This book is both a textbook for primary health carers (midwives, health visitors, GP's, etc) and an easily readable source of psychodynamic understanding for the interested lay woman/couple anticipating pregnancy or engaged in childbearing. The text is peppered with verbatim quotes to illustrate conscious and unconscious psychological processes within and between partners; psychosexual and sociocultural influences, beliefs and practices of different ethnic groups; and feelings relating to health care professionals and new developments in reproductive technology. To facilitate accessibility, each of the 33 chapters is composed of numbered subsections, followed by 'key points'. The chatty text includes unobtrusive (numbered) references to over 1500 sources of recent research in the field of reproduction for those who wish to explore further. The book covers in depth topics such as the wish for a baby; considering parenthood; prolonged infertility; emotional phases of pregnancy; sociocultural beliefs about fetal development and personal representations of the unborn baby; different experiences of expectant fathers; lesbian partners; fears, fantasies and experiences of labour and birth; transition to parenthood in the West and elsewhere; anticipation of parenthood and emotional realignment of family relationships in both internal and external realities; the capacities of the newborn and his/her emotional impact on the new parents; parenting styles and their underpinning fantasies; adolescent parents, adoption, coping with complications, miscarriage; prematurity and perinatal loss. Postnatal disturbances.