It was just a year ago as I sat outside and expressed to my coworker the grievances I had with fast-growing, coarse facial hair around my chin. My coworker had informed me she has a condition called Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, and one of the symptoms is unwanted hair growth. I went home and immediately began to research what PCOS was, the symptoms, how to get diagnosed and how to cure it. That was the first, but certainly not the last time I had ever heard of PCOS.
The first thing I learned is that PCOS is a hormonal disorder that effects women’s reproductive health and overall health throughout their life. It’s the leading cause of infertility and increases women’s chances of getting diabetes and cardiovascular disease. There are three main characteristics of PCOS and in order to be diagnosed you must show two out of the three symptoms. These symptoms include: irregular periods, hyperadrogenism, and polycystic ovaries. Hyperadrogenism is when the body is producing more “male” hormones, this can cause excess body hair, acne and hair thinning on the scalp. A polyscystic ovary is a condition when there are more than seventeen cysts on each ovary, this can cause different issues such as scarring. It is still unclear what causes PCOS, or what symptom ignites the other, but the hormonal imbalance often times is accompanied by insulin resistance, which causes weight gain and can later lead to metabolic syndrome or diabetes.
I made an appointment with my OBGYN to determine whether or not I had PCOS. Through a fasting blood panel and an internal ultrasound, it was confirmed I have PCOS, I exhibit hyperandrogenism, polycystic ovaries, and insulin resistance. When I first received my diagnosis, there was a lot of relief because so many questions finally felt answered. My entire life, I had struggled with my weight, regardless of how conscious I was eating and exercising, I experienced digestion issues exhibiting IBS like symptoms, always struggled with acne and painful periods likely from multiple cysts rupturing. I exhibited other PCOS symptoms, such as anxiety, depression, and constant inflammation in the body. While I finally had the “why” to my questions, my “why” lacked “how” and “how do we fix this.”
Modern medicine is great, but the only advice I was getting from my doctors was to start on medication to help my insulin resistance and monitor what I eat, a task I’ve done my entire life with little to no weightloss success. I started following PCOS Instagram pages and found one in particular I really enjoyed; I started reading research studies related to PCOS as well as I picked up the book The PCOS Plan. The goal to get rid of PCOS is to eliminate the symptoms through proper diet and exercise. Studies show PCOS patients are often gluten and dairy sensitive, as well as carb sensitive due to insulin resistance.
Since February, I have gone completely gluten free, I have slowly incorporated dairy free and I watch my carb/sugar intake. I do my best to exercise and remain active throughout the week. Thus far, I have lost 43 pounds and counting. My aches and pains due to inflammation are few and far in between, I have no IBS related issues and I am better managing my insulin resistance.
September is PCOS Awareness Month and it’s odd to think that just a year ago I had no knowledge over such a life changing diagnosis. It’s been a hard year, between learning about PCOS and the issues I may face, and knowing there’s no “cure” was quite hard to grapple. But then I wonder what my life would be like had I not known. I wonder how many years I would go uncomfortable and unhappy. Most women do not know they have PCOS until they try and conceive and I’m fortunate to know prior to those years. My PCOS diagnosis hurt me, but it also helped save my life. If you think you may have PCOS or would like to learn more, click here.