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“My story is not over yet.”
A memoir of survival, recovery & home
Finding MyJourney
From an orphanage in Romania to a new life in Toronto, Raina. S.E tells the truth about adoption, bullying, mental-health struggles, recovery, faith, love, and the decision to keep moving forward.
Available on
For anyone who has ever felt lost inside their own story.
Begin the journey
Finding My Journey is a candid memoir about survival, recovery, and the courage to take one more honest step.
PILLAR I
Belonging begins with a question
Adopted from Romania at age three and raised in Toronto, Raina. S.E grows up carrying both gratitude and questions about where she comes from.
PILLAR II
Silence has a cost
Bullying, body image, anxiety, and shame teach her how easily pain can hide behind a smile.
PILLAR III
When coping turns dangerous
Disordered eating, self-harm, substance use, hospital stays, and relapse bring the hidden struggle into the open.
PILLAR IV
Faith after grief
The loss of her Nonna, vivid dreams, and a return to prayer become part of Raina's search for meaning.
PILLAR V
The people who keep reaching
Family, her brother, Bailey, Brandon, and Andrew remind her that love can stay present through difficult chapters.
PILLAR VI
A life built for purpose
Recovery leads Raina's back to education and work supporting children, youth, and adults with mental-health and developmental challenges.
A personal welcome
A note from Raina. S.E
( Feel free to move it )
A NOTE FROM RAINA. S.E
Dear reader,
I do not know what brought you here. Maybe you are carrying a story that feels too heavy to say out loud. Maybe you are trying to understand someone you love. Maybe you are looking for proof that a difficult chapter is not the whole book.
I wrote Finding My Journey because silence once convinced me I had to face everything alone. Recovery taught me that honesty can be a doorway, support can be a lifeline, and falling does not erase the road already traveled. You do not have to have everything figured out today. Take the next honest step. You are worth staying for, worth healing for, and worthy of a life that feels like home.
With love, RAINA. S.E
The BookA story told
A story told
without hiding
Finding My Journey is a candid memoir about what happens when a childhood shaped by adoption and belonging collides with bullying, body image, disordered eating, grief, faith, and the hard work of recovery.
This is not a neat story about being fixed. It is an honest account of learning to communicate, accept support, find purpose, and choose another step even when the road has potholes, bumps, and hills.
Key Themes
- Belonging
- Recovery
- Faith
- Purpose
Meet the Author
Meet Raina. S.E
Raina. S.E. is a memoirist and child-youth-care professional whose work is rooted in honesty, empathy, and the belief that asking for help is an act of strength. Born in Romania and adopted to Toronto at age three, she grew up navigating questions of belonging, bullying, mental-health struggles, grief, and recovery.
Her experiences led her back to school and into work supporting children, youth, and adults with developmental disabilities and mental-health challenges. Through Finding My Journey, Raina. S.E. turns a private battle into an open hand for readers who have been suffering in silence.
I wrote this story so someone else can find their way home.
— Raina. S.E.
Words for the road
A pause for the journey
R
Raina. S.E
From Finding My Journey
“My story is not over yet.”
R
Raina. S.E's father, remembered in the memoir
Words for the road
“The train will get to its last stop, but you have to stop at every station in order to get there.”
R
Raina. S.E
Words for the road
“I am not okay. I need help. And there is nothing wrong with asking for help.”
R
Raina. S.E
Words for the road
“Tomorrow is a new day. It is okay to fall and get back up.”
R
Raina. S.E
Words for the road
“You are loved. You are enough.”
R
Raina. S.E
From Finding My Journey
“My story is not over yet.”
R
Raina. S.E's father, remembered in the memoir
Words for the road
“The train will get to its last stop, but you have to stop at every station in order to get there.”
R
Raina. S.E
Words for the road
“I am not okay. I need help. And there is nothing wrong with asking for help.”
R
Raina. S.E
Words for the road
“Tomorrow is a new day. It is okay to fall and get back up.”
R
Raina. S.E
Words for the road
“You are loved. You are enough.”
Reader care
Please read at your own pace.
Finding My Journey includes references to adoption and childhood trauma, bullying, disordered eating, self-harm, suicidal thoughts and attempts, psychiatric hospitalization, substance use, sexual assault, grief, and relapse. This memoir shares lived experience; it does not replace professional care. If you or someone else is in immediate danger, contact local emergency services or a crisis service in your country.