Four years ago, Mikayla Gallo stood in her kitchen days before her 21st birthday when dizziness hit her—the same dizziness she thought she had outrun. She clutched a cabinet, the counter, the wall, anything to steady herself.
For several months, she experienced a different symptom nearly every day: the Bell’s palsy on one side of her face, tingling sensations in her legs, and the dizziness—always the dizziness. She returned to her family doctor repeatedly, insisting something was wrong, and was finally sent for an MRI.
When the multiple sclerosis (MS) diagnosis came, Mikayla still remembers the exact words she said out loud: “I’m not going to survive this.”
“I thought my life was over in that moment,” Mikayla says. She saw the future she’d planned for herself slowly fade away—travelling, dating, having kids.
“For a while, I never wanted to leave my house,” Mikayla shares. “I felt like everywhere I went, everyone was looking at me. I thought they could all tell what was wrong with me.”
MS is a chronic, often unpredictable disease where the immune system mistakenly attacks the protective covering around the nerves. This means that for over 90,000 people across Canada living with MS, the disease steals their balance, numbs their limbs, blurs their vision, and drains their energy—all invisibly and without warning. Since most patients are diagnosed in the prime of their lives, the impact can be devastating.
There is no cure, but early diagnosis and specialized care can slow the disease, decrease the severity of relapses, and help recover people’s lost abilities. This is exactly what the experts at the BARLO MS Centre at St. Michael’s Hospital provide every day.
For Mikayla, the referral to the BARLO MS Centre felt like a turning point.
“When I walked in, I couldn’t believe that there was an entire space designed just for MS patients,” Mikayla said. “It felt so welcoming and warm.”
It was here she met Dr. Alexandra Muccilli, a neurologist at St. Michael’s. Mikayla appreciated that Dr. Muccilli treated her like a whole person, not just a patient. Together, they discussed her future—new plans, new adventures.
Mikayla remembers Dr. Muccilli telling her frankly, “I can’t guarantee your walking is going to go back to normal.” But she also recalls her comforting and encouraging her in equal measure, telling Mikayla, “You’re going to be good.”
For months after, Mikayla’s life became a series of therapy sessions, acupuncture appointments, and routines built around trying to feel steady again. And with support from the medical team at BARLO, her family—six people in a loud, loving house—and her friends, she eventually learned how to walk again.
And somewhere along the way, she felt the need to give back to BARLO. Golf had become a new joy in her life, a hobby she shared with her dad, her brother, her boyfriend, and her uncles. So, the choice felt natural: a golf tournament called Fore a Future Without MS, planned in just six weeks.
"My family came together to make it happen," Mikayla says. "My mom and I handled everything. My dad brought community support, and together we went door-to-door gathering prizes. I wasn’t sure if anyone would even show up."
But people showed up, and they showed up in numbers she never expected. By the end of the tournament, Fore a Future Without MS raised nearly $15,000 and Mikayla told her story to a large crowd for the first time.
“My voice was shaking,” she says. “But I stood there. I kept talking. I kept sharing my journey. And it felt so empowering to be able to talk about it.”
And today, Mikayla says she can't wait to plan for her future, knowing she is on the right track in teachers' college, pursuing her goals, and embracing new experiences along the way.
To support the BARLO MS Centre or learn more contact Jennifer Lo.
Donate to St. Michael's Hospital Foundation.
