Abstract
Objective: To discuss the two main forms of theorization of the concept of anguish according to Sigmund Freud, focusing on health professionals who deal with patients in a serious condition, having as motivation the experience inside an intensive care center (ICU). Methodology: Bibliographic narrative, based on psychoanalytic theory, specifically in Freudian writings, on the concept of anguish, through research to SciELO, Google Scholar and reference textbooks on the subject. Results: The environment of a CTI is undeniably confrontational, we can see the struggle for the patients 'lives, the families' struggle in the face of uncertainty, and the professionals who are dedicated to saving lives. There is also a less evident conflict, but important for the proper functioning of this environment: the confrontation of health professionals with the perspective of their own finitude. Meeting the end of another's life can generate severe questions to those who knew it, but when we talk about professionals who have been trained to postpone this end and have not achieved their goals, this damage can be even greater. Final considerations: In the case of health professionals, the projection of their own finitude, the fragility of being, of solitude, enhanced by the experiences lived in a CTI, can be a strong motivator of anguish and repression as seen in Freud's second theory. Bringing this issue to the debate and, above all, developing research on it can be decisive for a better quality of life for these professionals and their patients.