The largest risk factor for liver disease from alcohol is the amount and the length of time the individual has been drinking. Males often develop complications that appear to be on a gender basis as well. Each individual is entirely different. Complication can develop after 5 to 10 years, though it more commonly it takes 20 to 30 years.
Many individuals appear to never develop end stage liver disease from alcohol. This is impossible to predict ahead of time. Hepatitis is a generic term. It indicates inflammation and damage to liver cells. This damage can be caused by drugs, toxins, alcohol, inherited diseases, certain metabolic diseases, and viruses.
Commonly, hepatitis refers to viral hepatitis. There are a wide variety of viruses that can cause hepatitis, but again most commonly the term refers to the viruses designated A, B, C, D, E, and G.
Hepatitis C virus-positive patients face a number of difficulties due to the unfortunate stigma that is attached to this carrier status. In most occupations this is not a risk and can be avoided by common sense. In situations where there is a risk of exposure due to trauma, due to use of needles or knives or other situations of this sort, it is probably best and most appropriate to let the employer know. In most situations, including the health care field, this is not a reason to not employ the individuals.
Local laws may vary and this needs to be checked locally. If one does inadvertently expose one to blood or bodily fluid, there would be a moral obligation to let the other individual know. In short, liver damage from alcohol is possible, but the extent of liver damage repair depends on each individual and their personal circumstances. Learn more about the frequently asked questions surrounding the liver, alcohol-induced liver problems , and how to repair your liver.
Liver disease refers to any ailment that affects the liver, whether alcohol-related liver disease or a condition due to some other cause. Some examples of liver disease unrelated to alcohol use include infections i. On the other hand, examples of liver problems from substance abuse include drug toxicity from overdose, alcoholic fatty liver steatosis , and alcoholic hepatitis , which can lead to cirrhosis.
Increased risk of cancers and other chronic ailments can also be a result of alcohol intake. Fatty liver disease is just what it sounds like: a buildup of fats in the liver.
This fat buildup can cause liver problems and is often caused by excess dietary calories, whether from alcohol or otherwise. Fatty liver disease from drinking is referred to as alcoholic fatty liver non-alcoholic fatty liver is the name of the same condition when alcohol use is not responsible.
The good news is that a fatty liver alone may not cause problems. However, fatty liver disease is often accompanied by inflammation of the liver steatohepatitis , which can lead to further issues like scarring of the liver cirrhosis. The vast majority of alcohol is processed in the liver, which occurs at the rate of approximately one drink per hour. Simply put, the more you drink, the harder and longer the liver has to work at breaking down the alcoholic toxins. Over time, the liver will no longer be able to regenerate new, healthy cells, and scar tissue will develop with chronic alcohol use.
Taking any medications with alcohol, whether over the counter or illegal drugs, can accelerate the process of liver disease. For example, acetaminophen Tylenol is especially hard on the liver. Liver disease from drinking usually progresses in stages. The stages of alcoholic liver disease generally include:. It is important to note that the relationship between alcohol and the liver is complicated.
This can result in serious and permanent damage to your liver. The number of people with the condition has been increasing over the last few decades as a result of increasing levels of alcohol misuse. Read more about the causes of ARLD. There are 3 main stages of ARLD, although there's often an overlap between each stage. These stages are explained below. Drinking a large amount of alcohol, even for just a few days, can lead to a build-up of fats in the liver.
This is called alcoholic fatty liver disease, and is the first stage of ARLD. Fatty liver disease rarely causes any symptoms, but it's an important warning sign that you're drinking at a harmful level. Fatty liver disease is reversible. If you stop drinking alcohol for 2 weeks, your liver should return to normal. Alcoholic hepatitis, which is unrelated to infectious hepatitis , is a potentially serious condition that can be caused by alcohol misuse over a longer period.
When this develops, it may be the first time a person is aware they're damaging their liver through alcohol. I had read that to much iron had something to do with low GGT.
Now my pain is just like a burning, itch or pinching feeling. My doc told me to quit drinking and we would look at the cysts again in a couple yrs. I need to try something. Inspired article. Was l had moderate liver damage has been on and off alcohol but for some days now have stayed off. Scared to go for blood tests. Hope to stay off for ever. Any advice. We are here for you, Joe!
If you need a helping hand, please reach out to us at the contact information provided on this page. Look forward to hearing from you. My dad died Nov. Until one day Bobby and I were sitting in his car, a Buick Electra 4door with the Buick rims, tinted windows, aluminum mud flaps and, curb finders, that car was a real low rider! He pulled out a bottle of Smirnoff vodka, orange juice and these little plastic cups. It tasted good and it felt even better!
It numbed the dull throbbing pain in my head ever time I thought about my father.. And so Bobby and I became drinking partners. Bob was a two fisted drinker, liquor glass in one hand beer bottle in the other, yeah I followed suit. God has been good to me but I never put that bottle down. I was so scared of being a father that I drank a whole 5th of Johnnie Walker Black and passed out.. My daughter is 8yrs old now in 3rd Grade doing great! On my birthday in Oct I slipped up.. Got drunk and fell and hurt my knee!
Bobby is 83yrs old and the doctors had to cut both his legs off at the knees because of diabetes! God has been so gracious and merciful to me! Through many dangers toils and snares I have already come! Thank you for this website and for the opportunity to bend your ear.. I feel better! Thank you for sharing your experiences, William!
We are happy you stopped by, and happy holidays! Merry Christmas William! I retired from alcohol as I developed a yeast infection, Doc said no beer, nothing! No bread, potatoes, rice, no fruit, except raspberries. Enjoy that daughter, one day grandkids will follow, Hang tuff when that devil jumps on your shoulder and sys lets get a drink, tell him to go to hell. So growing up no one ever had a problem with anyone in our family drinking.
Accept my mom who at the time looked down on it but didnt judge or intervene until it became a problem.. I started drinking heavily at a early age of Along with our selves.. I payed sports, football, basketball, baseball so it was inevitable to not be at parties or wherever there was pretty girls and a bottle.. After 2 years of college I gave up worked odd constructive jobs made okay money to get by and afford my ciggerets and alcohol at this point still consuming as much as a pint and a half every day with at least a 6 pack..
Then I landed a job working as a professional photographer from age 21 to I worked all around our state starting my mornings at 3Am and finishing at 10pm this took a tole on me because now I was drinking and driving not getting any sleep couldnt breathe because of the ciggerets and just burning both ends of my candle! Thank the lord withing those 3 years I didnt kill anybody! I made Amazing money but it would all go to Alcohol and cigarettes and once ur drunk u spend ur money on worthless crap..
I had enough of it, enough of the life style, i was about to give up on life! So i was in some shity hotel in some shity city in my state i got Down on my knees wasted and begged God to take away my pains, my addictions, my sorrows and laid it out on the table to give it all to the lord!
Now I was always religious and in the back of my head I know I was truly doing wrong and I wasnt living with the spirit inside me!
Months went on I quit that job became a backroom manager at target to be closer to my gf who now is my wife, and she straight up told me she was going to leave me because of the drinking, I buckled down went to church and the Spirit came flowing through me.. But everyday at the beginning is the hardest.. After these initial 2 weeks it gradually became easier with the help of chantex to quit smoking cigarettes which helped my alcoholic cravings slowly decease..
I got nervous and anxious even trying a non alcoholic beer! I hated the way it made me feel and even having 1 those isnt even worth it to me! Thank u spirit for working through me! I know its him that courses through my vaccines to not need that addiction anymore!
I pray for all of you that are struggling and I pray u find your light, And just know theres hope for you! If your willing to accept the facts, and accept that you have a problem and accept that you need help! Only you can want it, only YOU can stop it, And with help you can change your life around just like I did. I hope I can reach at least 1 person!
That would truly make my sobriety worth even more! Faith, Hope, And Love! Lol last comment I promise.. I just wanted to add that I no longer work as a manager in the backroom of target. Iv spread my wings and being sober brought a new ambitious state of mind. Always praying, and God bless! Faith, Hope and love! Hey guys I have been dealing with alcoholism for about 10 years now…have a little bit of liver damage and finally have decided to quit all together.
Thank you so much for sharing that, Gregory. There is nothing wrong with pointing out research and healing methods you have been looking into. Buy some type of bottled water in a BPA free bottle, Drink 2 quarts a day, none after 6pm. I had a friend who restored his liver readings back to a normal range doing this.
Best of luck and Merry Christmas. Liquids after 6pm can cause you to need to pee in the wee hours of the morning, a time when you have reached REM sleep, If you are able drink some clean water as soon as you roll out of bed, I stumble to the fridge and chug some right away, after that basically every 30 minutes drink up. For me, I work straight days, same hours, after 6 pm no liquids.
Good luck. Now I am starting to deal with serious stomach pains. My labs keep coming back normal but just recently my liver was elevated just a little. I know this should be taken as a warning sign to slow the hell down. Thank you all so much for this! No real withdrawal issues.
Just had to make the mental switch. I love my life and have a great family. My life completely blessed, I need to make sure I stay around to make the most of it. I am so glad I came across this site. It is good to see all these stories.
Very inspirational. I have been drinking way too much for a very long time to heal deal with my anxiety which I have had since childhood. I am going to follow these instructions. I have been cold turkey for 4 days. If I cant do it on my own I will make the call. We hear you loud and clear, Gene. We look forward to hearing from you, regardless of how you are doing. Day 13 — Had no withdrawal symptoms at all. Feel much better. Feeling very positive and grateful.
Day 32 and I feel really good. Have to drink a lot of metamucil though. Hiking everyday. Walked 5 miles this morning and felt great. I am 48yr old female. I abused alcohol for 8yrs. Mostly drinking beer and wine in the evenings and weekends.
I would have a hang over at least once a week. About 2 yrs ago I started to feel a full feeling under my right rib but because all blood work and scans said I was fine I continued to drink. I did cut back about 6 months ago and stopped drinking completely 2 months ago because again I had pain in right rib and shoulder blade.
Fear is a powerful motivator. Although blood work done a week ago was normal and CT scan done a month ago was normal I still know things are not normal. I feel nauseous, not all the time but sometimes it can last all day. I have a flushing and itchy feeling and I am getting dark circles under my eyes. What else can I do?
Thank you for sharing your personal experiences, Jacquelyn! If you feel as though there could be something else going on or something that is wrong, you could always seek out a different doctor for another opinion. Glad so far everything is coming back fine for you.
Best of luck heading into the new year! Have you had a biopsy or a fibroscan done? I stumbled on this website. I got bloods done and was told my liver levels were high. Doctor told me to cut down on drinking during the week but weekends were ok? Some nights I can drink two bottles of wine easily and still function the next day without feeling any effects. The reason Im telling is because I have that pain on my right side under my ribs. Today is my second day without drinking.
Anyhoo good luck to everyone. My story is very similar to the others here. I have been drinking bourbon for abt 10 yrs. At first it was just a couple drinks when out for dinner. Then I started buying my own to take home, usually a fifth. Since then it has escalated to more expensive bourbons. In I managed a 3 month abstinance. Then I was back in the rut. I would be thinking about a drink before I got home from work. I have had pain in the R ribcage, back and side for a while.
I am still trying. Thank you for sharing Bobby! Wishing you the best on your sober journey! If you need anything we are always here Been drinking for a long time. I know we all have our problems, but I have twin boys with autism and drinking helps me deal with their diagnosis and tantrums. Had blood work done last week and got a call from doctor today saying he wants to see me again on Monday. Said not urgent but we had to discuss, and no alcohol and Tylenol.
Not looking forward to the results on Monday. I am 27 and started drinking at about 20 so daily drinking with a few breaks here and there. Played every sport and captain of the cheer team The last year I was drinking got really bad. From the time I woke up to when I whet to bed.
With in 1 week I bloated up. Looked pregnant! I threw up blood. And my eyes and skin got very yellow. I went to doc. Was told I may not make it thru the night. I thought what? I have busted varacies so it led to 2 blood transfusions a surgery to put bands on my veins.
And 7 trips to ICU. I thought I could never quit no way.. I dropped the alcohol the night I went to the ER. No bloating even with out meds. No pain feel great and energetic!!! You can do it!! I promise. Thank you, Tarah, for sharing your personal experiences! Such a great help this info n stories. Thx from the bottom of my heart and hope we all get better. I am 33 and have been drinking since I was 18 I quit for 6 months when I was 26 but took it back up with a vengeance.
I cut right down on drinking from 3 six packs of beer a day to 1 to 1 and a half six pack a day then my father got very the following april and was hospitalized and I started drinking more he passed away in hospital in late may and I drink very heavy anything I could find.
I started getting a small pain under my right rib cage and I knew it was liver as I have had it before because thats why I went too the doctors the previous year in the first place I decided in december that my new years resolution will be too quit booze and so I have been sober for 4 days now. I am finding it much easier than it was last time no withdraw symptoms I do crave a beer soemtimes but no heat palpitations no jitters no depression nothing I think I will be ok.
I am going too wait a couple of weeks and go and see the new doctor and get my liver checked I think I should be fine I don;t think that my liver can chnage that much in a year or at least I hope not.
Hi everyone. Reading this made me feel a bit better and I hope everyone is doing well. After college I became depressed and turned to alcohol. I probably had or so shots every night during the week and then drank to get drunk with friends on weekends. I stopped for a week or so a couple of times but after 3 and a half years of drinking almost every day, I finally stopped a couple of weeks ago for good and am going on my third sober week.
I was concerned with the damage I had done to my body. Naturally the first thing I did was google my one symptom of abdominal pain around the rib cage and was petrified that I had done awful, irreversible damage to my liver or pancreas and was going to die because of a few years of daily binge drinking.
This thread helps me feel less alone and scared tonight, so thanks. Thank you for sharing your personal experiences, Brendon! Wishing you nothing but the best as you go to your appointment. You can definitely turn it around and achieve sobriety as it sounds like it is something you want. I would suggest taking a balanced b complex b50 , milk thistle, dandelion root, liposomal glutathione, zinc, vitamin c, vitamin e, serrapeptase on an empty stomach evenings and mornings, vitamin k, vitamin d, nac, alpha lipoic acid and l-pyroglutamate.
My Mother is a recovering alcoholic, and seeing her do that to herself growing up, I made the decision then and there to never abuse alcohol. The irony of the situation is, even though I rarely have a drink I managed to get NAFLD just from being obese, more than likely from the two liters of coke a day.
My Liver enzymes are extremely elevated. So far I havent had anything except water to drink for the last ten days and i feel pretty good. Going to the doctor on Saturday to get some updated blood work.
Wish me luck! Thank you for sharing your experiences and we wish you nothing but the best! Switching from soda to water was definitely a good call! Hi Roger! Thank you for leaving your comment, but if you are concerned about your health you will need to discuss that with your doctor as they have your full medical history and can provide a full explanation.
Asymptomatic except fatigue which I attributed to depression. I quit almost all of my meds cold turkey, started eating liver healthy foods. Still drinking wine though. Hoping diet and less meds will help some. I know I need to quit drinking. Thank you for sharing your experiences, Susan! However, your doctor will be able to monitor your health as a whole and recommend next steps. We are here if you need help stopping alcohol, and wish you nothing but success moving forward!
I received treatment, got better, quit drinking, included a lot of fruits and vegetables and water to my diet. Sticked to fish and small amount of meat which I still do now. Thank you for sharing your experiences! Glad you were able to get better and stop drinking! Wishing you continued success on your sober journey! This blog is amazing!
My brother is end stage renal disease due to Cirrhosis. He was diagnosed almost three years ago now and he is still alive. He quit drinking and uses medication to help him clear out all the toxins. This blog has given me hope that he may live longer than his doctor has predicted. This blog has given me hope that his liver may indeed heal itself. Glad this article resonated with you! Wishing you and your family nothing but the best as your brother continues his sober journey!
Wow, all sounds like me. Had blood work, that came back with Hep C, Hemochomitois, and Celiac disease. Let me tell you the liver biopsy was extremely painful. Well, after all the tests, no Hep c, no Hemochomotois or Celiac. Many months of trying to cut back, without much success. So, I decided to quit after Super Bowl. Going from a pint of bourbon a day and half dozen beers on the weekend, cold turkey. I broke down and had two. Will continue to stay strong, even after a few setbacks.
Thank you all for sharing. I feel after reading, I too can do it for years to come. Thank you for sharing your experiences, Lori! We wish you nothing but success on your sober journey!
I have been drinking since I was I was sent to the hospital a few months back with my 6th or 7th attack of pancreatitis. At that point they admitted me. I wasnt sure why at first. They told me that my enzymes were at 10,…. They asked me how much I drank a day, and I nonchalantly said 2 or 3 bottles of vodka.
Like it was normal it was normal to me I guess. Throwing up, seizures, hallucinations, ect. So I had to drink. They kept me there doing tests and MRI scans and pumping me full of all sorts of vitamins through my IV. They kept trying to explain to me that I needed to stop drinking. I left the hospital and against their advice I never did a follow up with a specialist. I went home sober and actually stayed that way for a few months.
Then started drinking heavily again. My Family talked me into getting the print out and imagining from the hospital. Well, I did the other day…. I have a fatty liver, sever alcoholic hepatitis, small volume ascites. I really did a number on myself, and worst of all, I am now possibly hurting my kids to grow up without me. My aunt and my uncle both died of liver failure and her I am…. I did stay at my parents for 4 days while I detoxed this last time so they could help with the kids.
I feel much better as far as detox symptoms, but I am very weak. I tried calling doctors, unfortunately I have state insurance so its difficult to have any want to take it for my condition. I wish I would have stopped this crap years ago. I pray for anyone that is going through this.
I pray we all get through it. I started taking milk thistle and omega 3 vitamins. Went to the store and bought a bunch of healthy foods and through out all the junk. I just dont want to die.
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