Crisis and suffering in separation The article presents an overview of couple relationships within the theoretical framework of attachment theory. In particular, it highlights how, within any emotional relationship, complex dynamics determined by the representations of self, of others, and of the relationship itself are activated. Such representations arise from the caregiving experiences with the major attachment figures of the family of origin, and later, from the affairs of the romantic ties of adult life. What happens when two people meet and build a love relationship and when the couple relationship breaks? The article also presents the reaction of different attachment style in the face of marital separation.