feeling a little lost

[violetann18]

just found out that i have ADL was a none drinker all my life i am now 51 years old and only started drinking 3 years ago cant believe i have damaged my self so much went to my gp because i felt i was drinking to much what started as a way to switch off from problems has effected me so much i dont even like alchole but it helped me forget sorry dont really no what i am trying to say apart from i dont need or use alchole now but have been told i have done damage to my liver looking for help in how to improve it as best i can

[RodeoJoe]

Is ADL Alcohole Diseased Liver? It's hard to do too much damage in 3 years. I suspect that you haven't done any permanent damage, and it's probably fatty liver. To my knowledge this can be reversed through life style.

Normally you would have blood tests to establish the damage? If this is the case there are clear indicators that can point to liver the extent of the disease.

[susieanna]

Keep off alcohol and things should improve.

[Bolly]

Do you know precisely what damage you have done? Damage is measured by doctors through blood tests or scans in the main.

Have you had blood tests and what were the results that made the doctor say you had done lots of damage? Have you had a scan? Or has the doctor scared you without properly explaining test results?

[briccolone]

agree with my fellow posters-stay off the alcohol for now and things should improve. What symptoms are you having? How much were you drinking? If it's any help I was drinking heavily for 30 years and reversed all my symptoms with 3 months of abstinence-I'm 60 now. Posting blood tests would help various people on this sire who have a lot of experience judge on damage but the GP should be a bit more supportive.

You're not alone though so keep on posting and this site should help you

[Hidden]

As the others have touched on ALD is a huge scope and rarely means End Stage Liver disease. It can range from a GGT elevation to Liver failure. Most damage from alcohol can be fixed, of course there is a point where its not reversible and becomes progressive. You can even live a normal life with some scarring along as its not progressive, thats the key.

3 years would NOT normally give someone end stage disease, unless you were drinking a bottle of vodka a day or something like that.

[linzenilss22]

Ralph I was drinking about half a bottle a day for 3 years give or take but I guess I need to start trusting blood tests and scans

[Hidden]

hi there

what are your actual numbers? can you post? the results of your scans said what?

I have never hear of someone getting Cirrhosis from half a bottle a day, many drink a bottle of wine a day for decades without issues. is that half a bottle of vodka as in a half of a litre? Cirrhosis takes around a pint of vodka a day for 15 years to happen and even then only about 10% of people get Cirrhosis .

Its a possibility you have another unconnected Liver issue and that the alcohol has brought it to light, or you have some mild inflammation that will resolve and the doctor has scared the crap out of you.

If you do have a serious Liver problem try not to beat yourself up about alcohol, you cant change it, what is done is done. People drink because life is long tough bitch sometimes and it is an escape. But with clean living from now on you can recover some health.

[linzenilss22]

It was a 750 ml of vodka. Than over the last year switched to about half a pint a day I will posts my labs in the morning I have to get them off my computer

[nbee in reply to linzenilss22]

Hi, I wouldn't listen too much about how much and how long people drink. Liver damage caused through alcohol can vary a lot from person to person. Some people can drink heavy for years and cause minimal damage, where others can drink for a couple of years and cause significant damage. Generally the heavier you drink for a longer period of time, the more chance your going to cause damage. The only way you'll know how much damage you've caused if any, is to see your doctor or specialist and let them do tests. As the others have said the only way to prevent damage is to stop drinking simple as. All the best.

[Hidden in reply to nbee]

have to disagree, sorry. yes some people do seem to be unable to handle alcohol, but the science is sound in that very few heavy drinkers get cirrhosis, 10-20% of full on alcoholics get it. So when people come here scared I like to give them some facts and numbers, most people aren't as bad as what they thought and can recover.

[nbee in reply to Hidden]

I have cirrhosis, I know the facts and I was stating facts. I wasn't trying to scare anyone and in know way said he would have caused any damage, I'm not a doctor and wouldn't know that. I wouldn't take statistics at face value, they can give you a false sense of security. And I can tell you its something a specialist wouldn't advise you to use as a guage. Believe me when I was drinking I did the same thing. I looked at other people and thought, well they've done this and that. It doesn't work like that. The one fact is, the more and longer you drink, the higher risk you have. Like I said, not trying to scare anyone.

[Hidden in reply to nbee]

as they say, the stats don't lie! of course the risk goes up as the time and amounts drunk goes up, but 3 years would put him at the bottom of the scale, in medical terms 10% chance is pretty good, now if it was 90% then that would be different. the bottom line is that its quite hard to get cirrhosis and the liver is pretty tough and can recover.

[nbee in reply to Hidden]

True stats don't lie but they can't tell you if you've got liver damage. Of course 3 years isn't a long time and its more unlikely that you would cause any significant damage. The point I was trying to make is you can't tell that just through how long you've been drinking. Only a doctor, who knows a bit more than you or me, can tell you that.

[AyrshireK in reply to nbee]

Also remembering that you don't have to drink at all to get advanced liver disease and it is always possible that someone had damage to their liver before drinking and then a heavy stint of drinking knocked it over the edge.

There are a lot of tee-total liver disease sufferers on this site ............. including my hubby who has chronic advanced cirrhosis and has never drunk a drop since a couple of pints on his 18th birthday that made him sick and he said 'never again' and indeed never has (he's 54 now).

Katie

[nbee in reply to AyrshireK]

Yes thats very true, there are a lot of different factors involved that a stat on a sheet doesn't tell you. And in cases as with your husband it must be even more difficult to diagnose as theres no reason to think that you have liver disease.

[linzenilss22]

I'm actually a woman and Ibe read they can get if faster. I was a social drinker before I started heavily drinking