This booklet reports the findings of a study that focused on the well-being and lifestyle of 479 families of children (ages 2-17) with Down syndrome (DS) in Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Iceland. A comparative study of families of typical children in the Nordic countries was also done. The results of the study indicate that bringing up a child with Down syndrome is usually well managed in the Nordic countries. There was little parental discord that resulted in separations and the families have a good socioeconomic standard. The vast majority of the mothers were relatively satisfied with their lifestyles and maintained an optimistic view of their children's futures, this being particularly true for rural mothers. Usually, the mother provided the extra support system for the child's daily activities though adolescence, because the child with disabilities develops the self-regulative capacities necessary for autonomous activity more slowly than a typical child. The mothers' opportunities for alternative activities were fewer than those of mothers of typical children and do not increase at the same rate as the children attain adolescence. While the vast majority of mothers were relatively satisfied with their life-situation, this satisfaction decreased as their child entered adolescence. (Contains 66 references.) (CR)