I Breathe, Therefore I am

A memoir about surviving one’s family.

‘I’ve risen above the misery from which I came. I’ve been in therapy for many years and created a good life for myself with a wonderful daughter, fantastic friends, and a career in journalism. And I have put the past and the dark behind me; I do not want to remember. I’ve washed away my past but, suddenly, everything is rushing back.’

Caroline Cederquist’s I BREATHE THEREFORE I AM is the story of a child whose father chose alcohol over his family, and whose mother put her own needs in front of anyone else. The result is chaos, social services and many, many homes along the way. Throughout her childhood, Caroline Cederquist endured neglect from those who should have provided care, safety and love.

Her teenage years were volatile, and as an adult, Caroline would follow in her mother’s footsteps, entering a string of meaningless relationships and emotional instability left her feeling vulnerable and powerless. Deciding to put an end to the vicious cycle, she sets about undoing the damage done by her parents by taking care of herself and those around her. And in that decision, she also decides to break up with her mother for good.

Discovering the power of the written word at a young age that lead to a very successful career in journalism and communication, Caroline Cederquist packs a literary punch with her raw and unflinching account of the reverberations of a toxic mother-daughter relationship, and the damage done by an alcoholic and volatile father. This is a memoir about surviving in spite of your family and coming out the other side, stronger and wiser, in the vein of Jeannette Walls The Glass Castle.

‘Effectively told, a raw mix of the films Boyhood and Mommie Dearest, which affects you long after you’ve stopped reading.’

— Catia Hultquist, News Editor Dagens Nyheter

‘With a page-turning, clear-sighted and sparse style, a narrative depicted from the perspective of the victim, a detached yet gripping observation of the adult world becomes an extra-ordinarily strong story.’

— BTJ