How can professionals manage the boundary between personal involvement and professional detachment when faced constantly by people in distress? The authors explore a broad range of perspectives on this question, from philosophical enquiry to the dilemmas of everyday practice. They draw on a common experience of psychosocial nurse training at the Cassel Hospital - a therapeutic community based on psychodynamic ideas and experiential learning. Now, writing from a variety of different settings, they show how personal feelings can provide a key to understanding and containing the emotional needs of people in distress. They demonstrate the central role of shared reflection with colleagues for developing skills, practical theories and theory-based practice. This book is for all practitioners ...