Eating late and not being able to sleep...liver connection?

[lifebegins53]

My partner says everytime he eats late, he can't get much sleep is this something to do with his liver. He has cirrhosis.

Thanks

[AyrshireK]

Sleep disturbance and difficulty sleeping can certainly be associated with cirrhosis, whether or not the eating late is part of the problem I doubt seeing as it is recommended that people with cirrhosis do have a high carb snack before bed to tide them over and avoiding long fasting periods. I guess it may depend on what he is eating so late, is it causing him indigestion or other issues?

Katie

[Fibro2021]

Sleep disturbance in cirrhosis may be one of the early symptoms of hepatic encephalopathy (HE). There may be other symptoms such as chronic fatigue, hepatic laziness, daytime sleepiness, irritability, sometimes aggressiveness, inattention and forgetfulness, anger and resentment, cognitive impairment and mood swings . You may have noticed some of these symptoms in your partner. Is your partner taking treatment for hepatic encephalopathy? It's important to diagnose and treat hepatic encephalopathy as early as possible to prevent further brain damage.

[Millie09 in reply to Fibro2021]

May I ask what's hepatic laziness ? Never heard of this before.. thank you 😊

[Fibro2021 in reply to Millie09]

Nothing complicated. It's just a constant laziness to do anything. I think this phrase should be put in quotation marks.

[Millie09 in reply to Fibro2021]

Yes , I can relate to that actually ..I have many days like this .Thank you for your reply

[lifebegins53 in reply to Fibro2021]

Hi millie

Thankyou for responding, we don't live together at present. So i dont get the full picture.He is tired a lot, and his job is mentally demanding which dosent help. But I will somehow try to talk to him about how he feels etc

Thanks Claire x

[Chick_atee]

Possibly. I have decompensated cirrhosis and eat late as advised by my dietitian to keep the liver going overnight. Of course it’s hard to sleep on a full stomach anyway but my sleep has pretty much reversed which I believe is a symptom in some patients with cirrhosis. Fatigued all day and have to go for naps to try and sleep then. I don’t have HE, hepatic encephalitis yet & hope not to get it. Sleep deprivation is awful. Permanent state of exhaustion. Is very debilitating. I haven’t heard of anything to help it yet! Here’s hoping.

Wishing you both the best. It’s a difficult journey.

[Oldbits]

Hi, has he got anxiety because of his illness? My husband did and that kept him awake. Sleep paterns change with cirrhosis and he tried many things but in the end he took medication for anxiety , and that knocked him out. He now no longer takes it but he does get up in the middle of night and have a glass of milk and some biscuits or cereals then hes out for the count for another 4 hours. He prefers to do that instead of eating before bed. Maybe change what he eats, a bowl of cereal has the protein and carbs to help the liver through the night. Theres nothing worse than lying awake and the more you worry about it the harder it is to drop off. Xxx

[Readlots]

I’m the same. If I eat between 5 and 6 I’m fine. Might have a snack before bed and be OK. But if I eat my main meal at 7 my stomach is uncomfortable, I’ll get heartburn and be tossing and turning all night.

[lifebegins53 in reply to Readlots]

Thankyou for your reply it is much appreciated

[Harting]

With a liver problem such as cirrhosis it is often recommended to take a 50g carb intake before sleep - one bottle of Forijuce provides about 65g of carbs so they might be worth looking into.

[lifebegins53 in reply to Harting]

Thankyou I will tell him that, see if it helps.

[CuriousFish]

Maybe it depends more on what he's eating than when he's eating?

I've been keeping a protein shake bedside. I take a good sip right before bed & then a little sip if I wake at all. That has helped. The kind I use has 30 grams of protein, no salt, no sugar. Good luck!

[lifebegins53 in reply to CuriousFish]

Thankyou for replying, he dosent eat past 7pm and only eats breakfast and has a high protein meal around 5pm x

[AyrshireK in reply to lifebegins53]

When you say he only eats breakfast and a high protein meal around 5pm - is he not eating during the rest of the day? He should be eating little and often, protein and carbs or else he's running on empty and his liver will start to burn his muscles for fuel leading to all manner of other issues.

I've sent you a PM which may be of use.

Katie