Mez Olivia, a 30-year-old British woman from Lampeter, Wales, collapsed without warning while working in Dubai at age 26. She woke up in intensive care after a life-threatening stroke and brain bleed, then spent months relearning to walk.
Sudden Collapse and Emergency Treatment
On November 16, 2021, Mez was laughing with colleagues when she suddenly screamed and collapsed. She had no prior symptoms and had eaten breakfast normally that morning. Colleagues rushed to help, with one catching her head and another placing her in the recovery position and calling an ambulance. Mez recalled, "It looked like I had died, so everyone was in complete shock."
Doctors discovered she had suffered a brain haemorrhage caused by an arteriovenous malformation (AVM) — a tangle of abnormal blood vessels in the brain. She spent 11 days in intensive care and underwent emergency embolization, where instruments were threaded through an artery in her groin to block the abnormal vessels. Her family was warned that without intervention, she would die. Due to Covid restrictions, her sister could not travel to provide consent after testing positive; her father and brother made the difficult decision to join her.
Relearning to Walk
After stabilizing in Dubai, Mez was flown back to the UK in December 2021 as her insurance ran out. She spent Christmas Day alone in hospital isolation before being transferred to Glangwili Hospital in Carmarthen, where she began rehabilitation. She had hydrotherapy, physiotherapy, and had to learn to walk again. Placed on a stroke ward with elderly patients, she said, "I didn't realise how serious strokes were because I'd always associated them with older people."
When discharged, Mez was told she might never walk independently and was encouraged to use a wheelchair. Determined, she asked her consultant if she could improve and was told she could prove people wrong. Working with a personal trainer, she gradually rebuilt strength and confidence. By February 2023, around 19 months after her collapse, she was walking without a stick. She said, "I was told I might not be able to do it, but I did."
Ongoing Treatment and Setbacks
Because the AVM is deep in her brain, doctors could not remove it surgically. Instead, she underwent radiotherapy in April 2023, a treatment that can take years to fully work. However, she has since lost vision on her right side and experienced brain swelling requiring steroids. She said, "The scariest thing is that something that's supposed to make you better can also take things away from you."
Now three years on, she is still undergoing a five-year course of radiotherapy. Despite setbacks, she has returned to Dubai, something she once feared impossible. She said, "I've managed to go back and do things I never thought I'd be able to do again. It has taught me some serious lessons in life."
