Memorial Day

Sitting today watching my fiancé do some sand blasting on headstones at a local cemetery (he works at a monument/cemetery), I got to thinking of when I was first diagnosed with hep C... The death sentence it proclaimed, as there was no certain cure then. The fear and then my reality once my mom passed away from hep C. I was very worried and scared for my children. They were both so young and had witnessed their grandma go through a horrible battle with hep C. I knew their poor little hearts were full of fear, not knowing now if their mommy would survive this or not.

I felt alone in my hep C battle

I remember going into my liver doctor and sitting in the waiting room. I would look around at each person there, wanting so badly to ask if they were also fighting hep C, desperately seeking anyone would understand me and my whole ordeal with hep C. Back then, in 2005-2012, no one came forward and openly admitted to having hep C. It was a taboo topic. So, this created lots of loneliness and isolation for those fighting hep C. There were no online groups of support. No one to share fear with or cry with.

As I sit in my lawn chair today looking over the gravesites reading names and dates, I cannot help but wonder about these people. What did they do for a living? Did they pass away from natural causes or was some disease responsible for taking a life too soon? It was the same feeling I had sitting in the liver patients waiting room, wondering.

No one should feel alone

We all have a story, our life, our families, and our health battle. The only difference today is that hep C has a cure. No longer is this a death sentence upon diagnosis. Leaving those who beat this disease the blessed opportunity to share their story and educate others about the importance of getting tested, treated, and cured.

This Memorial Day weekend, I honor my mom’s fight with hep C. I honor all those whose fights were also cut short. May we take time to celebrate them and continue to help another beat hep C. If we all shared our story with just one person, that would be one less person fighting alone and feeling isolated.