Private vs. Public Judaism

I was in a car accident last night. I have whiplash injuries to my neck and shoulders, and the internal bleeding in my right thumb sticks out ... like a sore thumb. It could be a lot worse, though, and I'm happy to be relatively okay. Funny how it works:

Right after the collision, upon simply realizing that I was alive, my immediate reaction was "Thank G-d!"

When I had a minute to break away from the police officer and the other driver, I put my hand over my head for a makeshift kippah and quietly recited the Sh'ma.

When I spoke to my mom and she asked how I was feeling, my response was "Baruch Hashem!" And by the time I spoke to her again later, I'd said it so much that even she was saying it.

When I got to the hospital, I was asked for my religious affiliation. As though I feared that being Jewish would be held against me, I simply said, "I'd prefer not to disclose that information."