How Ignoring My Fatty Liver Symptoms Nearly Cost Me My Health

When I first heard the words "fatty liver disease," I didn’t even know what it meant. Like a lot of guys, I’d been living my life without really paying attention to things like liver health. I thought I was invincible, you know? A couple of beers after work, a night out with friends on the weekends—nothing that seemed out of the ordinary. But looking back, I can see how easily things spiraled out of control.

My name is Jarek, and this is my story. I had been working a physically demanding job for most of my life, always moving, always on my feet. So when I started feeling tired all the time, I brushed it off as just part of getting older. I was in my mid-30s, and fatigue seemed like something that came with the territory. But one day, while lifting a box at work, I felt this strange pain just under my ribs, on the right side. It wasn’t sharp, but it was enough to make me stop what I was doing.

At first, I thought maybe I’d pulled a muscle or maybe it was just stress. You convince yourself it’s nothing because admitting something might actually be wrong feels like a big step. But the tiredness kept getting worse. I was struggling to get through my days, and by the time I got home, all I wanted to do was collapse on the couch.

"Even my partner, Katya, noticed that I was moving slower, sleeping more, and complaining about pain a lot more than usual."

Finally, she convinced me to go to the doctor. Dr. Brecht was a no-nonsense kind of guy. He ordered some blood tests, and when the results came back, he told me my liver enzymes were way above normal. That’s when he dropped the bomb: "It looks like you’ve got fatty liver disease."

To be honest, I didn’t even know what that was. Dr. Brecht explained that it happens when fat builds up in your liver, and if you don’t take care of it, it can lead to serious problems down the line—like cirrhosis or even liver failure. He sent me for more tests, including a FibroScan to check for scarring, and sure enough, my liver was in bad shape. There was fat, inflammation, and early signs of scarring.

The thing is, I didn’t feel sick—apart from the tiredness and that pain under my ribs. I was still going to work every day, still hanging out with friends, still living life. But Dr. Brecht told me that if I didn’t make some changes, things could get much worse. He was blunt about it: stop drinking, clean up my diet, and start exercising.

I wish I could say I followed his advice right away, but I didn’t. I cut back on drinking, sure, but I didn’t stop entirely. A few months later, I ended up at a friend’s birthday party, and before I knew it, I’d downed a few beers. A couple of days after that, I felt worse than I ever had in my life. I was exhausted, nauseous, and couldn’t keep food down.

"It hit me hard—this wasn’t just something I could ignore anymore."

That was the turning point for me. I quit drinking completely. It wasn’t easy, especially since I had used alcohol to unwind after long days at work. But I knew I had to do it. I also stopped smoking, something I hadn’t realized was affecting my liver too. Dr. Brecht mentioned that toxins from cigarettes could make things worse, and he wasn’t kidding.

The lifestyle changes were tough at first. I had to rethink everything—what I ate, how I spent my free time, even how I handled stress. I started cooking more at home, leaning on healthier meals with lots of vegetables and lean proteins. I also started going for walks every evening, which eventually turned into runs. Exercise became my new way of dealing with stress, and surprisingly, it helped a lot more than I thought it would.

After about six months, I started feeling better. I had more energy, the pain under my ribs was gone, and when I went back to see Dr. Brecht, the tests showed that my liver was actually improving. The fat was decreasing, and the scarring hadn’t progressed.

"It was the first time in a long while that I felt hopeful."

It’s been almost two years now, and I can’t say I’m cured, but I’m in a much better place. My liver has healed significantly, though I know I’ll have to keep taking care of myself for the rest of my life. I’ve learned to enjoy things like sober nights out with friends and cooking at home with Katya. It’s not the life I imagined, but it’s a life I can live with, one where I don’t have to worry about my liver shutting down.

I’m sharing my story because I don’t want anyone else to wait as long as I did. Fatty liver disease isn’t something you can see coming, and most of the time, you won’t even feel it until it’s already doing damage. If you’re reading this and anything sounds familiar—the tiredness, the random aches, the casual drinking—get checked out. Take it seriously. Because I can tell you from experience, once it gets bad, it’s a fight to get your health back. But it’s a fight worth fighting.