Fatty Liver Disease

Before i was diagnosed with non alcoholic fatty liver disease

I was diagnosed with non alcoholic fatty liver disease in 2012, I have set up this site just to log what I went through and what I did to get myself back in shape again.

Early on in March 2012 I started experiencing a dull pain just below my right rib cage, it didn't last long and it only happened 2 or 3 times a day.

Although this was not the reason that I first went to the doctors, it was because I noticed blood on the tissue paper when I went to the toilet.

When I plucked up the courage to go to the doctors on 30th March 2012 I told her about the pain in my stomach and the blood.

The doctor performed an anal exam (for the blood on the toilet paper), which was nothing to do with my liver. I had to go back to the doctors 4 days later on 3rd April to have some blood taken.

At this time I did not know I had fatty deposits on my liver and it was a worrying time wondering what disease I had waiting for the blood results to return.

What happened next before i was diagnosed with fatty liver disease

I was told that I had to return to the doctors on 24th April where I would have a sigmoidoscopy done and at the same time would get the results from my blood test.

Now the sigmoidoscopy was to do with the blood on the toilet paper issue, in simple terms it was a white tube inserted up my bottom, which the doctor looked through to identify any problems there may be.

Now as you would expect this was not a very good experience, anyway this revealed I had Hemorrhoids (in other words piles), which I was relieved about as it could have been something a lot more serious.

After this awful procedure they told me my blood test revealed high liver enzymes, which could mean a problem with my liver.

Now at this stage I still did not know I had fatty deposits on my liver and was told I had to have more blood tests done as it could be another disease like hepatitis.

On the 30th April 2012 I had another 2 lots of blood taken, it was a horrible time waiting for these results to come in. For more information on non alcoholic fatty liver disease you can check out the NHS website.

Was it hepatitis or non alcoholic fatty liver disease

On the 2nd May I was told that the last lot of blood tests revealed the liver enzymes in my blood were still very high.

Now I had to have more blood tests done to rule out hepatitis and I was told I had been referred to the hospital to have a scan on my abdomen to have a look at my liver.

On the 3rd May I had more blood taken and had to wait for a letter to arrive in the post to reveal my scan date.

I received my letter and went to the hospital for a scan on my abdomen on 21st May, the rather nice lady told me that my liver was swollen and had fatty deposits, which is associated with heavy drinking or a bad diet.

She said that it was nothing to worry about and that I would receive a letter with the final verdict, now I knew I wasn't a heavy drinker so it wasn't the alcoholic disease we all know about so it had to be non alcoholic fatty liver disease that I had.

When i was diagnosed with non alcoholic fatty liver disease

I received my letter and it told me I had to go back to the hospital on the 18th May to talk with the consultant about the results of my scan.

I went to the hospital and surprise surprise he told me that I had non alcoholic fatty liver disease, it was what I was expecting.

To be honest still to this day I can't believe it happened to me because I didn't class myself as overweight, I was only 12 stone 7, I am 5ft 9 so I wasn't fat at all.

So I was surprised what the doctor told me, he said for me to lose some weight and to exercise and that he will see me again in three months time.

I was relieved actually with what I had been through, I thought all I have is fatty deposits on my liver, yes it's a disease and I was going to beat it and had three months to do so.

What i did to cure my non alcoholic fatty liver disease

All I had to do to cure the non alcoholic fatty liver disease was to eat healthily and do some exercise, easy isn't it.

So I got started straight away, my partner uses fitness DVDs all the time so I grabbed one of those and I did this every other night and I started eating better too.

Just in case you want to know what DVD I used it was Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred, I only did it every other night and it worked.

All I did was do a simple exercise DVD every other night and just monitored my eating and I lost weight, quite quickly too.

All I did to change my diet was eat less cheese, cut down on my tea time portion sizes by using smaller plates and just ate better.

I had porridge with honey in for breakfast, a simple low fat sandwich for lunch with carrot sticks and something like pasta and salad for tea, for a more detailed diet plan check out my fatty liver disease diet page.

Every thing I ate I was thinking about the fatty deposits on my liver, I was determined to beat this disease, I even started eating Quorn instead of fatty red meat and it tastes quite nice actually.

What happened next

On the 13th August I went back to my doctors to have more blood taken which I had to do before I was to go back to the hospital to see the consultant again.

While I was there the doctor weighed me, I was now 11 stones 1, she said I was doing well and was at the ideal weight for my height, I had lost 1 stone 6 in just 7 weeks.

On the 11th September the hospital called me and said that my consultant had left and that I wouldn't get another appointment for six weeks, oh well, keep on exercising.

I eventually got to see a consultant and they weighed me, I was 10 stone 10 and he told me everything was now OK and to just keep doing what I was doing, which I am doing.

I have to admit that the exercise did stop but I still eat a lot better and I am conscious about what fat I am eating, I feel a whole lot better now too so all is good. Exercise and a healthy diet is the key.

I never thought I would be one of those people in the supermarket that checks the labels on everything, now I do this all the time looking for the fat content in the food, it has to be done.