Diagnosed with cirrhosis !!!

[Articmonkey]

Hi, I'm new to this site & really embarrassed, I'm 44 & have been diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver & instead of stopping drinking I seem to be drinking more through fear of the future....any tips to stop drinking/seeking help would be so appreciated ??? P.S. I'm so embarrassed I haven't told my wife or family of my situation !!!

[Hidden]

Hello Articmonkey.

May I start off by welcoming you to our little group here. Hopefully we can help you. No one here is judgemental in anyway, in fact your in good company as quite a few of us have been exactly where you are now, and have successfully come out the other end.

My first piece of advice is to be totally honest, not only with yourself, but with others too.

Everyone out there is going to be there for you and help you through this. You WILL need their support as without that love and support, the road ahead can be a lot harder, and lonelier.

Take a long hard look at yourself in the mirror. Tell yourself what your problem is, and what it is you intend to do to make is right. (By doing this you'll be confronting your fears). Once you've admitted that something is broken and damaged, then you'll want to make things better. Be honest with yourself. Don't hide from the secret alcohol life. We know here just how devious people with a drinking problem can be. Once you've done this, you'll find that hidden determination inside yourself to want to make this all better. Have a sit down with your family, and come clean and open up. I can assure you, that they will respect your honesty, and be more than willing to help you. Don't be embarrassed. If you happen to have drinking buddies, then some of these friends may have to go. If you tell your friends of your problem, then a true friend will stand by and support you. "If I see you with so much as one drink in your hand, I'll kill you myself". The friend who says, "go on mate, have a man's drink, one's not going to make any difference". This is the mate who has to go.

By doing what I've just said is to confront your demons. It's not going to be easy, but there are plenty of use here that totally understand what it is your going through. If anything, we are proof, that there is light at the end of the tunnel, and with plenty of support you'll make it.

There was a post earlier on here by "Sadapple": healthunlocked.com/britishl...

Here there were some really good responses, which I recommend you take a look at.

If you prefer to send me a private reply, then please feel free to do so. Coming to this site, is a great first step.

Respect to you sir.

[Hidden]

Hey Articmonkey. Welcome from me as well. Richard has addressed some really good points here. Please do check out the post he gave you the link for. Its truly filled with real authentic and eye opening responses.

I'm sure you know you have to get off the alcohol. Drinking with cirrhosis is truly playing Russian roulette. We are here to help and we do not judge. I just want to get you some help before the hammer lands on that fatal shot.

Let's start getting this sorted out and get you on the road to better days.

[Countrywalks in reply to Hidden]

Well said .

[jazzjam]

Hi, you are absolutely not on your own, you might feel like the only one who has gone through this and that you feel it is so hard but you are not, not at all. Personally I am also new and wish I had come here right at the very beginning, for me, the advice and people’s own life stories are helpful in themselves.

As Richard64 said, speak to your family or just your wife, for me I just blurted it out as I didn’t know how to say it. I was bewildered, frightened, unsure of what the future held, I didn’t know if I was standing up, sat down or on my head. It’s awful I know. If you have a group of friends you go out with regular and you feel they are the supportive type, tell them too. If you don’t and you stop going out or start drinking no alcohol when with them all the questions will start and it will feel more uncomfortable and you will probably just drink to get out of that situation and that is not a solution to getting your health better. Harsh and uncomfortable but I hope you will receive good support, the ones that don’t do this need to go unfortunately.

All the best and come back with your update and ask lots of questions.

[Coralsun]

Hi Articmonkey. I'm really pleased you have posted on this forum, I'm sure it will be a great help to you. I can only echo what everyone else has said, that nobody's here to judge anyone. It's all about sharing and supporting one another. I understand you saying you're embarrassed but you're far from alone in this, many people find themselves in your position. None of this is easy but I hope that by having others to speak to it will help you get through it all. You've already taken one of the biggest steps by recognising you need to make changes rather than carry on in denial. Best wishes.

Coralsun

[Hidden]

Hi Articmonkey,

My first advice would be to tell your wife, she, hopefully, can be a help with aiding you in staying off drinking and stopping friends from trying to get you to "just have one" if you listen to her.

I wish I had some good advice, but I don't. My husband spent years drinking and nothing I said helped. He went into the hospital in liver and kidney failure and once he recovered enough to recognize me and when the doctors came in and said if he drank again he would be dead in a year if lucky, but more likely months - he quit and has not had a drink since November, 2015.

Perhaps if you look at this in this way it might help and going it alone without help and support from your family would, I think, make it harder.

Best wishes to you,

Mary

[Bermuda1]

Hi Artic monkey how you are feeling is totally normal . You have not only your own embarrassment to deal.with but a whole set of emotions which are grieving ones due to the loss of your life as you know it. Things will settle down in time with those emotions. Please tell.your nearest and dearest as those who know you will be concerned as they may have been for sometime anyway, even if they don't speak about it . You can support one another through this diagnosis . Yes you must stop drinking totally , and now. with a good healthy diet , exercise and neighbour stress levels as low as possible you could live for many decades . some people are predisposed to getting Cirrhosis with drinking , realistically only about 30% of heavy drinkers get cirrhosis , so you have drawn an unlucky straw. If you can't stop drinking your own ask your doctor for help there are therapy groups as well as medical ways to aid you . Good luck and you can do this . Hold your head up high , you are not alone , you would be surprised how many people have cirrhosis, it's the untalked about amongst many .

[davianne]

Hi Arcticmonkey, welcome to our friendly group, I echo all that is said above. You have to put the shame you feel back on the shelf, and be honest with family & friends who will then be able to help you, as will us on this forum. Please keep us posted on your path to give up the booze, and don't forget, we will be here for you if you need our support.

Take care, David

[alfredthegreat]

Hi Articmonkey. I see that you have already received really good advice. I would just like to add that when I was diagnosed with cirrhosis and because it was termed as NASH and not supposed to be caused by drinking alcohol I continued to drink 2 large glasses of red wine with dinner at night (the equivalent of roughly 3 to 3 and half bottles a week). Within 18 months I had HCC (2 cancerous tumours in my liver). If only I had known about this forum then and had been able to read the stories on here then I am sure that I would have stopped drinking alcohol at the time of my cirrhosis diagnosis! I was very ill and classed as terminal for over four years, on daily chemo drugs for 3 years (with nasty side effects!) . As soon as I was classed as terminal with HCC I gave up drinking like a shot. Long story short, when I entered liver failure I was, for the first time, offered the chance of transplant assessment. I'm now 6 months post transplant and doing well. So I am one very lucky man to still be here! In your case you have got the chance now to change your life and turn things around. I would advise you to tell your wife and family and close friends of your illness and that way you will have support, not only emotionally but also in living healthily and eating a healthy diet to help your liver recover. Don't walk down the path that I walked. Give up alcohol while you can win, don't leave it too late. Sorry to bang on about this but when I read your post I saw me...……...and I wouldn't wish anyone to go through what I did if it can be avoided...…. and believe me it can be avoided!! I wish you all the best on your journey through this. Keep posting and you will have tremendous support on here. Alf.

[Hidden]

Hi Articmonkey

Welcome to our forum. What great replies to your post, we know you will find a lot of support here.

Please consider reaching out to your doctors as soon as you can to get medical support with your alcohol intake.

Don't forget our information on The British Liver Trust website and we also have a helpline open Monday to Friday 10am to 14.45

britishlivertrust.org.uk/

You are not alone.

Best wishes

Trust1