You cannot direct the wind, but you can adjust your sails

New website and blog

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 16:47:00 +0000

My lovely new bride for my birthday created for me my own personalized web site. You can now read about my adventures and get updates by going to http://www.bryancuerrier.ca

The new site is very cool and we will endeavour to make it look even better. If you have a moment, and have a facebook account, please go to the bottom of the new site and 'like' it on facebook.

I will always keep the blog you are reading right now, and there is an RSS feed on the new site to this blog, but will only be updating the new site.

thank you all so much for your support.

Marriage, Golf and other things

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 01:43:00 +0000

Well - dream come true. Sorry all you single ladies, I am no longer available! I was able to finally say that I walked my girl down the aisle - I repeat - walked. It was an amazing day. If you wish to see our top photo picts you can click here to go to Marijo's flicker album.
I've joined a disability sailing club and am finding it very interesting so far. I have managed to squeak in a few more holes of golf and continue to use my bike to follow Marijo around town.
Life is becoming fulfilling.
Hey - the summer is here. I may not write on the blog too much over the next little while. I try to spend as much time as I can outside being active before the snow flies again and I am more housebound. I've just become aware that Rick Hansen is scheduled to come through Belleville on October 31. I look forward to catching a glimpse of him when he arrives.
Thank you so very much for reading my blog over the past year. It has been a great tool for me to share my life and thoughts. I hope you have enjoyed it. See you when I write again!

First Day on the Golf Course and it felt great!

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 15:56:00 +0000

I got a new bike! Marijo does some fancy camerawork

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Sun, 05 Jun 2011 02:40:00 +0000

New Shoes for Bryan

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Thu, 26 May 2011 23:53:00 +0000

Bryan buys his shoes for the wedding and we give the shoe dude a hard time. he was a good sport - cute as ever - and said we made his day!

Golf Tournament Cancelled, But Going Golfing Anyway!

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Tue, 24 May 2011 15:30:00 +0000

Hi everyone,
I just wanted to let you all know that the golf tournament has been cancelled. We were able to secure 70 participants, but we needed 120 for Trillium to host the event. I am still up for a round of golf though and am very excited to try the course with my new prosthetics and crutches. I am getting pretty stable on them and have been practicing hitting a few balls at my sister’s place. I will be on the course on June10th and would love to see some of you out there as well. We can share a drink afterwards and be thankful that just over a year after my sickness, life is good.

Another golf tournament!!!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Thu, 05 May 2011 23:43:00 +0000

Hi everybody, gosh almost a year has gone by. On May 18th it will already be one year since I got sick. I'm sure there were a few people that might have felt that I would make it to see this day....but I did, and it feels darn good. Just to let you know that we are holding another golf tournament this year. Please read a note from Glenn Dryden (tournament organizer) below. He needs to know if you are participating by May 13th at the latest, but he does not need the money right away.

To all,

This year I will be hosting the second Bryan Cuerrier Golf Tournament at The Trillium Wood Golf Club on June 10th. I have attached the details of the tournament. I spoke to Bryan and he would like this year’s tournament to be a celebration vs. a fundraiser. I have copied and pasted some words from Bryan below which he would like to share:

“It has been almost a year since we held the Bryan Cuerrier Golf Tournament to help me recover a physical misfortune. I am alive and well and want to thank you all for supporting me through some difficult times. This year it would be my wish that the tournament not be a fund raiser, but rather an occasion of fun, great golfing and most important a celebration of life. All prizes and monies raised will go directly back to the golfers and guest. This year in some capacity I can play and I'm very excited about that. Come on out and join us, prepare for a fun day and bring your smile's.”

Thank You

Glenn Dryden

___________________________________________________________

Where: Trillium Wood Golf Course

When: Friday June 10th

Time: Shotgun start at 1pm

Price: $95.00 per person; includes power cart and dinner

Dinner: Catered steak dinner at 6:30pm

Format: 4 person best ball

Other: There will be draw prizes and other prizes available

How To Sign Up

• Sign up as a team or by yourself and we will find a team for you.

• I need to know by Friday May 13 if you are interested.

• A full payment of $95 is required between May 13-May 27.

• This event will be cancelled if 120 golfers do not register.

Other Ways to Help

• Donate time as a volunteer at the course.

• Donate a prize towards this event.

This is NOT a P&G sponsored event. I can accept gifts for draw prizes from anyone

or any company.

Tournament Organizer: Glenn Dryden

To sign up contact:

Glenn Dryden - 613-967-6359
Bryan Cuerrier - 613-779-7479
Ron Gray - 613-966-6536

Pitter Patter article

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 16:52:00 +0000

Here's an article in our local paper the EMC. Click here to read

Pitter Patter Run 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 21:18:00 +0000

My big day has finally come - the day of the 5 k walk. The Pitter Patter run in Belleville is to support Community Policing. The co-ordinators allowed me to start 1 hour ahead of everyone else, thinking it would take me at least 2 1/2 hours to do 5 km. It was so cool, as I got a police escort the entire way, clearing traffic from infront of me, which allowed me to stay on the road as opposed to the shoulder. A special thanks to my walking companion - Marg Gray who walked it with me. My finishing time was 1 hour 33 minutes! It was exhilarating for me to cross the finish line. So many people to thank - Natasha Euens - my physiotherapist, Marty, my Prosthesist, Motion Specialties, for their mobility equipment, and of course, Kingston Hospital and St. Mary's Rehabiliation Hospital, and Marijo. Marijo's mom is 83 also entered the 5 k and kicked my butt by 18 minutes! Way to go Nan! Let's do it again next year and see who wins. Next years goal will be to loose the walker.

New crutches

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 12:12:00 +0000

Training for a 5 k, curling, crutches

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 01:16:00 +0000

Ok...I'm lazy! Have been meaning to do an update for quite sometime now.

So...where to start.
First off. We now have a chair lift that allows me to get to the basement and a garage lift that allows me to get out of the house through the garage - thank you to all who have participated in fundraisers over the last number of months. It is because of your genorosity that I am able to live a comfortable life as a disabled person.
Since our return from Florida much continues to happen and the good news is that progress just seems to continue as every month rolls by. Below you will see some pictures attached of recent activities.
Marijo , Brenda (my sister) and I have been walking/running at the Quinte sports center. It's great as there is smooth flooring, out of the weather elements and 7 laps around gives me 1 mile of distance. I'm working on getting my endurance built up.
Marijo and I have once again entered into a local race 5k/10k called the Pitter Patter (April 10th). We did the 10 k together two years ago and my time was 51.30. This year I intend to walk the 5k using my walker. I am hoping to complete it in less the 2.5 hours...that's the goal! The race co-ordinators are allowing me to start early so I can finish with everyone else. Marijo is training for a 1/2 in Ottawa in May, so we train together. This weekend past we trained outside for the first time and let me tell you the terrain is much tougher then the smooth flooring of the sports center.

This week I will start walking at the hospital using modified crutches, I'm very excited to see if this allow me to walk without my walker. On Saturday we went to the Mall without wheelchair instead using my walker. Nice to be looking people in the eye versus from a sitting position. On Sunday (March 13th, 2010) I participated in my company's annual curling fun day. I was in my chair and was able to push the rock via a specially designed handle...I was pretty bad but heck we won both of our games due to great shots from Paul, Bill and Ron.
I have recently done two speaking engagements telling my story.....Marijo says I'm becoming better and more relaxed as I do each engagement. I went in February and spoke to a ladies church group and the last week to a Probus (retired professional business) group - both in Belleville. People are so very nice with all their praise and compliments to both Marijo and I afterwards. Sometimes I think of maybe jotting down a few words about my story while I still remember it all. I have been invited to speak to a large Christian church group in the fall of 2012 in Kingston.
In late April I will be fitted for a new component that attaches to my existing left leg prosthetic. It's called an Otto bock helix hip joint...in laymans terms, it's a hip joint that gives the user more comfort and stability when you walk. My goal is to walk Marijo down the aisle (I might hang on to her a little...but no walker!) in just a little over 3 months as we exchange wedding vows on June 25th at Huffs Estate winery.
Also I signed up for disability sailing for the summer. My home golf course, Trillium Woods, did an amazing thing for me. They have extended free golfing privileges to me for this upcoming golf season...so cool! Can you just imagine if I beat any of my golfing buddies on any hole....boys - get your game sharpened up...pressures on!
I have been working closely with P&G to see if I am able to return to work. They have been very accommodating. More to come on that as we continue to explore options. In the meantime, I am looking into options for volunteering some time to the community. There might be some teaching opportunities to help out young children that struggle a little with their schooling.
Well my first winter has pretty much past at being disabled and I have to tell you it was not much fun as I discovered that snow and road conditions can certainly keep you more house bound then you wish to be. We have some ideas how to combat this in the future....I'm searching for palm trees now...lol. Bring on Spring!.
Mike (my son) just celebrated his 32nd birthday..oh I feel so old and my daughter Jenn comes home from Switzerland on March 31st. I promise to not take so long for our next entry in this blog! My heart reaches out to all the struggles of the Japanese people after this horrific earth quake.

Driving in my car

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 13:30:00 +0000

Bryan's Back in the Game

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Sat, 22 Jan 2011 16:32:00 +0000

Courage Raffle Draw Winners Chosen

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 20:52:00 +0000

Hi everyone,
I just wanted to thank everyone who participated in helping to raise funds for the lifts in our house. Together we raised over $6300! A special thanks to all of the ticket sellers who worked hard to get the word out.
The first place winner was Cindy and David Storey, who were not only tickets purchasers, but also ticket sellers in the Ingelwood area for us and Cindy is Marijo's sister! Cindy and David chose the Katamaran Cruise in the Bahamas. Second place winner was Kaye Kokesh. We have not been successful yet in contacting her, but hope to in the next week or so. She has won the New Hampshire Cottage Retreat. Enjoy the short video below of the draw.

Good bye 2010.....bring on 2011 !!!

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 23:13:00 +0000

Hi folks, it's been a while since I last wrote so here's an update.
Much has happened lately with some news articles on my story. First  came a story from the Belleville Intelligencer (Dec 31st - Posted below). Well  written by reporter Luke Hendry. Then St. Mary's did a story on me for their newsletter. Click here to read it. It's on page three or 4 under "Conquering adversity".
So - yes - I'm  pretty much famous.... my head is so big I can't get through  doorways.

Rehab update
So exciting now as I was introduced to a treadmill at  the hospital and I can do it - although at a slow speed. So, with some  trust fund money, we went and purchased a treadmill and it will arrive  soon. My goal will be to participate in a 5 k run here in town in  April. Now I will cheat a bit and use a 4-wheel walker. It will be  much closer to walking then running, but I am determined to do it!  Walking at BGH is coming along well with my time occupied going up and  down the hallways with my awesome instructor, Natasha, and a cane and  balancing, balancing, balancing.

Odds and Ends

Team at St. Mary's

If your ever bored google  "paragolfer". It's amazing to know there's a machine out there that  will enable me to golf!   Just returned from a clinic to St. Mary's and all is well. Still hope  to return to work end of April. I have been asked by St. Mary's if I  would participate in a medical amputee clinic for new students wishing  to head into that field of medicine...takes place on Jan 25th.  

Raffle draw
All ticket stubs and money will need to be collected by  Sunday Jan 16th and we hope to do the draw on Monday evening Jan 17th.  Our honorary raffle draw selector will be Mackenzie Bennett. If you  might recall from an earlier post, Mackenzie was the young lady, along with  her mom Darlene, who gave me the little stuffed lion that she named  'Courage' while I was at St Mary's. We will video tape the drawing of  the two lucky winners and post here on this blog.

Survival of the Fittest - by Luke Hendry

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 21:01:00 +0000

By LUKE HENDRY, THE INTELLIGENCER

Friday, December 31, 2010

Bryan Cuerrier is walking his way to good health.
Not bad for a guy who seven months ago lost three of his limbs and probably should have died.
Instead, the Belleville man is upbeat about his situation and making ambitious plans -- including returning to work and even golfing.
Cuerrier was nearly 52 last spring when he contracted type A streptococcus, the same bacterium that causes strep throat.

But despite his good health, his case of strep was much worse than that of most patients.

Rushed to Kingston General Hospital May 18, he eventually lost his left leg at the hip. That stopped the strep, but his body caused clotting in his limbs as it tried to fight the infection. Cuerrier then lost his right foot, his left arm below the elbow and the fingertips of his right hand.
Surgeon Dr. David Pichora called Cuerrier's survival "remarkable."
Cuerrier spent two months in hospital before moving to St. Mary's of the Lake Hospital in Kingston for rehabilitation.
Yet from the beginning his outlook was positive. Today, back at home and working hard to regain his strength and independence, that outlook hasn't changed.
"I feel good mentally," Cuerrier said Thursday at Quinte Health Care Belleville General, where he was about to undergo physiotherapy.
"I learned early in the game (it's) better to smile than frown. You get a couple of dark days now and then."

He said he is upset most by the little everyday tasks that he can no longer do alone.

"I don't want to make it all doom and gloom because it really is just learning."
For example, he said, if he's peeling carrots, he must remove his prosthetic left arm to pin the food in place while his right hand does the work.
"It takes a lot longer but it's gratifying."
Cuerrier and fiancée Marijo Corcoran bought their first home together in September. It is outfitted to suit his needs, though some renovations remain. Cuerrier moved in Oct. 21.
"Coming home has been an adjustment," he said. "It's scary coming home at first."
He said Corcoran helps him as needed, but it was a little sobering to realize there was no longer a medical team to rush to his aid.
At home he uses an electric wheelchair. Corcoran pushes him in an unpowered one when they leave the house.
"I feel most vulnerable" when away, he said.
Corcoran has barely been apart from him, spending days in the hospital, maintaining his online journal at bryandavidcuerrier.blogspot.com.
Cuerrier called her "the glue that's holding this all together."
"My life leading up to this has allowed for a lot of patience and love and compassion for him," Corcoran said. "That makes every day easier."
When Cuerrier does have one of his "dark days," she said, it causes her to realize, "I don't have any idea what it's like to be Bryan. There are instances that it hits him: this is for real. This isn't going away.
"Whenever things get tight I go back to what we learned in the hospital, which is ... take things one day at a time, or one hour at a time. I love to see him succeed. He has unbelievable patience."
The couple said their life together is much the same as it was before his illness.
"Marijo is a significant part of it all. Without that support he wouldn't be doing as well," said Quinte Health Care physiotherapist Natasha Uens, who has been working with Cuerrier since October.
"He's an inspiration. He has an amazing attitude. That's a huge part of the rehab. He's incredibly motivated and very driven."
"No, no, no!" an exasperated Uens scolded as Cuerrier leaned too far forward, stretching to reach the next length of railing. Her patient didn't stop.
Reaching the end of the hall, Cuerrier stood in place and -- while his partner and physiotherapist were talking to each other -- bopped his upper body around in a mischievous dance.
Uens said the goal of her therapy is for Cuerrier "to be as functional as possible," but it's hard to forecast the outcome.
It's likely he'll always need a cane or walker, she said.
"Considering what he's been through he's doing extremely well," she said. "He's doing far better than expected and he just wants to keep going. For him the sky's the limit."
Cuerrier and Corcoran celebrate his accomplishments, such as making Christmas dinner himself.
"I don't want to label myself as handicapped even though I know I am," Cuerrier said.
But there is a bright side to the disability.
"We get amazing parking spots now," he said, laughing.
He said he hopes to be back to work as a production planner at Procter and Gamble by mid-May, and that's not all.
"I'm still going to golf."
lhendry@intelligencer

Article ID# 2910846

Bryan in Rehab

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 17:47:00 +0000

Snow removal buisness?

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 17:56:00 +0000

New business idea from Marijo....is this not really abuse? Does she not realize I'm handicapped? Can she be reported? Help!!!!!

P&G Inspirational Speech

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 16:45:00 +0000

First crack at public speaking.....hope you enjoy. Speech is in three consecutive parts as You Tube only allows 10 minutes at a time. The multimedia presentation is also linked here. They take about 30 seconds to a minute to load, depending on your connection.

Speech Part 1

Speech Part 2

Speech Part 3

Bryan's Story Multimedia

Raffle Ticket Purchasing Information

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 23:24:00 +0000

Hi all,
Raffle ticket sales are heating up and we wanted to give you a couple of options to purchase tickets. Please spread the word. Link this to as many people as you can through facebook, email, twitter (links below) or any other means that you have. Remember the tickets are only on sale until Jan 16, 2010.

OPTION 1
Raffle is over. Thank you for your participation!
Thank you so much for your support and encouragement! We are excited to see who wins the raffle. We know you will enjoy both prizes. We have actually been to the cottage and the boat is hosted by Marijo's brother.

All is well

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 02:18:00 +0000

Hi all,
It's Marijo again. Just a quick update on Bryan. He is pretty much back to normal tonight and should be discharged tomorrow if all goes well. He did have some trouble breathing this morning, but after a bit of investigating, the doctor thinks it might have been the entrance of this man you see in the photo on the left. We called security and had him removed and Bryan's breathing quickly got back to normal.
Bryan will update you I am sure, once he gets home and back into his routine.

Update on Bryan

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Sat, 11 Dec 2010 22:35:00 +0000

Hi everyone,
It's Marijo tonight. Just a quick update on Bryan:
We have had a bit of a scare the past 24 hours. Bryan and I went into emergency last night about this time to check out why his heart rate was 125 bpm and his breathing had become laboured. It turned out to be a complication with Bryan's heart. In layman's terms, the sac that surrounds his heart (pericardial sac) was filled to it's maximum with over a litre of blood (picture a bag of milk). This had caused undue pressure on his heart and put him in a very unstable position. The doctors at Belleville General acted quickly and this afternoon performed a procedure to remove the blood from the sac. He is resting comfortably in hospital this evening and should be out by Monday. Very scary for all of us, but thankfully it was a quick solution and we should be back to normal by early next week.

Below is a 5 minute video of Bryan's journey so far that we used for a talk Bryan gave this past few weeks at P&G to the 600 people that work there. We will be posting the actual talk in a few days but thought you could enjoy this video first.

Warning: Some graphic photos, not appropriate for children or those that get queasy.

Bryan Cuerrier 'Courage' Fund Raiser

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 02:30:00 +0000

Hi Everyone,
The holiday season is here and we have a great fund raiser coming up that we hope you are able to participate in. The monies raised will go towards the two electric lifts in our home.
One lift will allow me to to get from the garage to the inside of the home and also give me a secondary exit from the house in the event of a fire. The second lift will allow me to get to the basement level of the home, where we plan to set up a studio for at home workouts, and a walking area for me. There is also a bath tub on the lower level that we will hopefully get a tub chair lift installed which allows a transfer from a wheel chair to a tub. so I can have a bath.

We Need Ticket Sellers and Ticket Outlets
Raffle is over. Thank you for your participation!

Purchasing Tickets
Raffle is over. Thank you for your participation!

RAFFLE DETAILS:
Raffle is over. Thank you for your participation!

Speeches, Royal Wood, Toronto weekend & a C-leg

noreply@blogger.com (Bryan) — Mon, 29 Nov 2010 17:31:00 +0000

Hello all,
It's been quite sometime since I have written last and we have just come back from a wonderful weekend spent in the big city of Toronto. Let's see if I can get these off in some sort or order.

First the big news for me. Even though I have had to to push and prod them, my work insurance Sunlife have come through for me and have agreed to pay for the entire portion of my left leg. This is such a huge deal for me as it frees up trust fund money to go towards a lift for the garage to the main level (this is important as it will give an fire exit in the event of an emergency) and another chair lift to go from the first level of the home into the basement. The generosity of so many who have supported me in my medical journey is now coming to fruition.

Today I was refitted for my left leg prosthetic as my ice cream diet finally made my previous harness way too small. Marijo's family had gotten her a two night stay in Toronto at a wonderful condo having the CN tower right in our backyard...so cool. Also they purchased her two tickets to see Royal Wood, who was amazing. We got to speak to him after the show for a few minutes. We told him our wedding rings will be inscribed with his song title "I'm so glad I met you". He was quite touched by that. We snapped one picture of him & I...very nice.

Another neat thing was to go and see "Le Papillion" a restaurant of french cuisine owned by my cousin Danielle & Paul. I'd recommend strongly anyone in Toronto wanting a great meal experience to go and see them at their new location at 1001 Eastern ave.

I just finished doing two speeches about my journey at work with one more session to go on Dec 10th. It's really neat to be looking at 200-250 people and the room go completely silent as you commence. What an honour for me to share my story with such classy people. All the applause and standing ovations has now made my head too big....I have even had a couple of schools ask me if I might be interested to go and share my story with them. After I do my next session at P&G I will post a video copy of the session on here if you might wish to watch it.

My medical story has, on occasion, allowed me to cross paths with people that have struggles of their own. I know mine was a tough go but others go through the same 'toughs go's' - if not worse. I had the pleasure of meeting a gentleman by the name of Jim Rayburn this past weekend in Toronto. Jim is Marijo's brothers father-in-law, and has now just gone past the 1 year anniversary of having a double lung transplant. His eyes just twinkle at you when you talk to him. He has many day-to-day struggles but he still gets to hear and see his grand kids and his wonderful family along with his companion Sandra. It was so nice to meet them all and share some laughter. I cannot wait to have another opportunity to speak with this courageous man again. We shared some kind words with each other and we made each other smile.... keep fighting Jim and enjoy that amazing view that you have.

Kudos to the Montreal Alouettes for winning their 2nd Grey cup in a row.

Bryan

Bryan's Leg Harness Isn't Fitting Properly....I Investigated

noreply@blogger.com (GirlCalled) — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 22:31:00 +0000

It's Marijo. Lately we have had a bit of a dilemma here in the Evergreen home. When we put Bryan's leg on to walk, his harness was not fitting properly. We would struggle and struggle to get it on and done up, and then, when I finally got him sitting upright, he would complain of stomach cramps. When I started to think about what could possibly be going wrong I decided to do a bit of investigating.
So, off I went to work yesterday, leaving Bryan in the home for the afternoon.
"Do you want any lunch Bryan?" I asked on my way out.
"Nope. I am good." were the last words I heard as I left.

I returned in the afternoon, about 10 minutes before I was scheduled to be home and low and behold - there was Bryan - with very little clothing on, sitting about 3 feet infront of the television, with a gallon of Heavenly Hash ice cream in his paws and a large tablespoon.
He says "Oh! You weren't supposed to be home this early!" And then, for some unknown reason tells the cat to "run away!"

Well, today we went to clinic at St. Mary's, where a number of professionals that have worked alongside Bryan in rehab gather together and talk about how things are going transitioning from the rehab facility to home. We told them that the harness seems a bit tight and difficult to get on, and then - I told them the ice cream story.
After a bit of umming and ahhhing, the prosthetics dude says "when I fitted you for that harness there was only 1 centimeter of a gap around your waist belt. Let's check to see what it might be now."
Well, low and behold - there is now a 12 CENTIMETER GAP on the belt around Bryans waist.
So, we all put 2 and 2 together - harness struggles - memories of putting jeans on as a teenager that were 6 sizes too small - gallons of ice cream and a guilty look.
Bryan is getting CHUBBY!!!
So for all those females out there who have had to endure Bryan's "satchel-ass" jokes over the years - now it's your turn.

PS. I might need a place to stay after Bryan sees this. And I am still not sure what the cat had to do with the whole thing!