Cover of Breathing Again

Breathing Again

A memoir about the difference between surviving and living, and the slow, imperfect journey back toward hope and joy.

What happens when surviving is no longer enough? Anyone who has wondered whether life can ever feel whole after it has been shattered, Breathing Again offers companionship, understanding and above all, hope.

I learned early how to survive. Forced to flee home at seventeen, I spent my life building a career, raising the son I absolutely adored, and moving forward. I thought those survival skills were enough to carry me through anything.

Then Nathan died. Suddenly, the resilience I relied on my entire life was gone. Grief reduced my world to a tiny space where simply waking up and continuing to live felt almost impossible. I was stuck in a nightmare I could not fix.

My way back did not come through grand revelations. It came quietly. I found healing in the love of rescue dogs, walks beside the Pacific Ocean, unexpected laughter, and finally, putting my story on paper. I wrote this book because I learned that grief and joy can exist together. We do not have to leave our loved ones behind to keep living.

When you lose someone you love, the world rushes in with easy answers. People offer platitudes about everything happening for a reason. They promise that time heals all wounds and that eventually you will get over it.

But real grief does not work that way. The pain does not vanish, and the past does not simply fade. The turning point comes when you stop trying to erase the hurt and start learning how to carry it. You realize that your past can remain a part of you without continuing to own you.

Why this story matters

We do not talk enough about the messy, quiet reality of survival. Breathing Again is a candid and deeply personal story of what it means to love through trauma, profound loss, and experiences that can change us forever. With honesty, warmth, and unexpected humour, Lori May explores the difference between simply surviving and truly living - and the slow, imperfect journey toward hope, joy, and a life worth embracing again.

Breathing again, one letter at a time

This is not a plan and it is not a programme. It is simply nine things that helped, offered in case any of them help you too.

Be where you are

Remember what carried you

Embrace what still brings joy

Allow yourself to grieve

Trust your own voice

Honour what you have survived

Invite life back in

Notice the ordinary things

Give yourself permission to live again

What you will discover inside

  • An honest account of what it is like when surviving stops being enough.
  • Honest reflections on the physical and emotional weight of profound grief.
  • The quiet, unexpected comfort of rescue dogs on the hardest days.
  • Insight into how trauma shapes a life, and how a life can still be reshaped.
  • Proof that humour and joy can survive even the darkest chapters of our lives.

A companion for the difficult days

Honest and raw

No platitudes, just the truth about living with loss.

Quietly hopeful

Not that grief is fixed, but that life can feel whole again.

Deeply relatable

A conversation about grief that feels like chatting with a friend.

Rooted in love

A tribute to a beautiful son and the bond that never breaks.

Get your copy of Breathing Again

$19.95

  • A physical copy of Breathing Again
  • Breathing Again Companion: Gentle reflections for finding your way forward
  • Direct access to the author's reader newsletter
Photograph of Lori May

Lori May

Lori May is a writer, retired nurse, mother, and a lifelong believer in the healing power of love, laughter, and a good dog. After a dedicated career in nursing and a life that brought both extraordinary love and profound loss, Lori turned to writing as a way to make sense of the experiences that shaped her.

Her creative journey began with her first children's book, Teddy and His Friends Save the Mouse House. That story was inspired by her rescue dog, Teddy, and her discovery that creating joy for others is often the best way to find it for yourself. Lori lives on Vancouver Island, where she writes within sight of the Pacific Ocean and shares her quiet days with Teddy.