning brings clarity to one of life's hardest transitions
• The most important factors to understand before and during a divorce
• What to ask before choosing a financial advisor
• Why the non-moneyed spouse needs a seat at the financial table
• How to divide marital assets and Retirement accounts — and what a QDRO (Qualified Domestic Relations Order) is and when to start that process
• What it looks like when money becomes a form of control in Relationships
• How financial literacy builds lasting confidence with money
• What wealth building can look like after a major life transition
• Why money conversations matter when Dating, partnering, or starting over

Whether you're preparing for divorce, rebuilding your Financial Independence, or learning to trust yourself with money again — this conversation is a reminder that you don't have to know everything to begin making more empowered choices.

Much Love and freedom,

Laurie

Click here to purchase my “Nervous System Regulation Starter Kit” it’s $29.99

Click here to purchase my book: Sandwiched: A Memoir of Holding On and Letting Go

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Previous Episode with Jennifer Lee – Understanding Divorce and How to Prepare for A Strong Financial Future

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DISCLAIMER: THE COMMENTARY AND OPINIONS AVAILABLE ON THIS PODCAST ARE FOR INFORMATIONAL AND Entertainment PURPOSES ONLY AND NOT FOR THE PURPOSE OF PROVIDING LEGAL, MEDICAL OR PROFESSIONAL ADVICE. YOU SHOULD CONTACT A LICENSED THERAPIST IF YOU ARE EXPERIENCING SUICIDAL THOUGHTS. YOU SHOULD CONTACT AN ATTORNEY IN YOUR STATE TO OBTAIN LEGAL ADVICE. YOU SHOULD CONTACT A LICENSED MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL WITH RESPECT TO ANY MEDICAL ISSUE OR PROBLEM.

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Laurie James Laurie James, Author, Podcaster, and Somatic Relationship Coach

Hi, I'm Laurie James...a mother, divorcée, recovering caregiver turned author, somatic relationship coach, and podcaster. My podcast, Confessions of a Freebird, was inspired by my youngest of four children leaving the nest and is the sequel to my book, Sandwiched: A Memoir of Holding On and Letting Go.

My memoir is about my journey from loneliness to finding belonging during a time when I was raising four teenage daughters, my mother had a heart attack and needed care, all while my marriage began to crumble underneath me.

Now I love helping people divorce, heal, and date differently in midlife. I love blending my somatic training and coaching to help clients develop a better relationship with their bodies and nervous system. Doing so allows them to find the inner freedom to experience more happiness, joy and create the life they desire through nervous system regulation.

When I'm not coaching clients or podcasting, I can be found nurturing my free spirit by walking my adopted husky Lu, skiing, sailing, hiking, spending time with my four adult daughters, close friends or planning my next adventure.