RICHMOND, Va. -- Olivia Lewis was a senior in college with no underlying conditions when she suffered a stroke in 2018.
"It was a massive brainstem stroke," Lewis said. "And from there, I had locked-in syndrome."
Lewis said there was no family history of heart disease or stroke in her family.
“And what I and my family began to understand was locked-in syndrome, it's exactly how it sounds," she said. "You are locked in your own body.”
The rare neurological disorder left Lewis unable to move or express herself.
“So I was cognitively, fully intact, but I felt like I was buried alive," Lewis said.
Before the stroke, the 21-year-old was active in sports and spent time at the gym.
“I was very your typical American college student," she said. "I went to the library and studied I, like I said, went to the gym; there was no, no reason, per se to why this happened."
Lewis remains grateful as the nation’s number one and five killers are heart disease and stroke, according to the American Heart Association.
Molina Healthcare Virginia is joining the fight against these silent killers at this Saturday's Richmond Heart Walk at Libbie Mill Midtown.
“Some of the signs and symptoms are pretty common," plan president James Johnson said. "It's like chest discomfort, shortness of breath, lightheadedness, nausea, and vomiting. Usually, those are common signs that can be experienced," James Johnson is the Plan President.
Johnson's mother is a three-time stroke survivor.
“So, symptoms that she had experienced at the time was facial drooping, arm weakness, speech difficulties, and thank goodness, she was like in the right place at the right time,” Johnson said.
Being proactive is a major factor.
“For example, if you also have high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or just be physically just inactive, those are some of the things you could certainly change,” Johnson said.
It's a message the American Heart Association wants to share at the Heart Walk. Folks can register at 8:30 a.m. Saturday or participate virtually. Click here for more information.
“This walk is to bring awareness to heart disease and stroke, also, to help raise funds is supported to clinical research for those preventable heart disease and Stroke Prevention methods,” Johnson said.
Four years since Lewis' stroke, she is healing and using her experience as a platform.
“So now I'm really focused on volunteering and, you know, helping others on a day-to-day basis while also working on my personal projects, like a book,” Lewis said. “I think that I want to call it Unlocked because I was locked in, so I have to get myself out.”
Lewis also works with the Heart Association's Women of Impact, encouraging women to take control of their health.
“Eighty percent of strokes are preventable, and although my stroke wasn't maybe not preventable, I want to now share my story, to help others,” Lewis said.
Her goal is to let others know that anything is possible.
“I was told that I would never walk or talk again. And I am doing just that," Lewis said. "And you really have to believe in the power within yourself, and that you dictate your future, and no one else is responsible for what is to come.”
