`Listen, listen trust your own strange voice' (psychoanalytically informed conversations with a woman suffering serious illness)

Abstract

This paper argues that the authentic voice of suffering can be denied to people with serious illness. Anguish and expressions of grief are sometimes replaced by joviality. Amid suffering, voices of anguish become strange inner voices that challenge defences of cheeriness and so are avoided, go unheard or are ignored. Bolstered by the everydayness of ward events and hospital life, suppression, repression and denial mean that people with serious illness can suffer without a voice. Listening to others requires the ability to listen to one's own inner voices and recognize how they might guide exchanges. By avoiding conducting conversations in ways dictated by our own fears, worries and fantasies we can listen, and in doing so allow shifts in awareness. Silent suffering can change to expressive suffering allowing a person to reach an autonomous self and so an authentic voice. The seriousness of a situation can be grasped and so life appreciated for what it is. Decisions can be made, business finished and relationships esteemed or otherwise. Through the format of brief therapeutic conversations, listening has a role to play in helping people with serious illness discover their autonomous and authentic voice. The discussion concludes with the suggestion that the need for throughput and roles and tasks demanded on nurses in general settings limits time and resources, and so liaison mental health nursing has a role to play. A specialist practitioner might offer conversational therapies, support nursing and medical staff and teach psychological concepts, thus contributing to an environment in which uncertainty is tolerated.

An EAPC white paper on multi-disciplinary education for spiritual care in palliative care

“…While self-reflection on spiritual issues in the individual's own life should be a standard part of SC training, it was noted that SC is a new concept in many places, and that healthcare professionals have not been in the habit of practising personal spiritual reflection as a professional requirement. Self-awareness can help the healthcare practitioner to avoid being distracted by their own fears, prejudices and restraints and attend to the patient [43].…”

The Mental Health Nurse Incentive Program: desirable knowledge, skills and attitudes from the perspective of nurses

“…The listening skills identified by participants are arguably important in all areas of mental health nursing practice (Jones 1999, Adam et al 2003, Horsfall 2003, McCann & Clark 2005. However, the participants argue that the relatively unstructured context of their practice setting increases the importance of listening and assisting clients to identify their own solutions.…”

“…The listening skills identified by participants are arguably important in all areas of mental health nursing practice (Jones 1999, Adam et al. 2003, Horsfall 2003, McCann & Clark 2005).…”

Paradigmas que subyacen en la investigación de enfermería. Antología

“…También lo que puede ocultar es su sufrimiento. Diversos autores y Jones 1999 han notado que en la experiencia del sufrimiento existe mucho silencio, es decir, las personas que sufren tienen dificultad para encontrar una voz que les permita expresar su experiencia, debido a la indecible naturaleza del sufrimiento, al miedo a no ser escuchados o al temor de causar sufrimiento a otros (Jones, 1999).…”

“…Ocultar el sufrimiento puede convertirlo en un "sufrimiento mudo" (Jones, 1999), es decir, la persona puede hablar de muchas cosas, llorar e incluso reír, pero el sufrimiento se conserva en silencio. La adolescente en embarazo puede no solo ocultar su sufrimiento sino incluso ocultarse ella misma y aislarse del contacto con las personas que hacían parte de su vida cotidiana.…”