Five years ago, Sean Hasler went into work a fit and active 32-year-old.

It was not until two weeks later he was brought out of a coma to find his leg had been amputated.

The asbestos removal operative, from Nottingham Avenue, Maidstone, suffered a heart attack, followed by a stroke which cost him the use of both legs and left him with brain damage.

That was in March 2014. Doctors identified Mr Hasler had an undiagnosed heart condition known as non-compaction cardiomyopathy, a weakening of the heart muscle known to cause strokes in younger people.

Recalling the day that changed his life forever, Mr Hasler said: “I remember I was trying to tell someone something about a spreadsheet, but I couldn’t get the word out. I just felt weird.

“They asked if I was okay - I think it was the first time in my life I said 'no'.

“I went to splash my face with water, I don’t even think I made it to the bathroom.”

The former Senacre Technology College student was rushed to King’s College Hospital, where he would spend a fortnight in a coma and nine months at various hospitals recovering.

He said: “I was the most unwell person in the hospital at one point, everyone was really surprised I pulled through.

“There are big parts of my stay that are missing, I can’t remember them with all the drugs I was on.

"I hate it, there's no getting round it... but it's my life, I have to make the best of it" - Sean Hasler

“My mum died when I was 24, so I don’t have a lot of family.”

It was then another tragedy rocked Mr Hasler's life, when his little brother and carer, Dean, took his own life aged 30.

He said: “It was heartbreaking. I asked someone to go and check on him at his house as I hadn’t heard from him.

“That’s where they found him.

“A little while later I started having seizures.”

The stroke has left Mr Hasler needing regular botox injections into his left hand, to help control spasms which cause him to clench his fist, while his right foot also had to be amputated.

But despite the enormity of what has happened to him, he is determined to keep going.

As soon as he was discharged, the 37-year-old, a keen gym goer and petrolhead, began working from home, in an alternative role, for his employers Cablesheer.

He learned to walk again, using NHS issued prosthetics, and retook his driving test.

Mr Hasler said: “I used to be in the gym four or five times a week.

“But at first the physio was just getting me to sit on the end of the bed and I couldn’t even do that. I just wanted it to stop.

“I started standing up and moving around a couple of months later, I just got my head down and did it.

“With a stroke you’re completely wrecked.

"My life had just been starting, I was working my way up through the ranks at a good company.

"While most people may have suffered from severe depression and self-pity, Sean has picked himself up more than once and remains positive and focussed in getting back on his feet, quite literally..." - Debbie Oakley

“I hate it, there’s no getting round it. But it's my life, I have to make the best of it.”

In 2016 Mr Hasler returned to work fully, staying with Cablesheer, but swapping site work for the office.

Despite everything the last five years has thrown at him, Mr Hasler said: “I’m very lucky. The company has been very supportive and helped find me a different role.

“Right now I’m just taking every day as it comes.”

That support has stepped up a notch, with Mr Hasler’s colleagues now raising money to help him adjust fully to his new life.

Officer manager Debbie Oakley said: “While most people may have suffered from severe depression and self-pity, Sean has picked himself up more than once and remains positive and focussed in getting back on his feet, quite literally.

“There are so many things we could buy to help support Sean and ease his life just a little like an electric wheelchair, an exerciser for his left hand and arm to help rebuild the muscle, a rowing machine to help develop his core strength, a slow cooker to help him in the kitchen.

“All these would aid his independence but obviously aren’t covered on the NHS.”

To donate, visit tinyurl.com/seanhasler