Introduction

The aim of the study was to investigate the biographies of women diagnosed with symptoms of co-dependency and to understand the relationship between their significant life events and the process of creating beliefs about themselves, interpreting and giving their own lives a meaning, and how they shape relationships with others.

Material and methods

The research was conducted using the qualitative approach and a semi-structured narrative autobiographical interview.

Results

Trauma experienced during childhood, generating a number of losses in the spheres of emotional, social or spiritual life, recorded and internalised in women’s cognitive scripts, emerge in adult life in close relationships with an alcohol abusing person, in the form of co-dependent behaviours.

Discussion

The analysis of the biographies paves the way for a discussion on the relationship between childhood experiences and the development of a construct of personal traits and characteristics, recognised in the adulthood as symptoms of co-dependency. The obtained results endorse further research on the relationship between co-dependency and the traits which develop in the early stages of life, after difficult experiences with the involvement of parents.

Conclusions

The studies confirmed the adaptive concept, with sources in difficult experiences in the childhood, which make the foundation for the development of symptoms of co-dependency manifested in adulthood in the relationship with a drinking person. Experiences from the past can have a significant negative impact on the current situation of women in a relationship with an alcoholic, which proves how important it is to take this aspect into consideration in therapy.