"Brilliant, instructive, and inspiring. I Am the Ocean takes readers on the raw and vulnerable journey from a life in near collapse to one of peace, joy and courage." —Peter J. Reding, author of Positively Brilliant Self-Mastery: Reclaim Your Authentic Self Now

I was doing laundry, making neat piles of shirts, shorts, pants, and socks. Then my twelve-year-old daughter Marit was standing next to me. "Mom," she said, "I just took a bunch of pills."

When her preteen daughter became a suicide attempt survivor, Greta Kjos was living in the shadow of the deepest, darkest fear a mother could endure.

But she also had a deep, dark secret of her own: at age nineteen, she had also attempted suicide. And not a single person knew.

In this inspiring story, Greta shares how she survived amidst crisis and chaos—and took a courageous, intrinsically connected healing journey with her daughter.

Part mental health memoir and part self-love book for women, each chapter includes a "Take a Deep Breath" section with mindfulness prompts, reflection questions, and wellness practices Greta has both experienced herself and developed in her "second act" as a life coach.

Your authentic self is waiting for you—but it's never linear. There is a lot of deconstructing that must take place before moving forward. Old belief patterns and core wounds need to be examined. Relationships that no longer serve you may need to go. Careers may need to change. And yet no matter what the change is, at the core of all healing is the willingness to love yourself.

The perfect companion for anyone healing their mental health and spiritual being, I Am the Ocean is a story of beginning to let the light shine through the cracks.

"This beautifully written book takes a vulnerable glimpse into the struggles and determination of a mom who loves her daughter fiercely and fights for life, as well as her own. The journey isn't easy, but one can find hope and solace in this story."—Sue Abderholden, executive director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Minnesota

Greta Kjos is a former attorney and corporate drop-out turned certified life and leadership coach, speaker, and author focused on helping women live the lives they were meant to live with purpose, joy and courage. She is also the co-founder of Heart + Sol Adventures, a transformational travel company for midlife women. A mother of three and grandmother to five, Greta found the way home to herself and now confidently lives and travels to wherever she's drawn.