ABSTRACT
Getting close to terminally ill people can be emotionally draining for their carers, although, in my own experience, forming supportive relationships with distressed relatives can be even more demanding. The temptation is to protect ourselves from 'overinvolvement' by using distancing beha viour, such as talking to colleagues instead of to patients or unconsciously controlling communication with patients and relatives, so that people have little opportunity to express their real fears or negative feelings, such as anger or depres sion.
