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"The question of loss is at the heart of the work we do with families at the Centre Monceau. This article first describes the ambiguous loss model developed by Pauline Boss (1999) and then presents a case study that shows how the experience of loss, through its fractal organization, helps to create a definition of the family and comes to represent a condition for belonging to the family. Weakened by ambiguous losses caused by unwanted migration, the family in question is not able to move forward in the process of mourning following the death of a “weighty third” (Goldbeter, 1999). In order to regain stability, the family places the therapist in this key position at the heart of the family in an attempt to replace what they have lost. Transformation then becomes possible; conditions within the family become more appropriate to the age of the children; family members finally find themselves in more clearly defined positions, and the grieving process can progress."