adelina123

So as the title suggests I'm a little concerned over my liver. Today I had heart burn I love had it before but not very often. I then looked at symptoms of early liver disease and was able to relate to many symptoms ..
Acid heart burn / nausea .... tick
Changes in bowel movements / wind ...tick
Itchy skin .... tick
Skin condition .... tick
Bloated .... tick
Weight gain .... tick

I know I should go to the go and get some blood tests ... but here's the strange thing... if they come back normal It will give me permission to drink. Maybe staying with this state of concern might deter me.
I'm sober tonight so it's a start.
Has anyone here had symptoms / problems with their liver? ?

Meraviglioso

Adelina you know full well that only a doctor can tell you if anything is wrong. Please don't put off a visit as some kind of deterrent, if there is a problem you should know about it and get treated.
Could you try to look at it another way? If you did go and (hopefully!) find out that nothing is wrong you could take that as a gift and treat it as such, staying sober to protect the good health that you have ben blessed with.
You are more than just your liver. your whole body, your heart, mind and soul deserve sobriety. Maybe (again, hopefully) your blood work will come back just fine. But what about all the other damage you are doing to yourself emotionally? You deserve a happy life free of alcohol. We are here to support you anytime you need it, please keep posting. But remember, as always, the heavy lifting falls on you. You must stay away from that first drink. You can do it and you are worth it.

badger257

Dr. Google is not board certified. Please see one that is.

ccam1973

Adelina, if you're concerned, then it would be best to see your doctor, end of story.

With that being said, I also avoided going to the doctor for years. I was too afraid of what they would tell me. Back in 2007 I was diagnosed with Fatty Liver Disease. That's when I quit drinking hard liquor and thought I was doing myself a favor by switching to beer and wine. How wrong I was. It took me another 6 years to finally commit to stopping. If I didn't stop, in time I would have just been another casualty.

Any thoughts of you keeping drinking are just your AV trying to deceive you. These are all lies.

I could also check off the symptoms you listed. If you don't stop, then you might be able to add a couple that I did as well:

Blood in your stool.
Blood in your vomit.
High blood pressure.
Yellow skin and eyes.
Irreversible blood vessel ruptures in your face.

Still, I kept on drinking.

Bottom line, drinking will only make everything worse. Our bodies are resilient, but we have got to give them a chance to heal.

Once I quit, it took about 6 - 9 months and my blood work came back all clear, no more fatty liver, no more yellow skin, no more high blood pressure... only a renewed outlook on life.

We are here for you. You can do this!

doggonecarl

There are proven recovery methods that work better than fear.

Anna

I think it's important that you don't allow your mind to take you to that place 'well, I'm okay, so I guess I can drink'. Whatever medical tests tell you, you need to fully believe that you are going to stop drinking for good. I hope that you talk to your dr.

Saskia

What everyone else said ... plus ... I have liver disease and thankfully I seem to have stopped in time. I agree that whether or not you have something wrong, if you want to drink, you'll find reasons, in spite of whatever is going on.

Soberwolf

Exactly What Anna said

adelina123

Thanks everyone and yes I guess you're right a. I will find excuses to drink if I need to and b. I should see a dr. I know you can't give medical advice on here xx

LBrain

I had all those symptoms, but my liver was/is fine. Alcohol messes with more than just the liver. One thing for sure, after I quit drinking for a spell, those symptoms went away.

And don't think just because there are no liver issues now that it couldn't come crashing down in a moment if alcohol intake is not halted.
This isn't medical advice, this is common sense.
example: A pipe rated to 150 psi will be okay at 150 psi. It's at the breaking point but will hold. Put a couple more psi in the pipe and it bursts. We don't know when our systems will finally say "enough". Best not put them to the test.

Jackie1214

I just stopping drinking wine after probably 10 years of daily 3 - 4 glasses. I also just made an end of the year appointment with my doctor for blood work. I'm hoping my liver hasn't been damaged too much yet, but even if she gives me some bad news, at least I'll already have six weeks of sobriety under my belt and I'll just keep on going.

It's nice to read that much of the damage we've done to ourselves is reversible and our minds and bodies do try to heal themselves.

Here's to my first sober Thanksgiving since I can't remember coming up next week!

Mountainmanbob

Maybe ??
But, it may be a long shot ??

If alcoholic ??
It will probably take much more than that so as to completely stop drinking.

I knew a lady with a bad liver who was told by her doctor that,
"she would be dead in 5 years if she did not stop drinking."
She died proxy 5 years later.
Leaving behind young children.

MB

zombob

I had mild hepatic liver (sez doc who read my blood panel) when I was in detox. He also says it returns to normal with abstinence. Gerd< yes. I was also itchy but bloated more since quitting from eating. Skin was ashy and bumpy, probably due to the dehydration and lack of nutrient absorption in the alimentary. My point is alcohol does a number on the body (there is an ocular problem from nicotine/alcohol that I suspect I get/got). The liver is just one of the things it will kill dead with repeated onslaught. Congrats on 1 day. You made it so you can make a gazillion more. All of your health will improve--mine did.

adelina123

Thank you everyone for you're replies and yes it's true that alcohol affects all areas of the body not just the liver. I too have a red face and some burst capillaries, the redness does improve with ads tin ancestors though. Here's to another day 2. I kind of have a plan. I do know that I have visions of who I want to be and how I want my life to be and I know these things will never happen if I keep drinking!!!

badger257

Tighten that plan up, and focus on that vision. Good work on getting past day 1 again!!!

Meraviglioso

Adelina, it is not just that the forum rules do not allow for medical advice, it is that it is impossible to know. Even if the forum permitted medical advice, just a list of symptoms could be anything. A liver problem can only be diagnosed by blood tests and a scan.
Start being proactive not just in your recovery but in your daily life. Make being proactive a habit. Start by looking up your doctor's phone number, calling for an appointment and then following through.
You are an adult, act like one.
I'm sure you note that my words are firm, but I assure you they are also warm. We care about you and want to see you succeed. Your posts appear to indicate that you are in a "wallowing" phase, which is fine and happens, but I have found the best way to snap out of that is to have that pointed out to me with a little bit of straight talk.
Let's go girl, start making some changes.

MIRecovery

It is amazing the number of the number of physical and mental things that resolve themselves when we stop ingesting poison

zombob

Yup, the worry was almost worse than the symptoms for me. That subsided too.

bodymindheart

Also, just another sobering thought is that levels can be normal and you can still have liver damage. The only way to know for sure is to report the pain to your doctor so they can actually do a scan of some sort.

I'm also worried about liver disease but I have an appointment on the 23rd to see a GI doctor and I just have to trust they know what to say/do no matter what the outcome.

The biggest thing I wrestled with was "Do I explain all the pain? Or do I just go in for the test and see what the results are?" I decided I am going to explain my ribside pain/onset etc. because I'm sure they've seen this before and can only give me the best advice and prescriptions if I am completely forthcoming. I am pretty confident my future self will be grateful.

blueberry2015

My Liver was under stress, had high levels and 2 months later into sobriety they fell back to normal. Believe me your liver levels can go up as quick as they can go down again. If you get an all clear this time and continue to drink it will only be a matter of time before they show some abnormality. Just get it checked out x