Hep C Community is Cheering on the Newbies

An awesome trend is gaining ground as I see our hep C Community cheering for the newbies who are searching for help. As a Baby Boomer, I’ve been surrounded people of all ages. The online groups circled the wagons around me from the start.

We’ve faced a lot of medical symptoms together. In addition, we’ve treated and gotten the cure. Now, some of us are post treatment, or currently getting treatment. It’s great to see the inspiration the hep C community can offer to people who were recently diagnosed or who are afraid of treatment.

Let’s hear it for the newbies!

When ordinary people start sharing the tips and secrets that helped them during the hard times, everyone wins. We all have something to offer, whether it’s a like, a word of wisdom, or just an encouragement to keep going. It’s cool to see all the comments in the hepatitis C blogs, articles, and also the Facebook forum. Many have just logged on and are facing some of the same fears that we have. They’re also running up against the same obstacles.

By sharing their experiences, the community offers many things:

Hope

Imagine a newbie sitting alone with the phone and typing "hepatitis C" into the search line for the first time. They click on an article and begin reading.

Information

With eyes scanning the article, they’re looking for the exact words that match their questions. They start to find good answers, finding it easy to click to the next blog.

Encouragement

When a newbie's eyes drift into the comments, it hits them. They’re not alone. the hep C community’s words are both cheerful and reassuring. It’s a relief for a newbie to read that someone else has felt the same way.

Joy

We know that their heart smiles. All they are really looking for is someone that has lived through what they’re going through. They feel a warmth in their heart.

Supporting one another

Struggling with the diagnosis - We’re good at this because we know what it’s like. Above anyone else, we know how to offer our support.

Starting treatment

We know how the liver is affected by hep C. In our community, we know many ways to cheer on the newbies. For example, many newbies are just now getting their meds approved. We can encourage them to get ready for treatment.

Stories about side effects

After facing a little bit of everything, we know how to manage getting through a few weeks of itching, nausea, fatigue, or body aches.

Sharing our Symptoms

Some of us treated early, others waited. Then there were those in my group who got cirrhosis, liver cancer, or a transplant before treating for Hep C.

We have great community connections

This is where we make a difference in other people lives. We didn’t suffer everything we’ve been going through for nothing. In fact, in some ways, we’re like a big brother or sister.

That's because we're watching out for those who have just started their hep C journey. I’m glad to be connected in this hep C community as we cheer on the newbies who are just being diagnosed.