Hello undercover, and I will try to take the questions in order. The beer drinking and poor diet are what is bringing on the attacks, and yes he is doing additional damage to the organ! oops I think I answered two questions at once, but yes the beer drinking is hurting him and I doubt he left the hospital without them telling him of that little fact. If he continues to behave as if nothing is wrong what will probably happen is he will have another acute attack and this one will be worse than the last one more than likely, so unless he enjoys excruiating pain no food or fluids, including water, and living off iv fluids then he needs to reevaluate his life. The enzymes are designed to help the pancreas by allowing it to rest instead of forcing it to produce the digestive enzymes, their by no means a do all and won't help him much longer if he continues to abuse himself in this manner. My first acute attack almost killed me so though that is the extreme end of things it does happen, and more often than you might think. Do a little research online about this medical condition and though alcohol is only one of many ways to get it continuing to use alcohol once you have it is playing with fire in the worst way imaginable. Sorry to be nothing but doom and gloom, but the statistics for people who continue to live the way they want once they have this aren't anything to be happy over. I'm sure many others on this forum will reply also and trust me you probably won't hear anything good about the behavior of your ex. Be well

He needs to stop drinking ALL alcohol. Beer has a lower concentration of alcohol than hard liquor, but stimulates the pancreas regardless. Any damage done to the pancreas is PERMANANT- his doctors should have made this very clear to him.
If the pain and stints in the hospital are not enough to keep him from drinking he really should look into being treated for alcoholism. I'm sorry if he is in denial about the alcohol, especially if issues related to this led to your relationship ending. Having a poor diet (especially eating a lot of fat and not getting enough nutrients) is also going to hurt his body- it will not get the nutrients it needs and the excess fat will damage the pancreas and cause more pain.
I hope he listens to his doctors, and starts treating his body well. Best of luck to you both.

He needs to stop drinking anything. Not even cough medicine with alcohol my doctor told me that. I don't drink have never drank and I came up with this disease. I hope he can make changes in his lifestyle that is the only think that will help him. I stay in pain every day and I do what I need to with diet and low fat foods. I hate this disease I really do. My was caused from taking lortabs. Blocked up for four days and then was hit with an attack. Tell him to be really really careful.

I am so sorry to hear this Kelsmom. I have seen the pain this causes. I would not wish this on anyone.Loritabs? The pain medicine? That is what he was given for pain. Will it make it worse?

Lortab would only make it worse if he were to take it and still eat poorly/drink alcohol and use the pain medicine to cover it up. If he takes the Lortab responsibly for the pancreatic pain, and eats well and avoids alcohol, it is a better choice than self medicating with beer.

It's me again. I am wondering though. You said this is your ex correct? Pardon me for asking but aren't you getting a great deal of information that he needs to have? Do you still have the ability to get this advice to him? I'm not trying to be nosy, but he definitely needs to know the things being said here and yes he will only continue to harm himself if he continues to treat his body like a garbage can, then use the lortab to cover the effects, and this behavior will only last so long as this condition is one that will take you down without warning and though no one has mentioned this it can and has killed many people. I barely survived my first acute attack. I was in hospital for about two and a half weeks and to this day don't remember the first week. My wife tells me it was very bad and all the medical staff advised me if I wanted to die just keep drinking alcohol, and I was a social drinker, so as I said alcohol of any amount is a definite NO. Does he have a drinking problem? My cp is genetic but there are many ways to find yourself in this little group and alcohol unfortunately is about 75% of the cause, but there are other reasons, and either way the pancreas doesn't respond well to any sort of alcohol. We don't even have mouthwash in my house with alcohol in it as a precautionary measure since it's real easy to accidentally swollow some while rinsing. I guess what I and we all are trying to do is impress upon your ex the seriousness of his condition. Please forgive me if I have in any way offended you while trying to offer helpful information. Be well. Troy

You have not offended me at all. Yes, I have a way to get the information to him. We have many close mutual friends as we were together for more than 3 years. I won't go into relationship details, lets just say I was at his bedside in ICU for a week with his first major attack. I fear what he is doing is just what you have said - using his body as a waste dump and easing it with meds. I guess it is no different than active alcoholism - mask problems with body and mind numbing liquids. I thank you for your words. These are all things I was sure I would hear from the experience of this board. I have passed along the information. It is now his choice to do what he will with it. Thank you.

You are very welcome angel, and I use that honorific intentionally. I would wish for such friendship for everyone who has an ex anything. Your compassion is a very wonderful attribute sadly lacking in most people and almost all doctors, but you give me hope. Be well and I do hope your information passed to him will take hold, sadly I suspect from your description it will take something more drastic to get his attention though most get the message from their first acute attack, perhaps he will require an additional one. I am sorry for you if that turns out to be the case, We're always here if you need us. Be well ...Troy

Thank you! That is very sweet of you to say. I guess one of my best and worst attributes is my big heart and willingness to always look for the best in people. I am afraid your synopsis is right. He may have to end up with another acute attack for it to get through to him. I simply pray I never get that phone call and he makes it through. Thank you for your kind words and information.

The loratabs may help him. I hope it does. It does not cover the pain for ever though. He will at some time have to get real with this disease or it get worse. I have had it for one year and have been in hospital 2 times and er's 3. I have a really great pancreas doctor though and he really helps. Make sure he is seeing a good pancreas doctor some are not specilized in pancreas. Hope this helps.

hey Undercover, ironic kick? I don't drink at all, yet have major pancreatic issue with pain and inability to deal with fat; I live with knock-down, 2 week binge at a time drinker, and he has no pancreas difficulty!!! best wishes, I understand the powerlessness of watching a slow-moving crash and be unable to stop it. Bless you, G

hey Undercover, ironic kick? I don't drink at all, yet have major pancreatic issue with pain and inability to deal with fat; I live with knock-down, 2 week binge at a time drinker, and he has no pancreas difficulty!!! best wishes, I understand the powerlessness of watching a slow-moving crash and be unable to stop it. Bless you, G

hey Undercover, ironic kick? I don't drink at all, yet have major pancreatic issue with pain and inability to deal with fat; I live with knock-down, 2 week binge at a time drinker, and he has no pancreas difficulty!!! best wishes, I understand the powerlessness of watching a slow-moving crash and be unable to stop it. Bless you, G

hey Undercover, ironic kick? I don't drink at all, yet have major pancreatic issue with pain and inability to deal with fat; I live with knock-down, 2 week binge at a time drinker, and he has no pancreas difficulty!!! best wishes, I understand the powerlessness of watching a slow-moving crash and be unable to stop it. Bless you, G

hey Undercover, ironic kick? I don't drink at all, yet have major pancreatic issue with pain and inability to deal with fat; I live with knock-down, 2 week binge at a time drinker, and he has no pancreas difficulty!!! best wishes, I understand the powerlessness of watching a slow-moving crash and be unable to stop it. Bless you, G