Danielle Campo McLeod returns to Windsor after fight for her life

Danielle Campo McLeod says she's getting stronger every day after nearly losing her life following the birth of her daughter.

After weeks at University Hospital in London, the former paralympic swimming champion and world record holder returned to Windsor on Tuesday. She is spending the next few weeks at Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare receiving physiotherapy.

On CBC Radio's Windsor Morning on Friday, Campo McLeod said there's a lot of work ahead to recover her strength after being in a coma and in bed for so long.

"Learning to re-walk again...getting my arms stronger. We're dealing with a lot of getting neurological messages to the muscles and getting them to remember how to wake up and how to work again," she said.

Campo McLeod gave birth to a healthy baby girl in August but ended up having complications. Eventually, she went into septic shock, and on more than one occasion, she was so close to dying that doctors called her family to her bedside.

Her husband, Denny, described the ordeal as an "absolute nightmare."

"In the beginning when she was put into the coma, I really had to trick myself and fight myself not to go to dark places, because when she was at her worst, I was pretty much at my worst, just trying to stay strong," he said.

Campo McLeod, who won seven medals for swimming in the 2000 and 2004 Paralympic Games, described her husband as "her rock."

The couple has a blended family with five children.

The experience has taught them to enjoy every second and not get caught up in the busyness of life, she said.

"I think we're just going to slow down life and enjoy the little things," she said.