Barrie man's challenges one year after surviving battle with COVID-19
One year ago, Brian Gillespie beat the odds and left the hospital after a gruelling three-month fight with COVID-19.
The Barrie man survived a 45-day coma, a heart attack, and his lungs collapsing four times for a second chance at life.
"I was very optimistic leaving the hospital because, in a very short amount of time, I come from a person who couldn't move at all to a person that could stand and walk," he says.
His wife, Jill, says she will never forget the day he left the hospital.
"When he came out of the hospital in his wheelchair and being able to touch him for the first time, that was the best feeling ever," she recalls.
While Gillespie is grateful to be alive, he says his life is different after his battle, with unexpected challenges.
"I'm learning, first off, that I have much more limitations than I did in the past."
He explains not being able to lift anything heavy or walk for more than 20 to 30 minutes without feeling exhausted.
"My lungs are damaged for life. They will never be what they were. My breathing ability is pretty limited."
His life-changing experience with COVID-19 has impacted his mental health as well.
"Depression has become a bigger part of my life than it's ever been," he admits. "I don't meet the challenges that I anticipate that I should be able to meet."
But Gillespie remains determined to get his life back to a sense of normalcy.
"I've even started going back to work on a limited basis. I work from home," he says.
The Barrie man plans to head back to work in the office when he's able and looks forward to spending in-person time with friends and family.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.