Episode 039
When the CEO Gets Taken Out by Life And Still Find His Way Back with Bruce Cryer
What do you do when life pitches you nine curveballs… in two years? If you’re Bruce Cryer, you take the hit, heal your heart (literally), and come back tap dancing on titanium hips.
Bruce Cryer had it all dialed in. Broadway star turned CEO of HeartMath, globetrotting educator, and champion of heart-brain coherence. Then life went full demolition mode: bladder cancer, four staph infections (one in his blood), his mom died, he got divorced, and both hips needed replacing.
All that – in under two years.
But here’s the kicker. He didn’t just recover. He reimagined his life. Bruce stepped down from the C-suite and leaned into the work of healing, creativity, and joy.
In this episode, we talk about:
– Why rest is a radical act (especially for high-achievers)
– The moment he felt like a human IV pole and a total badass
– What “coherence” really means – and how it changes your health
– Letting go of guilt when you leave people (and identities) behind
– Why your heart is more than a pump – and how it actually leads your brain
This one’s for anyone who’s had to rebuild from rubble and is wondering, “What now?”
Spoiler: Bruce says, Let your heart answer that.
“It wasn’t just the pain – it was the grief of letting go of who I thought I was.””
Connect witH TOBY:
- Website: https://brucecryer.com
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/brucecryer
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/bruce_cryer
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/brucecryer151
- Free Gifts: Sonic Sanctuaries and eBook
Timestamps:
00:00 – Meet Bruce Cryer and His Nine Innings of Curveballs
02:34 – The Life-Threatening Staph Infection That Changed Everything
05:35 – Stepping Down as CEO While Still Healing
09:04 – Feeling Like You’ve Let People Down When You Take Care of Yourself
14:50 – What HeartMath Actually Is (Hint: It’s Not Woo)
20:46 – Your Heart Talks to Your Brain – Four Times More Than the Reverse
26:44 – From Chaos to Coherence: What Gratitude Does to Your Body
35:13 – How Bruce Used Heart Coherence to Heal
38:47 – Riding the Waves of Pain with Positivity and Practice
45:48 – What It Feels Like to Hear “It’s Not Cancer”
48:56 – From Broadway to Bladder Cancer to Big Stage Again
55:59 – The Song That Still Makes Him Cry
58:18 – Where to Find Bruce and Work with Him