Sudden death, or terminal illness

I am interested to know of your experiences - either having lost a loved one very suddenly, or lived in the knowledge that someone close to you was, or maybe is dying. Please comment, anonymously of course if you prefer, to get across feelings - or any other information about how you dealt with, or are dealing with one of these death situations. For example, is it true that when you are living with someone you know is dying, that you do much of your grieving 'up front'; or how does coping with terminal illness affect later memories of that person? And with sudden death - do you feel there are long term effects which maybe are not apparent (perhaps due to shock?) at the time of death, with later cause a reaction?

Thank you to those who feel able to share their experiences here.