This study details the interaction between a mother and infant where the mother is unresolved with respect to loss as measured by the Adult Attachment Interview and the infant shows the disorganized pattern of attachment behaviour in the Strange Situation at 13 months. The paper discusses the factors which predispose children to becoming disorganized in their attachment behaviour. Working from a psychoanalytic perspective the authors make some suggestions about the unconscious anxieties in the mother which contribute to the development of dysfunctional interactions between mother and child.