Liver Questions
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Join Date: Jun 2020
Posts: 34
Liver Questions
!st, it was a pain in the ass to register. I am on Day 2 sober. I don't have a Dr. and thats one of the reasons I stay off these forums is because anytime you have a question, everyone says " see your Dr" I am loooking for perdonal experiences because I know more about the liver and alcohol than internal med Doctors and my insuranc sucks
I am a very heavy drinker. We are talking to the point of when I get bad, I am either drinking or passed out. It is wrecking my job because I can't remeber anything or who I talked too.
What is up with this??? When I go a bender I get all the symptoms of cirrosis. Fatigue, itchy skin, jaundice. You guys know them all. But if I strsighten myself up and eat right for like a week and not drink, I look completely normal and have no symptoms.
I have read about liver regeneration and it seems to be alot faster than i thought. A study was done that said 2 avocados a week and garlic can regenerate a damaged liver in 30 days. Almost like a cut on yout leg. Looks bad originally but in 1-2 weeks it looks kind of normal. But the latest sympton I have got is mild memory issues whicj hopefuly is not ammonia to the brain and fatigue.
Just looking for expoeriences or thoughts. Not many in th normal world understand this at all so i come here. I used to be a member but got sick of " consult your Dr" Well no kidding but that is not as easy as it seems and many honestly have zero clue. I am in the medical sals business and have dealt with a ton. Plus insurance issues. Since I have a job, everything isnt free.
Luckily for me, I don't have heavy withdrawl symptoms. Its usually 36-48 hours and I am fine. No sizures or DT's.
I know for a fact that my liver is inflamed. No Dr. told me that. I just know. I just hope it isnt worse. My eyes always look like crap when I drink heavy and then stop. I have had slightly high bilirubin before and high tryglycerides but that was like 2-3 years ago.
For those that have fibrosis or cirrholis, do your symptoms go away when you stop driking??
Thanks
I am a very heavy drinker. We are talking to the point of when I get bad, I am either drinking or passed out. It is wrecking my job because I can't remeber anything or who I talked too.
What is up with this??? When I go a bender I get all the symptoms of cirrosis. Fatigue, itchy skin, jaundice. You guys know them all. But if I strsighten myself up and eat right for like a week and not drink, I look completely normal and have no symptoms.
I have read about liver regeneration and it seems to be alot faster than i thought. A study was done that said 2 avocados a week and garlic can regenerate a damaged liver in 30 days. Almost like a cut on yout leg. Looks bad originally but in 1-2 weeks it looks kind of normal. But the latest sympton I have got is mild memory issues whicj hopefuly is not ammonia to the brain and fatigue.
Just looking for expoeriences or thoughts. Not many in th normal world understand this at all so i come here. I used to be a member but got sick of " consult your Dr" Well no kidding but that is not as easy as it seems and many honestly have zero clue. I am in the medical sals business and have dealt with a ton. Plus insurance issues. Since I have a job, everything isnt free.
Luckily for me, I don't have heavy withdrawl symptoms. Its usually 36-48 hours and I am fine. No sizures or DT's.
I know for a fact that my liver is inflamed. No Dr. told me that. I just know. I just hope it isnt worse. My eyes always look like crap when I drink heavy and then stop. I have had slightly high bilirubin before and high tryglycerides but that was like 2-3 years ago.
For those that have fibrosis or cirrholis, do your symptoms go away when you stop driking??
Thanks
Canine Welfare Advocate
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: Norfolk, VA
Posts: 10,962
Forum rules prohibit us from giving medical advice.
But we can give recovery advice. Seems like you understand that stopping drinking is the solution for your liver ailments. How can we help you with achieving sobriety?
But we can give recovery advice. Seems like you understand that stopping drinking is the solution for your liver ailments. How can we help you with achieving sobriety?
Member
Join Date: Sep 2015
Posts: 3,163
This is not medical advice, but is factually accurate.
Cirrosis is not reversible, at what stage this become irrerevisble is different for different people and changes over time.
I had a friend on here who played the odds because much like you say, she would stop and it would get better.
Until one time it did not -- she went back out for less than six months and by the time she did her check in to stop "in time" her liver was shot and she died. Why then and not the hundreds of other times she had done worse -- who knows but she was young. I do not know the whys and wherefors, but you sound like you know enough that when you are seeing the symptoms you are descrbing, which I never had notwithstanding some really heavy abuse over extended periods of time, you have reached russian roluette territory.
But you know all that. I can tell.
I hope you can find the place in your heart to want to live more than you want to drink.
Cirrosis is not reversible, at what stage this become irrerevisble is different for different people and changes over time.
I had a friend on here who played the odds because much like you say, she would stop and it would get better.
Until one time it did not -- she went back out for less than six months and by the time she did her check in to stop "in time" her liver was shot and she died. Why then and not the hundreds of other times she had done worse -- who knows but she was young. I do not know the whys and wherefors, but you sound like you know enough that when you are seeing the symptoms you are descrbing, which I never had notwithstanding some really heavy abuse over extended periods of time, you have reached russian roluette territory.
But you know all that. I can tell.
I hope you can find the place in your heart to want to live more than you want to drink.
Member
Join Date: Mar 2014
Posts: 25,373
For those that have fibrosis or cirrholis, do your symptoms go away when you stop driking??
The test(s) for fibrosis and /or cirrhosis are very specific, and the only way to know is with a liver biopsy and microscopic study.
If you quit drinking you give your liver a fighting chance. That would be my suggestion.
Administrator
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: Dancing in the Light
Posts: 61,513
It sounds like you are making a lot of assumptions about your health. You say your insurance is bad, but since you have insurance, why not get some blood tests done and be examined by your doctor.
And, if you know your symptoms are flaring up and then fading when you stop drinking, you can't predict when that will change, and you're playing a game with your life.
And, if you know your symptoms are flaring up and then fading when you stop drinking, you can't predict when that will change, and you're playing a game with your life.
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2020
Posts: 34
Originally Posted by Dropsie 
This is not medical advice, but is factually accurate.
Cirrosis is not reversible, at what stage this become irrerevisble is different for different people and changes over time.
I had a friend on here who played the odds because much like you say, she would stop and it would get better.
Until one time it did not -- she went back out for less than six months and by the time she did her check in to stop "in time" her liver was shot and she died. Why then and not the hundreds of other times she had done worse -- who knows but she was young. I do not know the whys and wherefors, but you sound like you know enough that when you are seeing the symptoms you are descrbing, which I never had notwithstanding some really heavy abuse over extended periods of time, you have reached russian roluette territory.
But you know all that. I can tell.
I hope you can find the place in your heart to want to live more than you want to drink.
Cirrosis is not reversible, at what stage this become irrerevisble is different for different people and changes over time.
I had a friend on here who played the odds because much like you say, she would stop and it would get better.
Until one time it did not -- she went back out for less than six months and by the time she did her check in to stop "in time" her liver was shot and she died. Why then and not the hundreds of other times she had done worse -- who knows but she was young. I do not know the whys and wherefors, but you sound like you know enough that when you are seeing the symptoms you are descrbing, which I never had notwithstanding some really heavy abuse over extended periods of time, you have reached russian roluette territory.
But you know all that. I can tell.
I hope you can find the place in your heart to want to live more than you want to drink.
Your friend. That is what i am talking about. Did she start and stop alot? What was her longest time sober? Was she an extremely heavy drinker. See, I do nothing but shots. I could wake up at 6 AM and do a shot like its nothing. I hear people say " I drink alot. Every night when i come home from work, I drink 5 glasses of wine" I am thinking that isn't that much.
I know my platelet count is low because when i get a normal cut, it only halfway heals and ends up leaving a mild scar. Really need an ultra sound but like I said insurance. 2-3 years ago I went to 2 places to get one and the day of the appt they turned me away because of insurance.
I would like to just go straight to a liver Dr. Get blood work and an ultrasound.
I am 43. My Dad died from alcoholism at 50.
Seems like in normal cases to get cirrosis, you have to be a heavy drinker for 20 years. I have been for 10 and in the previous 10 years a mild hard drinker.
This " no medical advice" is stupid. It is fine to give your opinion from experience. Its not like if someone tells me I have Fibrosis that it is 100% true and confirmed. Like I am going to just say " yep my liver is scarred 35%" Thats just silly
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Join Date: Jun 2020
Posts: 34
My skin is more red and tan than it usually is. When I have high bilirubin, I don't really turn yellow I turn kinda tanish and red. I know the red is the blood vessels. Worries me about portal hypertension.
Here is a crazy thing to. I don't have a huge pot belly or anything like that. In fact, if you saw me you wouldn't even know I have this major problem.
I asked a girl this yesterday that knows my history. I could lose some fat but its not over the top.
Here is a crazy thing to. I don't have a huge pot belly or anything like that. In fact, if you saw me you wouldn't even know I have this major problem.
I asked a girl this yesterday that knows my history. I could lose some fat but its not over the top.
Member
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: UK
Posts: 732
By the time you see liver damage in your skin, belly and eyes etc, it's likely severe by that point. My own experience was, I was like you, googling and finding symptoms and maybe I was thinking if there was something definite that would spur me on to stop. I had blood tests and scans and scopes and was told my liver had a patch of fibrosis but I still didn't stop, it was the effects on my nervous system that almost killed me in the end anyway.
My experience as a nurse has shown me that when the liver starts failing, the person becomes too unwell to move or do anything properly, it's really bad. I've seen people die from liver failure from drinking far less than I did, and people that drink far more than I did have livers that cope. The only sure thing to know is that stopping drinking gives your liver time to heal - however stopping and starting really messes up your nervous system and that is a fast killer. You will have loads of symptoms while drinking and they mostly go, as the body always heals as much as it can given the right environment.
My experience as a nurse has shown me that when the liver starts failing, the person becomes too unwell to move or do anything properly, it's really bad. I've seen people die from liver failure from drinking far less than I did, and people that drink far more than I did have livers that cope. The only sure thing to know is that stopping drinking gives your liver time to heal - however stopping and starting really messes up your nervous system and that is a fast killer. You will have loads of symptoms while drinking and they mostly go, as the body always heals as much as it can given the right environment.
Member
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Pacific Coast
Posts: 785
Asking for "experiences or thoughts" on the finer details of your liver function as you're dying from alcoholism is a bit like asking whether the deck chairs on the Titanic ought to be arranged in a circle or in more of a V-formation as the ship is going down.
It's a really common thing in alcoholism. I've been there too, which is why I understand that this is as close as your addicted mind can come at this point to addressing the elephant in the room -- how to stop drinking.
No one here can help with your liver issues, but we can help you with quitting drinking if and when you're ready. For your sake, I hope it's soon, because it seems like you may be running out of time.
It's a really common thing in alcoholism. I've been there too, which is why I understand that this is as close as your addicted mind can come at this point to addressing the elephant in the room -- how to stop drinking.
No one here can help with your liver issues, but we can help you with quitting drinking if and when you're ready. For your sake, I hope it's soon, because it seems like you may be running out of time.
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2020
Posts: 34
I can still run and play basketball. Walked 9 miles yesterday. I eat tons of garlic, tumeric, take dandeloin root, milk thistle. Eat fruits and veggies. Try to put tumeric on everything.
Strange when I know what I have done yet for the most can function as a normal person. I am 6'5" and 235. I can feel my olique muscles. Yes I have a little pooch in the front and feel like if I lost 15 pounds of fat would look good.
I listen to craaig Beck alot, The stop drinking expert. I haave some muscle mass.
Thing about blood tests is for the most part, it just tells how you have been living your life lately. Can be great today and horrible the next month and vice versa.
Strange when I know what I have done yet for the most can function as a normal person. I am 6'5" and 235. I can feel my olique muscles. Yes I have a little pooch in the front and feel like if I lost 15 pounds of fat would look good.
I listen to craaig Beck alot, The stop drinking expert. I haave some muscle mass.
Thing about blood tests is for the most part, it just tells how you have been living your life lately. Can be great today and horrible the next month and vice versa.
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Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Australia
Posts: 211,445
This community can certainly help you with that. I was an all day everyday drinker...the understanding and support I got here helped me turn my life arou;d. I know we can help you too TGO 
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Member
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Melbourne Australia.
Posts: 3,748
Some years back I had a lesion on my liver. Alcohol is of course a major contibutor to liver diseases.
Back in those dark days I tried liver tonics etc looking for a quick fix.
Far saner to work on the major problem issue ALCOHOL.
Back in those dark days I tried liver tonics etc looking for a quick fix.
Far saner to work on the major problem issue ALCOHOL.
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2020
Posts: 34
Originally Posted by johntrevy
Have you been trying any meetings? I know physical gatherings are difficult right now, but there are online meetings.
Other meeting groups?? Lets be honest. Most are only there because they have to be because they got arrested
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Join Date: Jun 2020
Posts: 34
Day 3 sober
So here it is. Usually in the past once I hit Day 3, it was smooth sailing. Like I looked and acted like an everyday person.
Not today. Urine is still dark. Diareah, skin is crawling and feels red/orange. Teeth still feel dirty. I did my own physical exam of liver. When I am laying down. Not bad. Squishy like it should be. Standing up, it feels hard. Of course it is still inflamed/ enlarged. Forgot to weigh myself at gym yesterday.
Diet has been 70% good liver food. Green tea, lemon water, garlic, red peppers, grape tomatos, tumeric on peppers. Need to get some fruit. Will have carrots later
So here it is. Usually in the past once I hit Day 3, it was smooth sailing. Like I looked and acted like an everyday person.
Not today. Urine is still dark. Diareah, skin is crawling and feels red/orange. Teeth still feel dirty. I did my own physical exam of liver. When I am laying down. Not bad. Squishy like it should be. Standing up, it feels hard. Of course it is still inflamed/ enlarged. Forgot to weigh myself at gym yesterday.
Diet has been 70% good liver food. Green tea, lemon water, garlic, red peppers, grape tomatos, tumeric on peppers. Need to get some fruit. Will have carrots later
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2020
Posts: 34
Originally Posted by Bubovski
Some years back I had a lesion on my liver. Alcohol is of course a major contibutor to liver diseases.
Back in those dark days I tried liver tonics etc looking for a quick fix.
Far saner to work on the major problem issue ALCOHOL.
Back in those dark days I tried liver tonics etc looking for a quick fix.
Far saner to work on the major problem issue ALCOHOL.
I am going to get some Dandeloin root later. That has been proven to protect liver cells
Dandeloin, tumeric, and milk thistle I think are the only 3 true liver supplements that matter. But don't take too much or it is bad on liver
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2020
Posts: 34
Originally Posted by Dee74
This community can certainly help you with that. I was an all day everyday drinker...the understanding and support I got here helped me turn my life arou;d. I know we can help you too TGO
D
D
Just weird because often times when your an "all the time" drinker. You do it alone so no one really knows how severe the problem is. Like, this isnt an " I have 5 glasses of wine a night with dinner" It is "I have drank a gallon of vodka in 1 day before and did it the next day and the next day". Huge difference
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