Primary maternal preoccupation: Pregnancy and breast-feeding [La preoccupazione materna primaria: Gravidanza e allattamento]

The Authors discuss through clinical material on primary maternal preoccupation and the following process from illusion to disillusion. They focus on elements that can facilitate or not the establishment of these physiological processes. The work analyses how the processes could be influenced by the functioning of the parental couple, primarily the father's role. The article also considers the relationship between parents and the primary maternal preoccupation, emphasizing how male and female roles interfere with the establishment of the latter and its development could be useful for the evolutive steps of the child. Using clinical notes, the Authors underline the father role as one who 'calls aside' the mother in the marital couple, and promotes the exit from the symbiotic relation supporting the separation process.