Mez Olivia, now 30, from Lampeter, Wales, was working as a social media manager in Dubai when she suddenly collapsed on November 16, 2021. She had no prior symptoms and had eaten breakfast normally that morning. She regained consciousness days later in intensive care, having suffered a life-threatening stroke and brain haemorrhage caused by an arteriovenous malformation (AVM) — a tangle of abnormal blood vessels in the brain.
Sudden Collapse and Emergency Treatment
Mez recalled: "One minute I was laughing with everyone and the next I screamed and collapsed. I had breakfast as normal that morning. There were no signs anything was wrong. My memory just stops." Colleagues caught her, placed her in the recovery position, and called an ambulance. She remained in intensive care for 11 days. Doctors warned her family she would die without immediate intervention.
Due to Covid restrictions, her sister tested positive and could not travel to Dubai to provide consent for surgery. Her father and brother made the agonising decision. Surgeons performed an embolization procedure, guiding instruments through an artery in her groin to seal off the abnormal blood vessels. Mez said: "They were told it was life or death. If I didn't have the operation, I would die, but I needed written consent."
Relearning to Walk
After stabilisation, Mez was flown back to the UK in December 2021 as her insurance ran out. She spent Christmas alone in hospital isolation before being transferred to Glangwili Hospital in Carmarthen for rehabilitation. She had no sensation on the right side of her body and spent six months relearning to walk through hydrotherapy and physiotherapy.
"I didn't realise how serious strokes were because I'd always associated them with older people," she said. "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."
Defying Prognosis
Upon discharge, Mez was told she might never walk unaided again and was advised to use a wheelchair. Determined to prove doctors wrong, she worked with a personal trainer. By February 2023, roughly 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.
Ongoing Treatment and Challenges
Because the AVM is located deep in her brain, surgeons could not remove it. She began radiotherapy in April 2023, a treatment that can take several years to fully work. The treatment has caused side effects: she lost vision on her right side and experienced 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.
Now three years on, she continues her five-year course of radiotherapy. Despite setbacks, she has returned to Dubai — something she once feared impossible. "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?
The NHS states common locations for AVMs are the brain, neck, and spine, though they can also occur in the kidneys, intestines, and lungs. The Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust website notes: "They can show rapid growth over a relatively short period of time during childhood or adulthood. However, at certain times, when the body’s hormone levels increase, such as in puberty and pregnancy, they can grow more quickly. Growth of an AVM can also be as a result of clotting, infection and trauma."
