Family relations in the narratives of mothers of people with Down syndrome

Family relationships are an exceptionally important element in building the proper functioning of people with intellectual disabilities. The research was carried out using a questionnaire addressed to mothers of people with Down syndrome. Open-ended questions allowed for entering into the study group, obtaining information on individual life stories of families whose members are people with Down syndrome. The survey analyses enabled us to state whether the respondents are affected by transferred stigma or they perceive their social role as tough motherhood and whether they receive any support in upbringing and taking care of a person with intellectual disability from their immediate family. The study results shed light on problems in the area of support as well as difficulties in acceptance of both the child with Down syndrome and the mother. The difficulties towards acceptance emerge in the immediate family and they mostly concern the grandparents.