To experience loss, we need attachment.  There are many theories about why humans and some animals make emotional attachments to others.  Survival could be one reason. Some theorists argue that it is purely biological, whilst others argue that attachments form due to the need for safety and security. John Bowlby (1980) supported the latter view. 

We learn attachment behaviour from the time we are born and this affects our relationships throughout our lives.  If we learn to trust and have steady, dependable care, we are able to grow up with high self-esteem and independence.  We are also able to love and be loved.  The greater the attachment, there is obviously the greater potential for loss.  We may experience many losses throughout our lives, the loss of a loved one, a pet, a job, financial security, but we may also experience the loss of potential, that is, what might have been – the job we might have had, the parent we never knew and so on. 

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