After first hiding diagnosis, MS Center for Innovations in Care patient found voice
When Ashley Gennero meets a young person who recently received a multiple sclerosis (MS) diagnosis, she sees familiar emotions on their face.
They’re scared, confused, and, most of all, worried about how their life will be impacted.
She’s been there.
Ashley and Vince Gennero on their wedding day
A shocking discovery
Most people living with MS are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 40, but young people and older adults aren’t exempt. Ashley’s an example. She was 12 when blurry vision and shaky balance during a basketball game led to shocking news at a vulnerable age.
Would her friends abandon her? Would she have to quit sports? Would she be able to get married and have children one day?
“For two years after my MS diagnosis, I didn’t tell anyone except immediate family,” Ashley said. “Middle school is a hard time for anyone. It felt weird trying to explain MS to my peers. So, I kept it quiet.”
No more hiding
The Detroit teenager who once hid her diagnosis probably wouldn’t recognize the outspoken 26-year-old in St. Louis who mentors young people with MS while spearheading fundraising efforts for MS research.
Ashley points to her freshman year of high school, when a new MS attack, called a relapse, prompted her to become a lot more candid. She missed a month and a half of school during softball season.
“That’s when I decided I should probably tell people what’s going on with me,” Ashley said. “That was hard. I thought people weren’t going to want to be friends with me.”
There were some bullies. More often, there was a willingness to learn.
Ashley’s friends embraced her. After being taught how quickly her symptoms could escalate—particularly when she became overheated or stressed—her coaches adapted so she could continue to play softball and swim. She discovered Walk MS events, which helped her find a support system that still exists today. She married her husband in 2023 and they hope to start a family soon.
A trusted advocate
After moving to St. Louis, Ashley has since September 2024 entrusted her MS care to Missouri Baptist Medical Center’s MS Center for Innovations in Care.
“Having everything so accessible has made getting treatment and seeing my doctor so much easier,” Ashley said. “It is nice to be able to go to one place and know that I can get my bloodwork and MRIs done there. As someone who does this so often, it makes it a little less daunting. Everyone there is so wonderful. Overall, it has been such an amazing experience.”
But she hasn’t just received help from MoBap’s MS Center. The former multi-sport athlete has once again become a valuable teammate. Jameson Holloman, MD, a BJC Medical Group neurologist who is part of Ashley’s care team, connected Ashley with some of his younger MS patients after watching her speak at an event.
“She has a wealth of experience,” Dr. Holloman said. “When young people are diagnosed, they are in a situation where it’s lonely and isolating with this illness and the implications it has.
“I’ve reached out to connect Ashley to my patients to have another voice of someone who has been through that, so people don’t feel so alone.
“I’ve felt very comfortable doing so, because she’s such a strong advocate for herself and for MS care overall. When you talk with someone who has been through that, who is on the other side of that, it can bring an element of hope that I could not otherwise get across.”
For Ashley, each one of those conversations is different, but they tend to begin in a familiar place.
She starts with what she would say to her 12-year-old self.
“If I can help other people feel less alone, that’s my No. 1 goal,” Ashley said. “I’ve learned so much over the years. I want to give it back.”
To make an appointment with The MS Center for Innovations in Care, call 314-996-7960.
Ashley Gennero earned her master's degree in Applied Behavior Analysis from Ball State University in December 2024