Purpose. Studies have shown that women's substance use is influenced by their social relationships (e.g., Wilsnack, 1991; Falkin & Strauss, 2003; Knight, Wallace, Joe, & Logan, 2001; Grella & Joshi, 1999), including their victimization history (e.g., Kendler et al., 2000; Wilsnack et al., 1997; Testa, Livingston, & Leonard, 2003). Substance abuse treatment, however, often minimizes or excludes these areas from examination because of the purported need to maintain a singular focus on substance dependence to ensure sobriety. Little is known, therefore, about the interplay between women's subjective experience of intimate partner relationships and their early recovery. This study used a hermeneutic phenomenological method to examine women's lived experiences of intimate partner relationships in the context of their early substance abuse recovery.

Methods. The purposive sample consisted of 17 women in their first three months of recovery. Participants were recruited from a residential substance abuse treatment program for women and their dependent children. Women were interviewed once in a two-hour semi-structured interview that was audio-recorded and transcribed for thematic analysis. Data analysis included assignment and clustering of themes on a holistic and line-by-line reading of transcripts, determination of essential themes using the process of imaginative variation, and using Atlas-ti to re-code themes and retrieve quotes to substantiate and describe the findings. Strategies to reduce potential bias and enhance the disciplined use of researcher reflexivity included external audits, the regular use of a consultant in hermeneutic phenomenology, and the “shadowing” of the entire research process by two professional colleagues. Three non-participant women in early recovery critiqued results. In keeping with the phenomenological tradition, only those descriptions and meanings present in each interview were included in the findings.

Results. Eight essential themes emerged: (1) reciprocal influences between substance use and intimate partner relationships; (2) making “trade-offs” of participants' own needs to maintain intimate partner relationships; (3) the functionally equivalent use of substances and intimate partner relationships to manage feelings and difficult life situations; (4) the necessity to redefine self in relation to both substance use and intimate partner relationships; (5) struggles with the power of external forces to dominate participants' lives; (6) a self identify as “broken” or “damaged”; (7) the profound sense of devastating loss due to substance use; and (8) the struggle for faith in the idea that participants themselves can make their lives different. The essential themes interacted and overlapped with each other to comprise the whole of these women's lived experiences.

Implications. This study expands on previous quantitative findings regarding women's experiences of relationships and early recovery by identifying underlying meaning structures that impact these experiences. The findings suggest that treatment programs may need to focus on, rather than minimize, the importance of the interplay between intimate partner relationships and substance use. Moreover, these findings furnish practice with a roadmap to anticipate and address essential elements of women's experiences in early recovery.