The author investigates the impact of the emotional responses of the mothers and couples to the traumatic event of previous miscarriage, and how they experience the loss and the impact of this previous traumatic event into the new pregnancy. The book describes the maternal state of mind, observing from a psychoanalytical point of view both the unconscious anxieties and phantasies as well as the defenses used to counter depressive feelings and the profound pain caused by the loss and the fear of infertility. Different responses within the couple are also described. <br><br>The book also evaluates the usefulness of a brief psychoanalytically-oriented intervention in helping very vulnerable mothers (or couples) to cope with their anxieties about the health and survival of the fetus and to explore possible ways for counseling these patients within the busy maternal unit of a hospital. It looks at the environment provided by the professionals involved and the type of emotional responses this produces in the expectant couples, including the attitude of the medical staff towards their patients’ emotional problems.