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This paper presents the results of a doctoral study aiming to formulate a theory regarding the psychic processes involved in the transition to fatherhood. This qualitative research uses a longitudinal design and grounded theory as the research paradigm. 32 research interviews were conducted with eight men undergoing the transition to fatherhood, as well as 32 interviews with their partners, at each trimester of the pregnancy and one month after the birth of their child. The results show the importance of the thought-thinking process in the transition to fatherhood, from the surprise of the news of the pregnancy to the creation of an imaginary baby. Thus, this paper puts forward a conceptual model of the thought-thinking process in the transition to fatherhood, and argues for the relevance of conceptualizing the transition to fatherhood as a phobic process.