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Table of Contents
About The Book
From Clara Hughes, the six-time Olympic medalist, celebrated humanitarian, and bestselling author of Open Heart, Open Mind: A story of healing and transformation in midlife.
As an elite athlete—the only person who has won multiple medals in both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games—Clara Hughes thrived on powering through pain, with profound consequences for her body and mind. Following her retirement from sport, the mantra ‘‘movement as medicine’’ fueled her public advocacy for mental health and her personal healing journey. However, Clara’s attraction to extremes persisted: grueling months-long hikes and bike-packing trips began to take a toll. In 2021, a catastrophic knee injury coincided with menopausal hot flashes and dizzying mood swings, forcing her into stillness, and her depression, kept at bay for years, loomed larger than ever.
How do you move forward when the body you’ve always relied on doesn’t bounce back like it used to, when you feel like a stranger to yourself, and the punishing voice in your head won’t stop? Clara sought help through traditional avenues, but after realizing how little support there is for people in menopause, she turned to a different kind of medicine. Enter the world of psychedelic-assisted therapy.
Through guided experiences—some hilarious, some alarming, and some mind-expanding—Clara begins a winding trip back to herself, and to a deeper awareness of the roots of the inner pain she’d suppressed through sport. Along the way, she forges new relationships; begins the work of repairing old ones; and faces long-held fears.
Learning to Breathe is a vulnerable, funny, wise and fascinating memoir about one human’s healing journey, the terrors and joys of midlife change, and the potential for new beginnings at any stage.
As an elite athlete—the only person who has won multiple medals in both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games—Clara Hughes thrived on powering through pain, with profound consequences for her body and mind. Following her retirement from sport, the mantra ‘‘movement as medicine’’ fueled her public advocacy for mental health and her personal healing journey. However, Clara’s attraction to extremes persisted: grueling months-long hikes and bike-packing trips began to take a toll. In 2021, a catastrophic knee injury coincided with menopausal hot flashes and dizzying mood swings, forcing her into stillness, and her depression, kept at bay for years, loomed larger than ever.
How do you move forward when the body you’ve always relied on doesn’t bounce back like it used to, when you feel like a stranger to yourself, and the punishing voice in your head won’t stop? Clara sought help through traditional avenues, but after realizing how little support there is for people in menopause, she turned to a different kind of medicine. Enter the world of psychedelic-assisted therapy.
Through guided experiences—some hilarious, some alarming, and some mind-expanding—Clara begins a winding trip back to herself, and to a deeper awareness of the roots of the inner pain she’d suppressed through sport. Along the way, she forges new relationships; begins the work of repairing old ones; and faces long-held fears.
Learning to Breathe is a vulnerable, funny, wise and fascinating memoir about one human’s healing journey, the terrors and joys of midlife change, and the potential for new beginnings at any stage.
Appearances
OCT 15
7:00PM
McNally Robinson, Grant Park
1120 Grant Ave
4000
Winnipeg, MB R3M 2A6
OCT 16
12:00AM
In Person
EVENT - Ottawa International Writers Festival, In Conversation with Séan McCann
Ottawa International Writers Festival
395 Wellington Street
Ottawa, ON K1A 0N4
OCT 19
12:00AM
In Person
EVENT - gritLIT
GRITlit
177 Sherman Avenue North
Playhouse Cinema
Hamilton, Ontario L8L 6M8
OCT 27
12:00AM
In Person
EVENT - Bolen Books, In Conversation with Gregor Craigie
Bolen Books
111 1644 Hillside Avenue, Hillside Centre
Victoria, BC V8T 2C5
About The Author
Photograph © Simon Baker
Six-time Olympic medalist Clara Hughes became the only athlete to win multiple medals in both the Summer and Winter Games. She is a member of the Order of Manitoba and an officer of the Order of Canada, has received a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame, and was inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame. Clara was Canada’s flag bearer for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games. She was the founding spokesperson for Bell Canada’s Let’s Talk initiative, a campaign dedicated to breaking down the stigma of mental health. In 2014, she was awarded the Meritorious Service Cross, which recognizes those whose outstanding personal commitment has brought honour to Canada. In 2022, she was named an Olympian for Life in recognition of her making the world a better place by promoting the Olympic Values at every stage of her life. Clara lives with her husband, Peter, on Vancouver Island, and continues to enjoy bike touring and hiking.
Product Details
- Publisher: Simon & Schuster (October 13, 2026)
- Length: 224 pages
- ISBN13: 9781668200759
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Raves and Reviews
Praise for Open Heart, Open Mind
“An amazing athlete, a great person, and a wonderful motivating example for all!”
—Joé Juneau, ice hockey Olympic medalist and former NHL player
“Clara Hughes is both an extraordinary and an ordinary Canadian. This honest memoir reveals the determination of a champion to overcome external adversity and internal struggles, finding her place as an athlete, an advocate, and a person.”
—Dr. David Goldbloom, Senior Medical Advisor, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health
“Clara’s story is just like her: It is energetic, strong, full of character, and very powerful. You really feel the determination within her and you cannot fail to wish you could award her another gold medal for the way she turned her life around and makes it her duty to help others.”
—Gaétan Boucher, speed skating Olympic medalist
“Clara brings us along on her journey from childhood to her incredible Olympic success, through her victories and her failures, all while dealing with her own personal torment. I now believe Clara to be superhuman, not for her incredible Olympic success and athletic feats, but for her dogged battle against depression, first for herself and now for the rest of us through her advocacy work. I couldn’t stop reading.”
—Johann Koss, CEO, Right to Play International
“Her book puts us on the handlebars and rides us headlong into a childhood tainted by her father’s alcoholism, a multi-generational addiction pattern that affected herself and both her grandfathers as well. […] With the same stealth and fight that brought her gold, Clara Hughes is talking, sharing and learning. […] She’s unstoppable, even in the off-season.”
—Vancouver Sun
“…honest and courageous.” —Guelph Mercury
“... a fine, honest book, a revealing look inside the life of a world-class athlete who also happened to have the intelligence and sensibility to regard herself while this was happening. It’s like having an unusually perceptive journalist with unparalleled access to the mind of an athlete."
—Montreal Gazette
Resources and Downloads
High Resolution Images
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Book Cover Image (jpg): Learning to Breathe
Hardcover 9781668200759
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Author Photo (jpg): Clara Hughes Photograph © Simon Baker(0.1 MB)
Any use of an author photo must include its respective photo credit
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