Mez Olivia, a 30-year-old woman from Lampeter, Wales, collapsed without warning at her workplace in Dubai on November 16, 2021, due to a life-threatening stroke and brain haemorrhage caused by an arteriovenous malformation (AVM). She regained consciousness days later in an intensive care unit (ICU) with no feeling down the entire right side of her body.
Sudden Collapse and Emergency Response
Mez, then 26, was working as a social media manager in Dubai when she suddenly screamed and collapsed. Her colleagues immediately came to her aid. “One minute I was laughing with everyone and the next I screamed and collapsed,” she said. “I had breakfast as normal that morning. There were no signs anything was wrong. My memory just stops.” Her co-worker caught her head, and her manager placed her in the recovery position and called an ambulance. “It looked like I had died, so everyone was in complete shock,” Mez added.
Doctors determined that Mez had suffered a brain haemorrhage due to an AVM—an abnormal cluster of tangled blood vessels in the brain. She spent 11 days in intensive care and underwent emergency embolization surgery, where instruments were guided through an artery in her groin to block off the abnormal blood vessels. Medics warned her family that without immediate intervention, she would not survive.
Family Consent Amid COVID Restrictions
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, Mez’s sister could not travel to Dubai to give consent for surgery after testing positive for the virus. Her father and brother had to make the agonising decision to proceed. “They were told it was life or death. If I didn't have the operation, I would die, but I needed written consent to go through with it,” Mez recalled.
After the surgery, Mez’s memory of two weeks in hospital remains a blur. “I had a drain in my brain and I don't think I realised how ill I was. I remember my sister telling me to be careful not to hurt my right side when I was lying down and I said, 'I don't have a right side.' I couldn't feel it,” she said.
Return to the UK and Intensive Rehabilitation
Once stabilised, Mez was flown back to the UK in December 2021 as her insurance cover neared its limit. She spent Christmas Day alone in hospital isolation before being transferred to Glangwili Hospital in Carmarthen, Wales. Her father paid for a taxi from Heathrow to west Wales. At the hospital, she underwent hydrotherapy, physiotherapy, and had to relearn how to walk. “Every day was the same. I had hydrotherapy, physiotherapy and had to learn how to walk again,” she said.
Placed on a stroke ward alongside elderly patients, Mez described the experience as a profound wake-up call. “I didn't realise how serious strokes were because I'd always associated them with older people. They gave me a side room, but sometimes I'd have to come out because someone had died. It really showed me how devastating strokes can be,” she said.
Defying Prognosis and Ongoing Treatment
Upon discharge, Mez was told she might never walk unassisted again and was encouraged to use a wheelchair. Determined to prove the doctors wrong, she worked with a personal trainer to rebuild her strength and self-belief. By February 2023, approximately 19 months after her collapse, she was walking without a stick. “I was told I might not be able to do it, but I did,” she said.
However, because the AVM is located deep within her brain, surgeons could not remove it. Instead, she underwent radiotherapy in April 2023, a treatment that can take several years to fully take effect. The treatment has caused side effects, including loss of vision on her right side and brain swelling requiring steroids. “The scariest thing is that something that's supposed to make you better can also take things away from you,” she said.
Life Three Years On
Now three years after her collapse, Mez continues her five-year course of radiotherapy. Despite ongoing challenges, she has returned to Dubai—something she once feared impossible. “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. I've persevered through everything and I'm still going strong,” she said.
What Is an AVM?
According to the NHS, AVMs most commonly occur in the brain, neck, and spine, but can also develop in the kidneys, intestines, and lungs. The Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust notes that AVMs can show rapid growth during childhood or adulthood, especially when hormone levels increase, such as during puberty and pregnancy. Growth can also result from clotting, infection, or trauma.
