Nothing in life is to be feared. It is only to be understood. ~ Marie Curie

In a drugstore, I saw a mother taking care of her child’s tiny scratch. The child appeared to be about three years old, and was completely absorbed with her injury. She studied her finger as if it was ready to fall off. The mother said soothing words, put a band-aid on the tiny finger, and then asked her daughter how she was doing. Bravely, the little girl said she was better, but she continued to focus on her bandaged finger for quite some time.

We grow up and learn to be more resilient, but inside most of us act much like this little girl. When I am concerned about what hepatitis C is doing to me, I run to the Internet, temporarily consumed by my injury. What I am looking for is information, which may be the path out of fear. In short, I am looking for the equivalent of a band-aid and a soothing voice, telling me that everything is going to be all right.

Like the kid staring at her band-aid, I will continue to look for new information about hepatitis C, even after my medical provider has given me advice or prescribed something for me. I don’t know why it is hard to leave our injuries alone, but it is. Perhaps we are hard-wired to do this, to protect ourselves, so we can stay healthy and hang in there with the rest of our pack.

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(This post first appeared on July 22, 2013 at LucindaPorterRN.com)