The worse thing about quiet acceptance is hard to understand. When we give news of a sudden death you generally expect the relative to react in some way be it cry, deny, shout scream beg... etc. All of these, while being upsetting, is somehow never as upsetting as someone who quietly accepts the fact. I had a patient who was diagnosed with terminal brain tumour. Her reply on hearing the news was as follows: "Oh well, Im in my 90's, I've had a good life and im ready to go". Her family were the same, asking that we just keep her comfortable. The news was unexpected. She had come in to the hospital with a long lasting head ache. We can't explain why it's more upsetting, it just is. =(