... immediately quit drinking. He went down hill very quickly. The worst being May of 2014, when he ended up in ICU with HE. He was given the drug rifaximin. Since that time, it has been nothing short of a miracle. Still not drinking since his initial diagnosis, which I know has been key, but he also no longer has to have a paracentis every 3-4 weeks. The muscle wasting has not only stopped but he is gaining healthy weight and muscle. (He is even back to work) While I know there is no cure, is it possible there is a remission point? If so how long does it last, so long as he remains alcohol free?
Liver Cirrhosis - My husband was diagnosed with Alcoholic Cirrhosis of the liver in July 2013. He?
Question posted by michwitt on 21 April 2015
Last updated on 7 August 2022 by Irean
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6 Answers
Irean
7 Aug 2022
Hi I am new to this I have non alcoholic liver disease may I ask how you husband is if not that’s ok
Loriana
16 Oct 2020
35 yrs diagnosed 8-5-2015 told me I'd be dead in a year. Quit drinking relapsed once been sober 2 years. Doing okay making transplant list is in near future. But because of age they're reluctant. Throat hurts mosy days bad tooth infection still swollen legs uncomfortable most days. All & all holding up. Just needing longing for some understanding of how people my age are expected to keep up. My husband & kids want me out I'm just tired & cant eat. Mentally stronger than ever, beleving in my team and knowing this us all happening FOR me!
cillad22
29 March 2019
My ex-husband lives with me. He moved in about 6 months ago. I have seen some really odd behavior that has gotten worse. Today at 430pm he had to eat so he BBQ's some steaks and I was not hungry as it was 430PM. So I sat with him at the table and at 5 he asked me how my steak was. I never ate. I see this type of behavior more and more.
I then told him did, "Did you not hear me tell you I was not hungry and I placed my steak on the stove?". He just looked at me with a crazy look. I can see his eyes are blood shot and yellow.
He then went to his room with some ice cream and within a half hour he was asleep, snoring.
Is this alcohol affecting his mind.
He will not go to the doctor. Yes he has the huge stomach and he sleeps at least 12 hours a night. When I go over a bump in the road he holds his stomach.
Since he is not willing to go to a Dr. I need some support. I already went to alanon when I was married to him.
I'm not sure what to expect from here. He told me he was fishing today but I think he was probably at a bar. That really doesn't matter as I am not going to follow him around like a child. I just don't know what these symptoms mean and what to expect in the future.
Stizz0000
24 Aug 2020
Sounds exactly like what I just went through with my ex-boyfriend. I am not a medical professional however almost everyone in my family is. They all agree his brain is just pickled. He didn’t much hide the drinking after we broke up and since we still had to live together for a while, it became a nightmare. He would come home from the bar at 5 o’clock in the afternoon wasted drunk one time had even pissed himself. It would go from I love you to calling me every name in the book. I would never respond so he would just ramble on for the next hour until he passed out. No matter how many times I told him he needed to go see a doctor he never would. Finally came to the conclusion him he needed to be checked into rehab and then came to gas-lighting. I was now in the crazy one. Long similar story short he is now moved out living with one of his drinking buddies. My opinion, some people just don’t want to change you can’t force them especially when it comes down to addiction. You may always love them but some how you had to find out the best way to help them.
prryrly
2 July 2015
I think every person is different. Obviously, not drinking is key. After that, I think a healthy lifestyle, good genes, positive karma and attitude, and a supportive family go a long, long way. I'll share my story, which may give you some hope. I've come from the lowest of the low to a really good place where I feel like I may have beat this thing. I was hospitalized in early 2013 and stayed there for almost ten months. I had a major episode of hepatic encephalopathy and was diagnosed with ESLD due to heavy drinking. The doctors never had good news for me and I'm pretty sure they didn't think I would come out alive.
I had paracentices weekly, a tracheotomy, kidney failure with dialysis for two months, pleuradisis surgery (to attach my lung to the lung sac to keep fluid from creeping into my upper body cavity), a loss of 70 pounds (weighed in at 80), neurological damage from the HE which caused loss of all feeling or movement in one of my legs (knee to toe), and a raging stage IV bedsore on my tailbone that would not heal. When I finally had gained a little weight and they were able to get rid of some of my chronic infections, I had a skin flap surgery to close the sore where I then had to lay on one side of my body for SIX weeks. Then I had to learn how to stand and walk again.
It's now been two and a half years and I feel pretty darn good. In fact, I forget anything is even wrong with me, except for my half-way-there foot. My MELD score has maintained at 8-9 since I've been out of the hospital (range is 6-40, with 40 being awful). I had the TIPS porcedure which raises the risk of HE, but so far I haven't ever felt like I was out of my head. In fact, Ive hardly taken the lactulose because I don't like the side effects and I stopped taking the rifaximin five months ago just to see if I could. I haven't noticed a difference at all (don't tell the doc). So now I just take diuretics and gabapentin for the neuropathy in my feet. I've had several CT and varicies scans with good reports.
I've read a few stories about people who said they reversed the damage. Don't know if it is even possible, but it gives me hope. The docs always give me vague answers when I ask these types of questions. I do know that people who tank fast from heavy drinking in a shorter amount of time as opposed to decades tend to have a better chance of recovery. While I am on a transplant list, it would be more risky for me to have one at this point than not. But who know what the years to come hold. The doctors can't tell me what will happen in five or ten years. I will just expect the best and live as long as the next person. I'm 47 and have lots of life left.
It saddens me when I read some of these posts about people diagnosed with cirrhosis who continue to drink. That's just asking to die. Be positive and don't drink is pretty much my best solution.
Salhoff
14 May 2015
I'm in no way a medical professional, but after going through two experience of cirrhosis (with my father and father in law - pancreas and liver) I've had some experience I can share. "Cirrhosis" really only means that the cells of an organ have been damaged severely enough that they can never be repaired - they essentially become scars and no longer function - there is no "remission" or "healing" - this can happen to many organs. While "end stage" is the last stage, it doesn't go from 0% to %100 overnight - people seem to be given the same diagnosis, but at different levels.
With the liver - it can still partially function with partial cirrhosis - and I've learned that those that don't strain their liver with alcohol (most important if alcohol induced), excessive salt, sugar, proteins - basically things that are hard to process - can live years with reasonably treatable symptoms with medical support. I'm NOT clear how much normal "healthy living" with a damaged liver is slowing or preventing altogether further damage - but I know it's critical to long-term success.
It's great news that your husband has quit drinking and is slowing further damage! Alcoholism is a disease in itself that needs to be treated before improvement can take place.
The other side, what I believe shortens life expectancy (even with rule-book liver-care and treatment) is that having a less than 100% functioning liver (and with any cirrhosis, that will always be the case without a transplant), it
1) puts strain on other organs/systems to help support what he liver can't do - increasing chance of their damage/failure and
2) increases the chance for infection and cancer of the cirrhosed cells - which can be unovercomable
Because of these two very critical risk factors, medical professionals will tell you that the only 'cure' is a liver transplant. It's just not healthy to live with a cirrhosis liver... I don't know about the risk factors of liver transplant vs treating a mildly cirrhosised liver - but I think it would be a good question to ask your hepatologist or internist.
Hope some of that helped.
Honestly, it's been a painful process for me, and sharing anything that might help someone else makes the pain a little more bearable. {hugs}
Stephen Treloar
22 April 2015
22 months ago I was told I would be dead by this June. In early January this year the same doctor said 5-10 years before you have to come out with a huge scar on your side (I'm eligible for interview for a place on the transplant list now). He is guessing another 5 to 10 years of life and take off a couple for dyeing.
Quitting alcohol wasn't even hard in the end; it took less than three weeks.
loukazoo
14 May 2015
What stage are you Stephen ? I'm at stage 4 and the Dr. said getting rid of the Hep-C is the best thing at this point for the Liver. Also said people can live a normal life with stage 4.
michwitt
14 May 2015
He quit drinking that day. They gave him some sort of meds and that helped. He went to see about a transplant last year and they said he was to healthy. (yeah)
Related topics
cirrhosis, alcoholic cirrhosis, liver cirrhosis, rifaximin, liver, diagnosis, drug
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