The potential adverse consequences, personal distress, shame and guilt presented by patients who suffer from codependency require a more in-depth understanding of the phenomenology of this disorder.

To determine targets of psychotherapy work with the codependency wives of men with alcohol dependence (AD).

To determine the features of clinical manifestations of codependency as a model of health disorders associated with stress.

Integrated clinical-psychopathological and psychodiagnostic research, using anxiety and depression scales M. Hamilton, scale of psychosocial stress L. Reeder and methods for determining stress and social adaptation of Holmes and Rahe.

One hundred and sixty wives of men with AD, depending on the type of AD (TF Babor's classification), were divided into two groups: group A, 80 patients with AD type A and 80 their wives, and group B, 80 men with AD by type B TF Babor, and 80 wives. Comparison group consisted of 50 married women whose husbands are not suffering from AD.

All the wives of men with AD distortions emotional state of the prevalence of pathological manifestations of depression and anxiety clinically delineated levels and high levels of psychosocial stress and low stress, unlike women men without alcohol problems. It was found that the more severe psychopathological manifestations occurring in the wives of men with a family history, burdened alcohol and drug abuse (group B).

Available data suggest that a single mechanism of family experiences a stressful situation, we were put in the basis for developing a comprehensive treatment measures and psychotherapeutic support codependent wives patients with AD.

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.