I woke up with intense facial pain. It was a brain tumor that had been slowly growing for 10 years.

• I woke up one day in 2020 with extreme pain in the right side of my face. 
• I was diagnosed with trigeminal neuralgia, told there was no cure, and referred to a neurologist.
• But an MRI revealed a benign brain tumor; after surgery and a long recovery, I'm now pain-free.

In July 2020, after the pandemic started and we were locked down, I woke up with an intense pain on the right side of my face. I'd always been healthy and had never experienced anything like this; I knew this was not good news.

I was able to schedule a virtual call with a doctor the following day and described my symptoms to him. I was mainly experiencing intense pain that felt like electric shocks on the right side of my face anytime I would move my facial muscles. Eating, talking, and laughing all became very painful.

He diagnosed me with trigeminal neuralgia, a chronic-pain condition.

"There is no cure for this condition, so the best thing we can do is to help you manage the pain," the doctor said. "I will recommend you to a neurologist who will be following you for the rest of your life."

I'd always done everything I could to avoid a health scare like this

I was in complete shock. For years, my focus had been on healthy eating, abstaining from alcohol and coffee, getting seven hours of sleep each night, and exercising and meditating daily, all in order to be healthy and full of energy. I had also recently launched a company focused on holistic-well-being technology, and we were working with various large clients.

Balancing my role as a wife and mother with two kids, and as a newly minted CEO, was already not easy — now this. I was worried about how I was going to manage, but nothing could have prepared me for what came next.

I made an appointment with a neurologist. By the time our appointment rolled around and they confirmed the diagnosis, the pain had intensified to a point that I was afraid to eat, talk, or even smile.

The doctor told me I had a benign tumor and that given its size and shape, it had likely been growing for 10 to 15 years. This tumor was the cause of my chronic pain since it was pressing on the trigeminal nerve, also known as the facial nerve, in my brain. I was left in shock, yet again.

"Surgery is the only option, given the tumor's size," my neurologist said.

I was with my husband when I got the news, and I was speechless. We decided not to tell our kids until we knew more about the risks of the surgery — which included partial facial paralysis and epilepsy — and had time to consult with several other neurosurgeons.

It turned out the tumor had been growing for over 10 years

During this time, I asked one neurosurgeon to review an MRI of my brain that I had done 10 years prior. The review was part of an in-depth health check-up to see if the tumor was already there at that time. Surprisingly, it was, but it was completely missed by the doctors that I was consulting with at that time, since it had been significantly smaller. This was when I understood how complex it was to analyze a brain MRI, in part because of irregular tumor shapes and sizes. Now there are artificial-intelligence tools that help doctors analyze MRIs and similarly complex scans to avoid missing even the smallest tumors.

As I was reading about brain surgery, it became clear that operating on the part of the body that controls everything from breathing to movement, speech, memory, and consciousness would be a very delicate and risky surgery. Even a very small mistake could cause catastrophic damage.

I kept thinking: "Which neurosurgeon will I trust with my life?"

After virtual consultations with several neurosurgeons — including a few international options — I realized I had no choice but to choose a local surgeon since the borders were closed amid the amplification of the pandemic. I got a referral from my neurologist to the best neurosurgeon in our area, though I was warned it could take some time to see him because of his reputation.

When I met with my neurosurgeon for the first time, in September 2020, I was literally trembling as he described the operation. He mentioned there was a risk of facial paralysis, given that my tumor was pressing on my facial nerve.

All I wanted to do was spend time with my family before the surgery

I remember telling my husband that if anything went wrong with the surgery and I was left in a coma — which was the only outcome I could think of at the time, other than success or fatality — I didn't want to be a burden to him or our kids. I felt as though I would rather die than that. I wanted to let my family continue living.

"For me, life is about cherishing each moment with you and the kids," I told him.

After that conversation, all my successes, possessions, roles, and titles became irrelevant. The only thing that mattered was time: time with my family and time to cherish the life I'd built with them.

I kept thinking to myself, "If these are the last moments of my life, I want to enjoy them with all my heart, and I do not want my kids and husband to remember me as a victim of my tumor."

This was all still before the COVID-19 vaccines were available, and we hadn't seen many people in person yet. I had to share the news with friends, family members, and business partners over virtual calls. But I often got so emotional during those calls that I decided to stop spreading the news and focus instead on conserving my positive energy and preparing for the surgery while I was undergoing additional MRIs and tests.

During this time, one of the tests showed that my vestibular system, which facilitates our physical balance when we walk, had been completely squeezed by the tumor, which explained why I was also starting to have balance issues. In October, I had a final consultation with the neurosurgeon, and the surgery was scheduled for just over one week later.

The surgery was a success, but recovery was long and painful

On November 9, 2020, my nine-hour brain operation began at 7 a.m. I cannot even imagine how long that day must have been for my family members. When I finally woke up the next day in the intensive-care unit, the neurosurgeon came to see me.

"How are you feeling, and can you smile at me?" he asked.

Despite the immense pain that I was in, I was able to smile. I could not believe it. I learned that he'd successfully removed the totality of the brain tumor without any damage to my facial nerve, and I was in total awe — and relief.

Postsurgery was very challenging. I left the hospital with a walker, and it took several weeks for my balance normalize. I had physiotherapists helping me recover over virtual appointments and regular follow-ups with the neurosurgeon. About two months after the surgery, the doctors helped me taper off the pain medication I was taking for the trigeminal neuralgia, as the nerve's irritation subsided because of the removal of the tumor.

Five months after the surgery, the neurosurgeon authorized me to start progressively exercising at a very low pace. It took me one year to build up to the same level of exercise I'd been doing before the surgery. The skull pain from the operation subsided about 18 months after the operation, and I became stronger and more resilient every day.

It was one of the most challenging times of my life, and my husband and kids helped me through it. I also had support from my parents, my two brothers, and my wonderful friends, who all enveloped me with so much love and constant words of encouragement. This experience created deeper bonds between us, and I now have a greater appreciation of life.

All I want to do is live my life with joy and bring joy to others.