Behind the drop-dead-gorgeous face of the blogger and influencer Hanin Almugahwi, is a tale of a life-threatening condition and extreme emotional turmoil. Sharing her heart wrenching experiences for the first time publicly, she tells Behnaz Sanjana all about it.
23-year-old architecture graduate, Hanin Almughawi looked forward to a blissful married life when she wedded her college sweetheart. As the inevitable teething problems of settling into a new home and family consumed her attention, she ignored the recurrent headaches that got worse by the day. “There was interference by my in-laws in issues between my husband and I, which did not help our new marriage,” remembers Hanin, now 31. “Along with the headaches, I started getting frequent nose bleeds, but I didn’t do anything about it. I was too stressed with the situation with my husband and his family, and did not feel right to talk to anyone about it.”
When she complained about her health problems, she was told it was all just ‘in her head’. The alarm bells went off when she started losing her vision, and she finally sought medical help. “I was diagnosed with intercranial hypertension, and the MRI of my brain looked so bad, that doctors in Bahrain had little hope for me,” says Hanin.
Her parents accompanied her to London for a cure, but there too, doctors admitted to her case being in its advanced stage. “My mother spoke to some top doctors, and finally we flew to Singapore for my surgery.”
Hanin underwent two surgeries to tackle the cerebrospinal fluid that was building excessive pressure in her skull, causing her symptoms. “In the first surgery, they drilled holes in my head to let out a fountain of fluid. After a few days in the ICU, the next operation allowed the excess fluid produced to be drained through a tubing passing down my spine, stomach and through an implanted valve into the bladder. I still have all those scars,” says Hanin.
Although her husband accompanied her for her surgery, their relationship was far from perfect. “My mother did feel something wasn’t right between us, but I still did not open up to her,” Hanin admits.
From Singapore, she returned to her marital home to recover, but unfortunately did not receive the care and emotional support that was required to recuperate from such a grave health condition. “I was treated very badly,” she says, recounting the indifferent attitude of her husband’s family. “Due to extreme muscle weakness, I could hardly eat anything and found it difficult to breathe. I was a 27-year-old who weighed just 29kgs. I could no longer walk and used a wheelchair to move around.”
The added mental trauma did not help her recovery. The fluctuating levels of fluid in her brain caused epileptic seizures. “When this would happen, I would bite my lips and tongue so hard that they would bleed, but my husband was told that I was only acting to get attention,” Hanin relates. “I was waiting to feel better after the surgery, but instead, felt worse. I had around only 20 percent of my vision, and I also lost my sense of touch.”
When Hanin thought things in her life couldn’t get any worse, she was hit with a bigger emotionally painful blow. “Three months after my surgeries, doctors in Bahrain did not expect me to get better. My husband told me that he could no longer accept me in a wheelchair, as it embarrassed him, and gave me a divorce.”
Back at her parent’s place, Hanin tried her best to heal. Slowly and steadily, her condition seemed to improve. “Physically I was getting better, but I was emotionally broken, and I could not bring myself to go out or talk to anyone,” she recalls.
What kept her going was her faith. “I had full faith in God and my prayers, and I felt deep inside that He had something great for me in the future,” she says. “That and my mother’s unconditional love and support helped me to get better.”
Taking each day as it came, Hanin slowly gained energy and strength, as well as her full range of vision and tried to walk independently despite many failed attempts. “Nine months after my surgery, I visited my surgeon in Singapore. He was shocked to see completely normal MRI scans. I no longer needed the valve put inside my body, and had it surgically removed.”
Hanin attributes her dramatic turnaround to plain old hope. “Where there is life, even if it’s the faintest heartbeat, there is hope. I truly believed that after going through so much difficulty, God has a great future ahead for me,” she strongly says.
Too much time had passed between graduating and the point where she stood in life to pursue a career in architecture. But Hanin resolved that she wasn’t going to let circumstances hold her back. Around the time the pandemic hit the world, she went public with her Instagram handle, @hanin.blogger. “I had to do something for Hanin. Being a very private person, initially I did not show my face in my posts. But when I did, I gained confidence and lots of followers as well,” she says of the phase when she put herself out there.
Today, Hanin is a well-known blogger and social media influencer with over 34,000 followers who trust her word on all things fashion, lifestyle and travel. She practises what she preaches, taking no aspect of her body or health for granted, giving her fans a daily dose of positivity.
“I feel proud of the person I’ve become today – from my personality to the way I talk and present myself. I’m a proud brain surgery survivor,” she smiles. “I’d like to remind young women that they are beautiful and strong, and that they have the power to achieve anything, no matter what.”
Aptly summing up her future dreams and plans as she did in one of her Instagram stories, she says, “I trust the next chapter because I know the author.”
