Life implicates loss. The ability to loose is related to the degree in which the problems of the separation-individuation phase in early childhood are worked through.

This article reports observations of the way unresolved separation-individuation problems are reflected in the behaviour of non-chronic psychiatric patients and their families. Also, it describes how they determine the atmosphere of the hospital ward. Suggestions are given for ways of dealing with the daily routine of the psychiatric ward, in function of treatment of unresolved separation-individuation problems of individual patients.