Introduction: It has been shown that negative impact of intimate partner violence (IPV) on the child begins early in the realm of the relationship between child and caregiver. Understanding how children experience and relate to an abused parent is essential for theory and to optimize interventions. The aim of this study was to elucidate how children describe their abused parent in the aftermath of IPV. Method: Face-to face interviews were conducted with 17 children with experience of IPV, aged 4 to 12 years. The interviews were analyzed using thematic analysis. Results: Three main themes were identified: Coherent telling about parent; Deficient telling about parent, and Parent as trauma trigger. The results indicate that children may carry integrated as well as deficient or blocked inner representations of the abused parent. Discussion: The finding that for some of the children talking about the abused parent seemed to serve as a trigger for trauma reactions carry theoretical as well as clinical implications. One challenge in clinical work is to help turn a relationship that at times is associated with danger into a calm and secure source of new experiences of trust, nurturance and protection. In this work it will be necessary to pay attention to and recognize signs of trauma reactions within the relationship and to address this in treatment.