r/Cirrhosis

we finally got my dad to go to the hospital today after so much convincing. He seems the tiniest bit better (since he’s away from alcohol) but i feel like the situation is worse than I think.

He has ascites, jaundice, little confusion/short term memory issues (only sometimes) but he’s talking normally, very weak (can’t walk and uses a wheelchair), back pain, shortness of breath, random bruises, sleeps ALL the time/is CONSTANTLY tired/fatigued, weight loss, & loss of appetite

The doctor did some more blood tests and as of right now he’s admitted at the hospital in med-surg.

Im confused as to how serious it is (since he seems a tiny bit better at the hospital). If anyone has had a loved one pass from cirrhosis, what were some signs that they were near death?

So I’m 31 (f) and my partner is 29 and she has cirrhosis and was diagnosed w liver cancer about 2 months ago. We have been together 4 years and she has had cirrhosis this entire time. My question is, what can i do to be a better partner to her? We havent had sex in over a year, and i understand that she just has like 0 libido and is constantly exhausted- so why would she want to have sex? I get it, but also as a 31 year old whos always had an active sex drive, i’m struggling. Its beyond sex and more like missing feeling desired by someone, but i dont want her to feel bad when i know shes literally so tired she just doesnt even think about it. Can anyone just kindly offer insight to how i can better support her, or bring up sex without making her feel bad? I’m scared this sounds superficial but i am a very physical touch person and intimacy (even beyond just sex) is really important to me in feeling loved. i think feeling desired by her is more important than sex itself. Now im rambling bc im nervous to post this. okay. here goes.

My older brother (50M) is in critical condition and he has a wife plus a baby boy age 2. Doctors don't think he will make it through, he has a MELD score of 40. My heart is broken and I am dealing with anger and sadness at the same. How did you cope? How did you get through the pain? Thank you.

I have AMAZING news to share!! As of yesterday-my final appts, my day to get put on the dual transplant list-I now need a liver and a kidney-transplant list. I went to my appt, and all my labs were SOO good that they officially closed my case (for now) and I no longer need either transplant right away!! I still have the Stage 4 Cirrhosis and CKD at 3B, but the labs are going in the right direction!! And my MELD score dropped all the way to an 11!!! I just had to share this with you!! This has been 2 years of busting my butt to get to this point-from "you have 2 years to live" to "you now need a liver AND a kidney" to "you do not have to be put on the transplant list at this time". If anyone has ANY questions, please ask. This site has been a lifesaver for me and I have met some wonderful people here, who helped me and answered my qts as well. Quick note: 57 yrs old, drinking was the cause. 2 years cold-turkey.

Anyone here have recommendations for weight gain? Or help with muscle weakness?

Hey I know this page is mostly for people who know someone who has chirossis, but I am child Pugh 3 and was given a timeline of about 3 months without a transplant. Given that my disease was alcohol related I didn’t qualify for transplant yet but I am very at peace with my mortality. I (35M) have been doing a lot of end of life stuff such as trips, movies etc.

My question is anyone in chirossis notice when you have tears (mine from watching good movies) that they tend to burn like if you had a pepper up to your eye? It’s just something I haven’t heard of or experienced and I’m not a very emotional person so I don’t tear up much but my god if it don’t burn like hell now. So just wondering if anyone else has noticed that or is it just something I am experiencing unrelated.

Also thanks to everyone in this community it’s very informative and I wish all of you and your loved ones the best. But speaking for myself as much as the pain hurts and all the downfalls of it, I have noticed that coming to acceptance about dying soon is more peaceful than terrifying. It gives you a lot of introspective on life and a bit of excitement to see if anything comes after, and if nothing does than you won’t even know or be disappointed by it.

Sorry my post is so long, just a bit of sharing my perspective while having maybe a month to live. But my main point was the tears question.

And for anybody that has a family member going through it (especially if it was from our bad decisions) just talk to us like normal, we don’t mind answering any questions you have but I now dread being around family and friends because that’s all they want to talk about. All we want (speaking for myself) is to just have and know that you’re not going to be going through pain that we caused.

71, obese, type 2 diabetic. Never a heavy drinker. Dont drink alcohol much if ever now. On May 1 I went to the er because I threw up black vomit. I had just started taking iron pills on an empty tummy as I’m slightly anemic, ER did a Ct scan with contrast and said no internal bleeding it was probably the dissolved iron pill I threw up. Fast forward a week I go to my pcp for ER follow up. She mentions she can’t access the ct scan, so I went home found it on hospital portal and sent it to her. Now I’ve had numerous ct scans without contrast in the past four years due to digestive issues. I’ve had CDiff twice for example. All ct scans came back saying liver unremarkable including one last year. Now suddenly this latest ct scan with contrast says “Liver: cirrhosis, 0.7 cm hepatic cyst”. I’m guessing all those scans without contrast missed it unless it’s a mistake. I’ve never been diagnosed with fatty liver and suddenly I have cirrhosis. It doesn’t even say compensated or decompensated. So I’m freaking out. My pcp wants a liver elastography ultrasound and I can’t get an appointment until May 28. So I’m trying not to get scared to death in the meantime. My liver bloodwork all shows normal levels. One or two on the low side of normal. Certainly nothing high. I’ve already been on Mediterranean diet for a while, I can’t eat red meat hence the slight anemia. Again I don’t drink alcohol. I’m trying to get more exercise, and I’m always trying to lose weight. Don’t really have any symptoms other than a little fatigue nausea and loss of appetite, which are symptoms of lots of things.

Is it even possible the hospital is misreading the ct scan. I should add a year ago at the same hospital they gave me an abdominal ct scan and a brain ct scan (numbness in arm turned out to be neck pinched nerve) both without contrast, they said the brain scan showed I’d had two strokes. One old one and one new one, they admitted me for an MRI test the next morning. Week later the MRI test showed NO SIGNS of stroke. So they can read the ct scan wrong sometimes. I’m praying this cirrhosis they found isn’t real, even though they used contrast. Guess I’ll find out May 28 after the liver elastography ultrasound. Anyone had a similar experience

To start, I did message my doctor!!

I’ve been feeling awful all day. I had pneumonia two years ago or so and I’m feeling close to the same. Chills, temp is 101.8, blanket and soft blanket on and I’m cold - mind you I run hot and on a normal day hell no I’d be dying- whole body aches. Came on out of nowhere. Few weeks ago I was feeling off and I remember that’s how I felt when I had pneumonia.

Maybe it’s Covid? I don’t know. I’m going to go ahead and assume pneumonia is worse if you have cirrhosis than a healthy person. Waiting for my doctor to reply. I don’t even know why I’m writing this hah maybe for advice. Or if anyone else has felt like that? And I’ve had every vaccine under the sun for my liver transplant , which I know they don’t always stop you from catching something. Lord just send good vibes my way I guess

I have been in the hospital for 3 days and was diagnosed with Cirrhosis. (at 29/F, mind you)

First let me just say that the relief everyone talks about is SO REAL and SO QUICK! I had 4 liters drained.

Luckily I got released and came home today! However, when I got out of the car at the pharmacy I noticed what are like… massive love handles? Kind of the best way to describe it. This was the first time I had worn my normal clothes obviously and was previously wearing those horrendously tight hospital underwear. I genuinely don’t know how I didn’t notice it before. I am fully aware it could take time for my body to go back to its shape this just seems odd.
So my question is whether this is normal or not?

Literally from the sides it looks like I got a BBL! It’s freaking me out. I have reached out to my care team and i’m waiting for them to get back to me.
Has anyone experienced this? Could it just be the fluids moving around?
Thank you in advance!

In 2014 during sleeve sx my liver was noted to “appear cirrhotic”. The surgeon took a shitty biopsy that read F2 but they were sure it was way worse. I having have illness anxiety since my mid twenties completely broke. I refused another biopsy until I’d lost weight. Do 2 yrs later 90 lbs lost, new biopsy F3. I was given zero hope. The hep looked me straight in the eye and said “you got 10 years, after that, you’ll start seeing signs.” He didn’t even bother explaining comp and decomp. I’m 48 now, I was just 36 then. And the more I did for hope, the more horrific it gets Well it’s be 10 yrs. The other day I urinated what appeared to be pure bilirubin, in the well of the toilet was blacker than night. Of course pale stools followed. Then, this girl who cuts my dads hair said her mom suffered horribly before she succumbed to MASH cirrhosis. I began to read the suffering is up there with bone cancer.

Last elastography showed F3. I started Rezdiffra but quit after a few days. In my mind, I’m already cirrhotic going into decomp any sec now. another symptom to add RLS. I know they’re worse things but this shit is horrible even with meds. My med list is a HE recipe. But yet, I’m TERRIFIED. Like wtf!! I actually read even high doses of melatonin can cause HE. I advocate for quality over quantity at this point. No I’m not officially cirrhosis but my symptoms are telling. So just how the hell are any of us with insomnia related cirrhosis and the knowledge of how we suffer unless we get the ever elusive transplant suppose to have a decent nights sleep??? When you ho for a transplant it’s like you better damn sure be practically perfect, on zero meds if possible?? WTF!! This disease offers little room for those meds that other folks get when they’re afraid of a terminal illness. I guess this falls under life isn’t fair. But it pisses me off that hospices can’t manage a peaceful death for this! It’s here are ways to lean oneself into passing from HE. Yeah we may get loco and gave personality changes but eventually we fall into a coma. I wanna just give up. Take my HE inducing meds and go to sleep. But there are those I wanna fight for, I’m frantically trying ways to address anxiety and panic but at some point, I have to rest and my thoughts take over.

Two days ago my husband as be offered a portion of his liver. Nothing more precious could’ve been offered me. Hes a beautiful soul. Of course we don’t even know if we’re a match. I wanna grow old with him, I never wanna see him cry. So for now I’m working my ass off to lose more weight. Sometimes I think I should go into an intense inpatient rehab to get off my Ativan, but it’s what allows me to sleep for now. I hate myself, f—king pill is worth more than my husband? . I’ll never be a candidate because of that. Finally, not to get religious on yall but we are talking terminal illness here. One day It hit me, even Jesus was afraid before he’d be captured and tortured from sun up to sun down. He prayed until blood and water poured out of His pores. And said let this cup pass from me. So are we not to fear? Are we to put on a brave facade at every transplant center sit down. Then leave and crumble when there’s no one is around. This is a special kind of torture, not just the body but the mind. I don’t believe in medical assisted suicide because it’s a sin in my book. But there the choice to stop eating and drinking, is that suicide? My mother did that before I put her on hospice. In one year I’ve lost my parents, save my husband they were my rocks. I envy their passing, it was nothing compared to this.

Well now that I’ve finished this very blunt rant, I’m hoping to get some advice on dying, living, hope, overcoming anxiety and fear. For the past 12 years, hopelessness and despair have been my constant companions. Learning to trust in God (or whatever divine being you choose) is the hardest thing, at least for me.

Hi I've posted on here previously explaining my dads previous health conditions, but I thought I would come back (this time with an update) so that I could maybe get more advice or opinions from new people.

Long story short, my dad drinks (beer 10% instead of hard alc now), has ulcerative colitis, diagnosed with liver cirrhosis (i think end stage), jaundice *keep this in mind* (in the past), he's been experiencing (muscle) weakness for a while now, depression, doesn't really eat properly or much at all throughout the day, had ascites in the past (x2) *also keep this in mind*, has some memory issues (he'll retell me the same story like 4 times back to back in one sitting.. or if my mom tells him something, a few minutes later he'll forget and they'll have the same conversation again... but he has lowkey also always been kinda bad with his memory), sleeping ALL the time (he didnt get out of bed until 8pm today), and he isn't working a job as he is not in that physical and mental state.

obviously the doctors told him the first time he had jaundice and ascites that he had to completely stop drinking, but he never did.

As previously mentioned, he had jaundice around the same time that he had ascites for the first time, which went away after a few trips to the hospital. HOWEVER, recently whenever talking to him, I notice that his skin looks a little more yellow (though I can't ever tell if it's his normal skin, the lighting, or jaundice) but the whites of his eyes are definitely yellow again. I know the jaundice is back and my mom suspects the ascites is back too since he isnt eating anymore...

the problem is we've tried talking him into going to the hospital but he literally REFUSES and starts arguing whenever we bring it up (and trust me, if you think we haven't tried everything to get him help, we have). He also only tends to go to the hospital whenever things get really bad.

I don't really know how serious it is because he made it out alive the first time, and every time after that (context: stuff like this has been going on since 2019/2020). From my perspective, he doesn’t seem extremely ill, though I know he is.

I just want answers. I didn't know where else to go other than here. You can be brutally honest with me but also maybe some advice or like opinions would be nice.

So I'm trying to branch out on food and not be so boring, I'm eating wholewheat noodles often but can't seem to think or find a nice spicy noodle sauce. Spicy noodles would be ideal but everything is so salt laden, sugar or fat/oil high.

Anyone have any go to recipes or ready made brands?

Doctors have said for liver transplant but It will not be possible at this time, just wanna know the road forward as he has lost weight and having difficulty even getting up , m feeling super anxious about what to do and what will be the future, please help

Hi all, as a Brit I find our food generally lower in sugar and salt, but totally avoiding it in most things is very difficult.

Can anyone recommend some American brands and items to get to make my food that bit more enjoyable? I home make a lot of things but I'm at the point now of wanting to look for easier to source solutions.

So far, I've bought

various Mrs dash seasonings.

Mr taste buffalo sauce

Heinz dill relish

Any other must have suggestions people recommend? Relishes, sauces, seasonings, etc?

So I used to drink heavily in my 20s im 35 now I quit drinking when I was 28 years old I didn’t know cigarettes messed with your liver as much. I quit smoking in February. I always knew my liver probably wasn’t in amazing shape, but I didn’t know it was cirrhosis until about two days ago and it’s very weird to sit with because I was my mom’s caregiver for the last three years of her life when she had cirrhosis/end stage liver disease and it’s just bringing back bad memories from that so that’s probably the hardest part. I wont go into detail but she didnt do what she was supposed to do to take care of herself and its just bad memories.

I didnt go to a doctor for the past decade other than ER visits for I dont even know why. Just indifference I guess but I recently started caring about my health. I’ve been working out exercising at least four or five times a week cooking all my own meals like I mentioned already quitting cigarettes so I guess getting this diagnosis right when I was starting this was a bummer.

But if I’ve gone seven years without symptoms and no drinking, I’m hopeful that the test will come ok I just wanted to post here because I didn’t have anywhere else to say this.

It really messed with my head when told initially but nothings changed from a week ago other than having more information so im trying to be measured about my reaction.

Hope everyones having a good weekend =]

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A lot of backstory and venting:

All this just ask if you have any advice on getting diagnosed, SSI, disability, lawyers, more assistance like rental, food stamps, etc. I'm primarily doing this all this work for another person that's mentally incapable.

I have a cousin I help take care of and support who may be a little mentally handicapped, but he doesn't know it. He's been a dishwasher his whole life and that's honestly the maximum mental capacity he has, but bc of this he is very low income and often paid under the table which I think will affect his SSI or disability. He was recently diagnosed with cirrhosis about 2 years ago and last year had a major surgery, some sort of abdominal aortic repair surgery which was complicated bc they had to be very careful to not touch his bad liver. He's been mostly in and out of work for a couple years now due to sickness from cirrhosis. He doesn't have insurance or a doctor, he just goes to the emergency room.

My husband and I usually end up majorly financially supporting him. We sometimes have to pay his rent and buy his medicine, groceries, toiletries, underwear and clothes, necessities, it's a little stressful, but he abuses it or never "asks for too much". To be honest he comes from a poor and sick family. His mom gave him up to his grandparents early on. His anxiety is also through the roof. He's out of work again and his anxiety is sky high. In the last couple years his mom died from cirrhosis, his grandfather that raised him died, his grandmother got dementia and is in a nursing home, and his half brother just died a few weeks ago, his aunt and first cousins are all homeless and on drugs. I usually am authorized as his representative bc he can't comprehend what professionals are saying.

All this and he's my THIRD cousin, we're really not even close, and he comes from the messed up side of my family and has no support system. But I can't stand by and let him keep suffering and be homeless when there's something I can do as much as I'd like to say this isn't my problem.

This morning we're calling to get an appt at a low-income sliding scale doctor's facility that we hope can give him at least a few diagnoses such as cirrhosis and anxiety or can contact the hospital for his paperwork. I want someone else to tell him he's got a mental delay and maybe present it like it's good for his SSI/disability case. I'm making an appt with a lawyer this morning that I am going to talk to privately before they talk.

My dad's been intubated in the ICU for 8 days. We plan to move him to hospice care tomorrow. It's been awful. I'm not really sure why I'm posting this; I'm extremely sad and even more sad for my mom. It doesn't seem real, he was just diagnosed in March and this moved so fast. Anyways, thanks for reading.

My 52 yo husband just stopped drinking 3 months ago after his second round of medical detox. He’s convinced he’s not got cirrhosis because he’s stopped drinking. He won’t go to the doctor but has diarrhea at least once daily and lost about 60 pounds in the months before he quit drinking - maybe 10 more afterward. In detox the last time they told him he had mild pancreatitis. The didn’t treat him there for it. He has itchy skin and hardly sleeps. He eats so much sugar like powdered donuts, candy bars, ice cream etc. Even with the weight loss he has a belly. He won’t go to a doctor except he wants to see a psych to see if he has ADHD because he has racing thoughts. He goes to the gym every day and says he feels fine but less coordinated than usual. He also has really bad shoulder pain sometimes. Are these not all signed of liver damage? Has anyone here had to convince someone to see a Dr for this? Before he quit drinking he drank 10-24 shots of vodka daily for at least 8 years, probably more before we met.

I have been told by my Hepatologist I have some Esophageal Varicies and wants to do an Upper Endoscopy. I was put on Carvedilol also. Has anyone had this done? I’m nervous.