January 21, 2023 started off like a normal day for 13-year-old Jahier and his mom, Amber. The two had just gone out to eat and did a little shopping afterwards. When they arrived home, Jahier helped carry a few bags inside when suddenly he started to cry. “It wasn’t a normal cry,” Amber recalled. “He started saying he couldn’t feel his legs and said his head was hurting.”

Amber didn’t wait. She rushed him to the local emergency room, which was just a 5-minute drive down the road. By the time they arrived, Jahier couldn’t walk. The team of doctors called for a stroke alert and conducted a brain CT. The first scan looked normal, but Jahier’s condition continued to worsen. A second scan, this time with contrast, revealed a ruptured brain AVM — and the bleed appeared to be spreading.