In this volume, specialists establish a diagnostic nosology that considers trauma and/or the status of being the child of a substance abuser and the prognostic significance of these problems in the child's development. The first section reviews current research on children of chemically dependant parents and explores the complex interaction of genetic and psychosocial environmental factors influencing the development of these children. The second section, on diagnosis, discusses the relationship between codependence and narcissism and proposes a new diagnostic schemata: chronic trauma disorder. The third section focuses on treatment concerns such as treatment of adolescent females, breaking the addiction cycle, use of short-term psychoeducations groups, and the influence of the therapist's own family of origin on therapeutic effectiveness. The final section addresses public policy issues such as preventive measures, the impact of the self-help movement on medicine, the present needs of children with addicted parents, the epidemic view, and the fate of the next generation.