Caregiver

Meet Kathy, a passionate ALF Advocacy Ambassador and loving wife and caregiver to husband, PJ, who underwent a liver transplant in 2018.

Stacey became involved with ALF after attending a caregivers’ program at the hospital where her partner, Zach was diagnosed with end stage liver disease.

I am responding with my experience with HE as I was a caregiver for my brother, Javier Nunez, who passed away 8/8/11 due to a brain hemorrhage 3 days after transplant.

As the caregiver for the 7 years 9 months my husband waited for his transplant, HE was by far the most difficult side effect of liver disease to deal with.

I didn't know anything about HE until my wife was on her deathbed with liver failure and her doctor asked me about certain symptoms, observed her physical condition and provided a diagnosis.

I currently take care of my 77 year old mother who has had cirrhosis for over 10 years and has frequent bouts of HE. What complicates matter is the fact that she also has diabetes.

I don’t know if you still need stories related to cirrhosis but my husband’s situation is unique. He has Alpha -1 Anti-trypsin Deficiency that actually attacked his liver instead of the lungs.

I was her full-time caregiver for several years and watched her gradual liver failure and bouts of light, moderate and severe HE, the latter resulting in hospitalization.

My husband, Steven, was diagnosed with Hep C, cirrhosis and HE. This has been the saddest, depressing, and scary thing I have ever had to deal with in my life.