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
Salman Rushdie 'on the road to recovery,' agent says
Salman Rushdie is 'on the road to recovery,' his agent confirmed Sunday, two days after the author of 'The Satanic Verses' suffered serious injuries in a stabbing at a lecture in upstate New York.

Arizona parents arrested trying to get in locked-down school
Police arrested three Arizona parents, shocking two of them with stun guns, as they tried to force their way into a school that police locked down Friday after an armed man was seen trying to get on campus, authorities said.
Feds quietly change rules to allow one-time ArriveCAN exemption at land border crossings
The Canada Border Services Agency is temporarily allowing fully vaccinated travellers a one-time exemption to not be penalized if they were unaware of the health documents required through ArriveCAN.
More U.S. lawmakers visiting Taiwan 12 days after Pelosi trip
A delegation of American lawmakers arrived in Taiwan on Sunday, just 12 days after a visit by U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi that prompted an angry China to launch days of threatening military drills around the self-governing island that Beijing says must come under its control.
FBI seized 'top secret' documents from Trump home
The FBI recovered documents that were labelled 'top secret' from former U.S. President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, according to court papers released Friday after a federal judge unsealed the warrant that authorized the unprecedented search this week.
Two people from Ottawa killed in Port Hope, Ont. plane crash
Two people from Ottawa were killed when their small plane crashed in Port Hope, Ont. this weekend.
LAPD ends investigation into Anne Heche car crash
The Los Angeles Police Department has ended its investigation into Anne Heche's car accident, when the actor crashed into a Los Angeles home on Aug. 5.
More than 10,000 Canadians received a medically-assisted death in 2021: report
More Canadians are ending their lives with a medically-assisted death, says the third federal annual report on medical assistance in dying (MAID). Data shows that 10,064 people died in 2021 with medical aid, an increase of 32 per cent over 2020.
Fire at Coptic church in Cairo kills 41, hurts 14: officials
A fire ripped through a packed church during morning services in Egypt's capital on Sunday, killing at least 41 worshippers and injuring 14.