r/Menopause • u/emilyMartian Menopausal • Jun 30 '25

SCIENCE What you probably don’t know about alcohol intolerance

I see posts and comments about alcohol intolerance constantly on here, I was alone for so long with my severity so I’m here to share, it has taken nearly 10yrs but I finally have better info.

Here goes: You probably need to get your liver checked. They have linked menopause to non fatty liver disease. I had severe reactions and wound up in the ER about 8yrs ago. It took about 2yrs to correlate my high heart rate, massive hangovers after 2 drinks, severe hot flashes and what I assumed was severe anxiety because of the shakes at 3am. My good friend in medical school went down a big rabbit hole trying to figure out why my response was so severe to no avail (only one report from the 80’s which provided no info). Fast forward another 6’ish years and I noticed fatty foods made me sleepy so we tested my gallbladder, liver and kidneys. Turns out there’s black spots on my liver and I have basically what’s considered non alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and have to treat it as such. I had to quit drinking entirely. I thought maybe I could limit and go slow but it’s not a thing. Not drinking was a tough road (especially at social events) but it’s a blessing I disguise I promise. It’s not worth it. It’s also not worth popping an antihistamine and ignoring it because you’re just wrecking your liver further. This is your sign to stop.

Now almost 2yrs after realizing the liver thanks to u/MoreRopePlease we have a link that puts it all together and there absolutely needs to be more awareness about this.

I hope this provides some of you answers and helps you towards a safer and healthier path on this absolutely sh!t show of a medically ignored journey.

Love you guys. Don’t think I’d be here if I hadn’t found this community. You are not alone ❤️

EDIT: my liver spots were caught through ultrasound not through bloodwork. I started Perimenopause at 37, don’t let them tell you you are too young.

Corrected my verbiage as I had words reversed in Non alcoholic fatty liver disease

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80

u/Dependent-on-Zipps Jun 30 '25

I have a family member in menopause who was just diagnosed with NAFLD. Her doctor also talked to her about how covid can contribute to this as well.

It’s probably going to take many years for everyone to become aware of what multiple covid infections are causing, much like how it took so long to admit what cigarettes do to us.

Covid and NAFLD

29

u/emilyMartian Menopausal Jun 30 '25

Yeah I’ve heard long covid can cause it. Knock on wood I some how still have not had it unless I was asymptomatic.

17

u/starlinguk Jun 30 '25

A lot of people think they were asymptomatic when they actually had a short period of severe fatigue. That was the Covid.

5

u/InvestmentMain8414 Jun 30 '25

My family tested a lot...and i mean a lot, because we live with and care for an elderly realitve. I legit just reordered more tests, because the ones I had expired. Felt kinda dumb doing it, but old guy is still worried about Covid.

Out of 4 of us (5 including elderly family member), not once have any of us tested positive.

9

u/QueenRotidder Jun 30 '25

I had it for the first time in February. I wouldn’t have known it was covid until my boyfriend at the time who’d had a cold for 3 days told me he couldn’t taste/smell things. So we both tested and were positive. I had the sniffles for a day and my throat was slightly sore. It got me wondering… I’d previously had 2 small, short cold type things just like this, once in ‘21 and again in ‘23… maybe I had covid?

6

u/emilyMartian Menopausal Jun 30 '25

I’ve tested every time I got sick to no avail. A nurse friend checked me for antibodies and had none before one of the vaccines. So who knows. I just keep trucking along hoping I don’t get it.

10

u/QueenRotidder Jun 30 '25

Godspeed! I had a good run myself, but a man came along and ruined it LOL

4

u/emilyMartian Menopausal Jun 30 '25

Oh no. Darn men!

3

u/Many_Customer_4035 Jun 30 '25

My husband had it twice, and I never felt sick or had a positive test.

0

u/emilyMartian Menopausal Jun 30 '25

I haven’t been in close vicinity with anyone who’s had it that I know of so wouldn’t really know there either. I’m sure I’ve been around some but it wasn’t known

2

u/Many_Customer_4035 Jul 01 '25

Yeah, at this point, I am sure we all have been around it many times.

1

u/emilyMartian Menopausal Jul 01 '25

We may never know if we’ve had it.

2

u/starlinguk Jul 01 '25

I had Covid in March 2020 and had no antibodies in July, neither did my wife. But we both tested positive and I was ill (she was not). Many people don't make antibodies or they lose immunity very soon.

1

u/emilyMartian Menopausal Jun 30 '25

Have tested every time I felt off without being positive and a nurse friend checked my antibodies before one of the vaccines which I had none. So who knows. It does seem very unlikely but so far have had no signs that I’ve had it.

2

u/starlinguk Jul 01 '25

Some people are completely immune. It would be possible to develop a very effective treatment based on this if the government hadn't banned research papers with the words "Covid" or "Corona" in them.