In 2019, Tiona Stevenson realized she didn鈥檛 feel like herself.
She couldn鈥檛 sleep. She couldn鈥檛 focus at work. Something was off, but Tiona couldn鈥檛 pinpoint the problem. She spent two long years working through it.
鈥淚 was working my regular schedule at home and started feeling dizzy all the time. I tried to push through and keep working, but staring at a computer screen all day was also messing with my vision,鈥 Tiona said. 鈥淚 couldn鈥檛 focus and felt lightheaded, until one day, I felt like I might pass out.鈥
Tiona鈥檚 whole left side seized up and she couldn鈥檛 speak. She was having a seizure. Tiona went to a hospital but once she got there, she felt normal. She didn鈥檛 have an MRI and went home after a few hours.
The next several months weren鈥檛 much different. Tiona still felt off, but she pushed through and kept working in order to provide for her pre-teen son, Zaire, her boyfriend and her mother. But a few months later, she had another seizure. This time an MRI at the ER revealed a brain spot, so Tiona was referred to a neurologist.
Things were about to get much worse.
鈥淚n September, I had a grand mal seizure and was admitted to the hospital,鈥 Tiona said. 鈥淚 really felt like I was dying. I just wanted to be in a dark room. I couldn鈥檛 take care of my family, my eyes hurt, I had no energy and I felt nauseous.鈥
Luckily, , was on call the day that Tiona came to the emergency department at after her grand mal seizure. Dornbos, a neurosurgeon at UK HealthCare's , was able to quickly diagnose what was wrong: Tiona had an arteriovenous malformation, or AVM, an abnormal connection between arteries and veins that not only causes seizures but also produces a high hemorrhage risk and abnormal blood flow.
鈥淲ith AVMs, it鈥檚 always congenital, which means she was born with it,鈥 Dornbos said. 鈥淎 lot of AVMs stay clinically quiet, but we start finding them after patients come to see us with headaches or seizures 鈥 or they get their head scanned for something else. We found Tiona鈥檚 after her seizure when she came to our ER. And I鈥檓 so glad she finally ended up here.鈥
Tiona鈥檚 AVM was large enough that Dornbos recommended surgery. To complicate matters, the AVM was only one millimeter away from the part of Tiona鈥檚 brain that controls her ability to move the opposite side of her body. It wouldn鈥檛 be an easy surgery, but Dornbos was confident that it was the right move.
鈥淚 ultimately recommended surgery because she鈥檚 young and already symptomatic,鈥 Dornbos said. 鈥淗er AVM was pretty big and close to important areas of the brain, but it was in a surgically safe place, and this type of surgery is my clinical niche. Luckily, Tiona made it to us before her AVM became a bigger problem.鈥
Left untreated, Tiona would have continued having seizures 鈥 or worse. Her AVM was at high risk for rupture and at the very least, there was a good chance it would cause a potentially catastrophic brain bleed in the near future.
鈥淩elative to stroke, AVMs are fairly uncommon, but we do treat them regularly. Sometimes we use radiation, but if there鈥檚 a high hemorrhage risk, we are more likely to go to surgery,鈥 Dornbos said. 鈥淏ecause they are rare, if you do have an AVM, it鈥檚 crucial to get to a high-volume surgical center like UK HealthCare. Some patients don鈥檛 need their AVMs taken out, but if you are at a center without all of the options, you鈥檙e limited in how to take care of it.鈥
Tiona was just 31 years old at the time of her surgery, with her entire life ahead of her. She said she knew surgery was the right move, even though there was some risk involved.
鈥淚 had to get better to take care of my son,鈥 Tiona said. 鈥淲ith the non-surgical route, there was a high chance of me not improving, so surgery was an easy decision. I prayed and left it in God鈥檚 hands, and Dr. Dornbos made me feel so confident.鈥
Tiona鈥檚 surgery was a huge success. She came in on a Friday for the first part of a two-part procedure: an embolization that would 鈥渒ill鈥 off the AVM using a liquid plastic-like substance to cut the blood flow, making the second procedure much safer. And on Monday, Dornbos successfully performed Tiona鈥檚 craniotomy, carefully removing the AVM by disconnecting it from the involved arteries and veins.
Even though it was a long surgery, Tiona was home by the end of the week. The procedure was close to Tiona鈥檚 premotor cortex, so recovery hasn鈥檛 always been easy.
鈥淚 noticed when I was out of surgery, my brain couldn鈥檛 form what I wanted to say, and my whole left side was weak,鈥 Tiona said. 鈥淚 still have times when I stutter over words, and at first, I couldn鈥檛 be fully independent.鈥
But soon after the surgery, things started looking up. Tiona started physical therapy, speech therapy and occupational therapy. It was frustrating at first, especially because bright lights would hurt her eyes, and appointments were scheduled first thing in the morning. But Tiona persevered.
鈥淚t was a little trying at the beginning, but I stuck it through, and each visit got easier and easier,鈥 Tiona said. 鈥淚鈥檓 so thankful for each of the therapies because they helped tremendously.鈥
Tiona is also grateful for Dr. Dornbos鈥 entire staff, who helped her through every step of her care. Tiona is the primary caregiver for her family, so it wasn鈥檛 easy for her to rely on others for help, but she鈥檚 especially appreciative of , a physician assistant who works with Dornbos.
鈥淗ilary has been great. I know I can be a pain, calling every day, and I鈥檓 really thankful for her. She was so patient, and I鈥檓 thankful for all of the staff. Any staff I came in contact with, from prepping and taking care of me to recovery, they were all so kind. And so easy to get in touch with if I needed anything.鈥
McCord was quick to mention that the feeling was mutual. She couldn鈥檛 help but notice how strong Tiona was 鈥 and how essential a full-strength Tiona was to her entire family.
鈥淲e really became part of her support system,鈥 McCord said. 鈥淲e knew recovery would be an uphill battle in terms of getting her strength back, but Tiona did amazing. She鈥檚 the rock of her family, and I know they needed her to get better. I鈥檓 amazed she bounced back so quickly.鈥
While Tiona isn鈥檛 quite back to 100%, her long-term prognosis is great.
鈥淎t this point, it鈥檚 very rare for this to recur or come back. Once these are gone, it鈥檚 99 percent curative,鈥 Dornbos said. 鈥淭iona is an extremely strong individual. She runs her family and takes care of everyone, and we鈥檙e so glad to be able to take care of her.鈥
Today, Tiona is looking forward to her seizure-free future. She doesn鈥檛 feel 100% every day, and sometimes she feels a little low on energy, but she says she鈥檚 so glad to be able to take care of her family and do simple things, like take Zaire to the state fair or the park 鈥 or even just the grocery store. But mostly, she鈥檚 thankful: for God, for being alive, for her family and for Dornbos.
鈥淒r. Dornbos is a life-changer. He really saved my life, and I鈥檓 so, so thankful," she said. "I believe things happen for a reason, and he鈥檚 helped me tremendously. I can鈥檛 thank him enough. He鈥檚 been wonderful.鈥