Survival of the Fittest - by Luke Hendry

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