Hi BoneBroth,
My hepatic insufficiency was there since birth, it was not caused by POIS. It is probably the other way around - my sluggish liver was contributing to the severity of my POIS.
As I said, I will receive in about a month or two, my genome results. That will help determine to what extent my detox enzymes are affected by unfavourable genetics ( most detox enzymes are found in the liver ). I never had extensive blood work for liver status, just usual liver enzymes, and they were normal - having a slow liver is not the same as an acute episode of intoxication, it does not show in high AST or ALT. Maybe my bilirubin could have, at the time, been a little higher than normal, and more extensive tests could have clearly shown that my liver was below average for efficiency. But I did not have an acute liver failure, nether a liver disease, just a slow, ineffective, liver. I may have been told to avoid alcohol, avoid acetaminophen ( which is extensively metabolized by the liver), drink plenty of water, and go home ( Doctors here are not very into natural products, so he would not have told me about milk thistle, artichoke, black radish, and the like... but I found them by myself and use them still to this day
)
Despite clinical tests to show it, my symptoms were made it very clear that my hepatic function was lacking. For years, I had sleepiness and fatigue after meals and a yellowish complexion. Intolerance to alcohol was obvious and is still very present, but I do not drink alcohol anymore ( If once or twice a year, I drink half a glass of wine, I will take vitamin B1 and vitamin C before, to help my deficient ALDH2 do its work, so I will not be too affected by the toxic aldehyde metabolite ). I also suspect that part of my exercise intolerance is caused by my slow liver because anaerobic metabolism increases the work required by the liver.
I have worked on my guts too. I took very good strains of probiotics for years. I have eliminated sugars for years too. I have a very healthy diet. I have tested a gluten-free diet, but no change for me, gluten does not bother me. But any unhealthy food does bother me, and large meals are prohibited... as long as I eat healthy, organic food, always in a moderate amount at a time, my digestion is ok.
While, for POIS, it is the use of my pre-pack that really makes a difference, the fact that I keep my liver healthy is contributing to my overall success. As I said in the thread explaining my method to eliminate 80% to 100% of my symptoms, it is an all-around approach. A healthy diet, healthy lifestyle, psychotherapy, meditation, etc. And, of course, my pre-pack ( see at
https://poiscenter.com/forums/index.php?topic=2090.msg16604#msg16604 for my complete method)
Interesting enough, my psychotherapy helped me a lot with my liver issues. Learning to better manage my emotions have a great positive impact on my liver and digestion as a whole. For example, I no more have outbursts of anger - these were hard on my liver...in the following days, I would turn more yellowish still. Anger, in Chinese Medicie, is strongly associated with the liver. Also, having no more anxiety attacks or excessive anxiety, I have no heartburns anymore, as long as I do not eat very acidic food or very spicy food. Anxiety used to cause me stomach aches, even while eating acid-free food. POIS, by raising sharply my baseline level of anxiety, was very bad for my stomach!
For about 15 years, not, I have turned to a very healthy diet and began to take great care of my liver. I guess that thanks to this change, I avoided developing non-alcoholic fatty liver disease or something similar.
