Conundrums and Complexities: Treating the Dying Analyst

Dying analysts struggle with their mortality, especially as their condition invariably impacts their patients. The ethical injunction “to do no harm” is often violated. But the close personal friend of a dying analyst, or the analyst of one such person, is also faced with painful moments when he or she too must deal with the moral dilemma of whether to disregard this injunction, or having decided to do so, in what manner and to what end. What follows is my account of treating a dying analysand and two of my dying analyst friends and of my struggle to maintain my professional and ethical bearings as I attempted to work with them and to mourn. By sharing these experiences, I hope to bring to the attention of the analytic community the need to consider ways to be of help to those analysts who must bear the brunt of such a trying and ethically challenging experience. Recommendations for all analysts to create an analytic will and seek consultation when diagnosed are suggested.