On Death and Dying

Who is Mrs. F. and her daughter from On Death and Dying and what is their importance?

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Mrs. F was a terminally ill patient, whose daughter had quit her job and was spending every day, all day with her mother in the hospital room. Her daughter rarely offered affection or communication and stayed as if it were her duty to do so. She gave up everything about her personal life to be with her mother and, yet, was extremely uncommunicative. When the team interviewed the daughter, they realized she had been experiencing terrible feelings of guilt and was trying to resolve them by her constant presence in her mother's room. The young woman felt she had been deserted by her mother and felt badly for her resentment and ambivalence. When she finally realized her mother needed some space from her, she got a part-time job and began spending more time outside the hospital. Her mother was able to die peacefully, after finally spending some meaningful time with her without the feelings of guilt and obligation.

Source(s)

On Death and Dying