Moral support needed

[Sallydog1]

My husband as just joined this wonderful group after having been diagnosed in February with cirrhosis stage3/4 and ascites He’s 70 years old and has been type 2 diabetic for 25 plus years although the Cirrhosis is partly due to alcohol related it is also due to the vast amount of medication he has been on. I’m doing everything a I can to support him on this horrific journey but it seems like it’s one step forward and three steps back right now. Firstly he couldn’t eat (probably due to the ascites) then he said everything seemed dry , now he has no taste at all this is proving to be such hard work because he doesn’t want to eat at all. He can’t sleep at night (sometimes only getting about 2 hours) and he’s suffering total fatigue during the day due to a ruptured Achilles’ tendon he is wearing an air boot so it make exercise almost impossible he’s lost almost 3 stone in weight and is suffering with atrophy which will only be helped by eating and mobilising. I’m sorry that this is such a long and many post but I’m at my wits end and just hoping that you lovely people might be able to offer me a bit of hope

[davianne]

Hi Sallydog, I am in a similar position to your Hubby. I am 72 years old, and have stage 4 cirrhosis (compensated) and never had ascites or weight loss. I am constantly tired, with aching joints and used to have difficulty in sleeping, all of which can be symptomatic with cirrhosis. I am pre-diabetic, and try to control it with a healthy diet ( this is hard, as since giving up alcohol, I have developed a liking for sweet things 😁 ( not good for my diet😢). My sleeping is good now after being prescribed amitriptyline. I hope this is of some use to you.

David

[Hidden]

Hi Sallydog1

We are sorry to read that your husband is feeling so unwell.

If you are in the UK You may want to give the helpline a call- it is open today until 14.45

Warm wishes

Trust1

[mncold]

Hi Sallydog1,

My husband has cirrhosis, but not diabetes.

Yes, it is a pain in the neck dealing with all the different issues that come along with both diseases. Nagging works sort of for me.

My husband is not an eater so we go round with that, I'm sure his diabetes doesn't help, but doesn't he need to eat to keep his sugar and insulin in line?

Sleep disturbance is part of liver disease and my husband naps during the day, you could try to get him to not nap during the day. The atrophy is there anytime motion is restricted - both my husband and my older son have had to deal with that due to broken feet. When things heal and he can get back to moving that will diminish, though age may slow recovery.

The best I can offer is to try to find things he is willing to eat that suit is diet and remind him that he needs to eat in order for all these issues to improve.

I know when my husband broke his foot [twice] while recovering from liver failure his mood was down which affected his appetite - so I nagged and just put food in front of him and said he needed to eat or things would not improve.

Wish there was more I could say to help.

Best wishes,

Mary

[alfredthegreat]

Hi, I have been through those symptoms having had cirrhosis, HCC and type 2 diabetes. When I didn't want to eat my wife would just put a small amount of food in front of me without saying anything and quickly disappear before I could protest. she did this several times a day and surprisingly enough I must have eaten about 80% of it. It wasn't long before I took interest in what the next snack would be and I started making requests. With eating healthily through my illness and also now post transplant, although I have been a type 2 diabetic for over 20 years, I have been declared in remission for diabetes. Wishing you all the best with coping with your journey through his illness.Alf