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How much damage have I done to my body?

Posted , 6 users are following.

mikeyrayer
mikeyrayer

Hi - I'll start with the basics.....

I'm male, 43, 5ft 11, 14 and a half stone (92kg) and have been drinking since I was 17. Not heavily to start with but a few binges per month. Then university, a bit more heavy drinking. Then the last 20 years, mostly just weekend binges with a glass of red wine on some week nights.

For the last 2 years though, I've been drinking heavier. Very few alcohol free days and averaging about 60 units (UK) a week. 4-5 cans of 4% cider a night, a few more on a weekend with red wine added. This is all at home. About once a month I'll go out with friends and it's all day drinking. I don't touch spirits, I only drink 4% cider and red wine. I rarely feel drunk and rarely get hangovers. I never drink before early afternoon but weeknights it's never before 6pm which is when I get home from work. Then I'm in bed by 10.30pm to get up at 6am.

About a month ago I started to feel a bit tender on my right flank. Not painful at all but just not 'normal'. I think it may be a liver issue so I stopped drinking during the week and it went away but came back after a heavy weekend. Incidentally, stopping drinking for 5 days was fine, no withdrawals. I had drinks on the weekend (4 days ago) and the tenderness returned and is still noticeable today but more around my back than on the side. Not had a drink since the weekend and have been drinking loads of water and eating fairly good. I'm taking supplements such as multi vitamin, milk thistle and artichoke (although I have for years) and drink loads of herbal tea (tumeric, green tea, ginger etc). I have no other symptoms other than perhaps thinning hair (could be age related) and possibly unrelated floaters in one eye.

I am worried that I may have irreversible liver damage after years of abuse. I've read loads that symptoms don't necessarily show until damage is done.

I don't really want to see my doctor as I don't want anything on my record if I can help it. I had a blood test a year ago and GGT was raised at 65 but the other LFTs were in range. The blood test was for something unrelated and my doctor didn't say anything about the GGT.

So given the above info, how do I compare with yourselves or others you have known, in terms of scale of abuse and possible damage? I know everyone is different and I know you'll recommend I visit the doctor but it's useful to have a comparison as I currently have nothing to compare.

0 likes, 3 replies

3 Replies

  • alex01280
    alex01280 mikeyrayer

    Posted

    It's a case by case basis but I'm older than you and have drunk a lot more than you and my liver is OK.

    So your liver is probably ok even if it is giving you some big hints.

    You'll only know if you get it checked. 

    Having said that...'Is my liver OK?' is often the first step on the road to recovery.

     

  • Robin2015
    Robin2015 mikeyrayer

    Posted

    Great story. Long, honest and precise. Full blood tests and visit to GO would be ideal. A few days no drinking? Try dropping to 40 units and eventually 20 units peer week? Your pain i cannot diagnose. So sorry but others here should know more😁herbal teas sound great as well.

  • mikeyrayer
    mikeyrayer

    Posted

    Thanks. I will indeed be taking it easy for the next few months. I'm finding it surprisingly easy to not drink during the week. This weekend will be the test. Then in the long term I can't see me cutting out alcohol completely but I will be sticking to sensible amounts and not drinking during the week.

    I'm already a month into a new exercise plan which involved getting a smart watch to track my steps, heart rate etc and doing loads of walking. I'm building fitness back up slowly to where I was a year ago so I can start running.

    I measured my resting blood pressure this morning, it was 149/92 so I'm hoping to bring this down.

    Is there anything else I should be doing to help my body recover?

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