What is it like to be suddenly, catastrophically on the verge of death? Every year millions of people in the U.S. suffer acute medical emergencies that nearly take their lives. Millions more have accidents that bring them, without warning, to the edge of existence. I am one of those people. How does one adjust, living with a new understanding of the tenuous nature of existence? The Next Breath: New Life after Near Death tells the story of three near fatal and connected medical emergencies I had over a seven month time period and my journey of recovery in their aftermath. It is an idiosyncratic journey to be sure. But at the core, the process of healing and adjustment described, the physical, emotional and social challenges met and conquered, are common for everyone who has faced their own mortality in an ego-shattering moment