Set in the days leading up to the election of Donald Trump, "Short of Breath" follows Olissa, a single mother in her early 30s who loses her factory job in the series' first scene. It's terrible luck and even worse timing. This event, which happens at the end of a shift on a Friday (as layoffs so often do), starts a ticking clock for Olissa. A judge refuses to postpone a custody hearing for her young daughter scheduled just three days away. Olissa is trapped in an all-or-nothing, last-chance scenario. She has only that weekend to find a decent job and clean up her act once and for all, or risk losing her daughter. Although she means well and tries her best, Olissa is one of those people to whom bad stuff is always just happening. It's always one thing or another with her - drama just seems to follow her everywhere she goes. She's missed hearings and appointments in the past and has demonstrated other irresponsible behavior, and the system is now past caring. Complicating her situation are her battles with addiction and with terrible asthma, made worse by years of abusing her body. Her inhaler is never far from reach.
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