This study is based on an interpersonal view of the specifics
of addiction in a close relationship between parents and their
children. It aims to explore the lived experiences of parents
with the topic of addiction of their adult children, who does
not want to treat their addiction. Special attention is focused
to ascertaining the significance and essence of this experience
for family relationships. The work is based on the theoretical
grounding of current scientific knowledge in the context of
addictions. It emphasizes the understanding of addiction and
summarizes current knowledge about the impact of addiction on
relationships. The research was conducted through four
semi-structured interviews analysed by interpretive
phenomenological analyses. The research tried to uncover topics
of lived experience that appears in parents’ perception of
relationship with adult offspring living with substance
disorder which they do not want to treat. As part of the
analysis, we identified 12 topics in four areas. The topics
concern the emotional experience of the relationship with the
offspring, the perception of oneself in the context of the
situation, the very perception of the relationship with the
son, and we lightly touched on the sources of coping. The
results point to a certain, partially neglected area in
addiction research, namely the complexity faced by people who
have someone around them who uses addictive substances.