PCOS

[CrimsonCountess]

I've finally had my most recent blood test results back as I'd asked about being given Metformin. But all my levels have improved so they won't let me have it and I'm actually gutted. My blood sugar was fine and my testosterone has gone down. But I feel like it doesn't match my symptoms, I'm finding it so hard to lose weight, my excess facial hair is worse than ever and I have zero sex drive. I don't know what else to try anymore was really hoping I would be prescribed it to see if it helped

 

[kittypaws]

hey! I have PCOS and was diagnosed when I was around 17 after being in hospital with a burst ovarian cyst, I'm 25 now. My current form of contraception is the implant in my arm, however I am considering having it removed as I have bled constantly since having it in before Christmas and my skin, mood swings and anxiety have never been worse. I'm just cautious whether this is due to having PCOS or the implant. I'm wondering if any of you have suffered with PCOS which has caused issued with contraception - more specifically the implant?

Hi there hope you’re ok. I don’t know anything about the implant unfortunately. I have the copper coil cos I didn’t want any extra hormones making things more complicated. How are you feeling now? My PCOS symptoms are worse than ever at the moment I’m so fed up with it

 

[CharlieTYBT]

My periods are very irregular, sometimes they’re heavy and sometimes they’re light. Try not to worry about being able to have a baby.. it might just take a bit longer or you may need some help but you will be able to. So many girls with pcos have babies xx

That's what was confusing me as with PCOS you usually get heavy periods and I'm finding the opposite. Thanks so much, I really hope I can, I always wanted to be a mum xx

 

[bbbbbbb123]

there's an endometriosis thread on here, I'm on it too and lots of us talk about our experiences on there - you might find it helpful

Please could you link it xx

 

[glitter tits]

Correct me if I’m wrong but I swear sometimes periods can take anything upto a year to come back to normal? Especially if you’ve been on the pill a long time.

Do you have any of the other symptoms of PCOS that maybe you could push with them? Like excessive hair etc?

That’s what I thought which is why I left it so long to see the GP, but no, apparently they say 6 months is the maximum it should take for periods to get back to being semi-normal.

I am struggling to lose weight (I’m a good 3 stone over what I should be) but I don’t know if that just because I am getting older (30) and struggle to stick to any sort of diet. I suppose I have a bit more hair than I used to but certainly not excessive by any means!

 

[bbbbbbb123]

My doctors were so helpful. Rang at 8.30, was in the doctors room at 9am
He said I am hitting the threshold for PCOS, albeit I used to have regular periods before
I’m having a blood test to confirm my hormone levels and to rule out any deficiencies and also a scan to rule out any fibroids or cysts
Nicely told me weight doesn’t help and that I am just below the threshold for the combined pill which they’ve put me on to regulate my periods for now
If anyone has any advice I’m all ears

I’m glad your doctor was helpful! Hopefully the pill helps you, it worked fine for me I was on it for 6/7 years I think x

 

[ThisIsMyDragName]

I’ve had problematic periods since they started when I was 9 or 10. I actually went on the combined pill at 14 or 15 to help. At uni, they gave me a blood test for PCOS and referred me for a scan that I never actually went to, based on other symptoms. The GP at the time said it was likely I had it. I think my bloods came back ok, though, I don’t even remember. 13 years ago I had a laparoscopy and laser treatment for endometriosis and a Mirena fitted. Because the laparoscopy found my ovaries were clear, I though nothing of it. I’ve now been trying to get pregnant (my Mirena, of which I was on my second one, has obviously been removed) and for the first time in my life I’m paying attention to my cycle and it’s a mess. Been doing ovulation tests and in the 4 cycles I’ve monitored, I think I only ovulated once, in a 43 day long cycle. I took a Hertility test which has shown high AMH and very high testosterone (or vice versa) which suggests PCOS. My excess body hair is unreal, my skin is a disaster, my hair is falling out in clumps and it’s only a matter of time before that starts to become obvious. My periods since Mirena removal have been light and not as I expected. They maybe used to be heavy and painful because of endometriosis but it doesn’t seem like much. I’ll go and see my GP in the New Year for a follow up, but I feel really bleak about it all, and I don’t really have anyone to talk to about it, even though my husband is very supportive and tries to understand.

 

[CrimsonCountess]

It's so hit and miss isn't it, I don't understand why there's no standardisation of how to treat it. My GP said it was a really good idea and that he thinks I should have it and then others like yours say it doesn't work. No wonder we're all bloody frustrated

 

[soymilk]

@lauren96111 the mini pills were terrible for me, i take adepal, it's a combined pill, it has quite positive statistics and i don't experience any bad side effects from it. @pecan i usually drink peppermint tea after lunch and dinner, i've been doing this on/off for years really (long before i knew i had pcos) as i have always found it helps with my digestion and bloating.

i've been trying this new diet for the last two months or so, where i've basically increased my protein intake and tried to make it the priority for each meal - this has helped as i don't feel the need to snack in between and i'm definitely feeling a lot better with myself than i was 6 months ago; i aim for a macros split of 35% protein, 35% carbs, 30% fat (i don't know if this is helpful to anyone but it helped me). However, i did recently have a cyst that burst, has anyone else experienced that? It was quite scary at the time but luckily it wasn't that bad and i was better within a couple of days.

 

[theghosttown]

Does anyone have any advice for hair loss? My hair is starting to feel a little thin around the scalp. I'm researching vitamins and hair wraps to sleep in and silk pillow cases, but so much different advice and options of them all it's hard to know where to start!

I went through a particularly bad time with hair loss. I was losing chunks of my hair every hair wash. The only thing I found that helped was cutting it really, really short and I’m now regrowing it. It could be pure coincidence or the fact there was less weight which allowed my scalp a bit of recovery. My friend swears by Philip Kingsley but I’ve also heard nioxin that a second to none and really does help. I’m so sorry it’s happening to you as o know it’s hugely traumatic. Additionally I lost 1.5 stone which I think also added to it.

 

[CharlieTYBT]

Magnesium
Vitamin D
Myo-inositol (this is new to me)
Zinc
Evening Primrose
Omega 3

and I take metformin (this has helped insulin resistance and actually suppresses my hunger a bit) as a prescription! I do take the pill for context but plan to come off it in the next year as we’d like to try and have a baby and my endocrine consultant suggested coming off it soon for that reason. But Ive defo found differences from the above and introduced them one at a time. Magnesium helps with my tiredness as does the vitamin D, evening primrose for balancing hormones, zinc helps with skin and insulin resistance and a couple other things.

There’s others but look at healthy pcos on insta, pcos now mama, pcos nutritionist, etc and there’s loads of info there x

Hiya, what myo-inositol brand are you taking please? I'm looking at MyOva but it is a little expensive at £32 a month, however if it helps my symptoms I'll be willing to give it a go.

 

[bbbbbbb123]

I have a myoovi and swear by it! Xx

 

[alex650]

I know PCOS is so different in everyone and people have different symptoms and severities but one thing I’ve found to be the most important to control is my stress levels (easier said than done I know!) but I find the more effort I put in reducing stress, the easier I find losing weight and getting good sleep etc which then improves my symptoms overall. The mistake I made at first was thinking about all the lifestyle changes I needed to make to improve my PCOS which then made me stressed which just put me back to square one! I’ve still got a long way to go with my weight loss but personally for me it always starts with good mental health. Anyway, sorry for the ramble!

I’ve only just seen this thread, I relate to this so much! I have a part time admin job which I do from home but I got another part time job for a bit of extra money in a supermarket and I’m really struggling getting enough sleep, having time to clean the house etc which is making me more stressed than my money situation was! I don’t know what to do as I really enjoy having the money but feel as though it’s not helping me to lose weight, manage my symptoms etc. Me and my partner have been trying for a baby for nearly 2 years, I have to lose another stone before we can get any help (shitty bmi)

Sorry for the random rant just don’t really have anyone who understands how rubbish it is having pcos. My sister has it as well but we’re not very close so I wouldn’t go into detail about my feelings and whatnot with her

 

[Blond3g1rl]

Just found this thread after posting quite a bit in the Saxenda weight loss thread about PCOS.

I was diagnosed when I was around 17 (I'm now 51) and I believe it was caused by the drug Epilim which I was prescribed as I had 2 grand mal seizures within 18 months and my GP at the time said it would be good to take Epilim as it would help control the seizures. If only we knew then what we know about that drug! My periods were pretty non existent when I reached 16 and at one point it was thought I was pregnant as I stopped having them (had 2 pregnancy tests carried out at the local hospital as that's what was done back in the day!) - I had a steady boyfriend so you can imagine how I had to build up the confidence to tell my mum I thought I was!

Since then, I had periods approximate twice or three times a year - never really heavy. Once I met my husband and was on the pill, the periods completely stopped. But of course I am hairy (especially under the chin) and weight is an issue hence using Saxenda (I lost 1.5 stones).

I have no idea if I will ever go through the menopause - I don't have any of the symptoms that my girlfriends have/had and my periods stopped so many years ago!

It was by chance I found out about the link with Epilim and PCOS as an article was written in You magazine (Daily Mail) following a reader's letter. Extensive research was carried out by a university in Birmingham (can't remember the exact one) so it was very interesting to know how I came to have PCOS. I actually weaned myself off Epilim after reading about the link much to my doctor's disgust! Besides I'd not had a seizure in 10 years and have been seizure free since.

I’ve just ordered Ozempic to help with my weight loss. I have used metformin previously but my GP is reluctant to prescribe it and I cannot be bothered arguing with them

 

[Lizzie Mintdrop]

What do you guys use for facial hair removal? Mine isn't terrible but I have a lot of strong peach fuzz with random long dark hairs and it makes me feel soooo self-conscious Atm I use a mini trimmer thing, tweezers, I need to start electrolysis again but just wondering if anyone had any good products to recommend in particular

I've just bought spearmint oil to treat my facial hair, it's supposed to work. There have been clinical trials where it's been found to be effective and I've heard anecdotally that it works too. Here's hoping it does the job

 

[Luce0331]

Anyone else suffer with continuous bleeding/spotting? I’m on the combined pill to try and control my periods and since I’ve had my pill free week I haven’t stopped spotting really gets me down

 

[noseybirdxo]

Thanks you both for replying

yep I had blood tests a couple of months ago and they didn’t show anything (I think they were looking for both PCOS and thyroid issues), but my GP thought that the scan would most likely confirm PCOS as she couldn’t think why else they would have stopped for so long (I came off my pill a year ago so they know that’s why they’ve stopped so suddenly but GP says that I should definitely have had regulated periods over the last 6 months). I guess I’ll have to wait until I see the gynae for any potential answers but I just know that’s going to be a while due to backlogs

Correct me if I’m wrong but I swear sometimes periods can take anything upto a year to come back to normal? Especially if you’ve been on the pill a long time.

Do you have any of the other symptoms of PCOS that maybe you could push with them? Like excessive hair etc?

 

[unfinishedsentenc]

Hi I've been prescribed provera for 3 weeks after a very long time of absent periods. I'm on day 11 and assumed I would have had a bleed by now.

A quick Google and it seems this doesn't happen until I finish my dose of provera. Is this true or am I getting confused?

I'm so nervous that I won't have a bleed at all. What's everyone's experiences of provera?

 

[ohwowsers]

Have you had any blood tests done? Despite the name, you don't actually have to have polycystic ovaries to have pcos so you may have it. I believe you can be diagnosed if you have 2 out of the 3 main symptoms, so irregular periods, excess androgens and polycystic ovaries

I was wondering that, no blood tests at all. The gynae I'm seeing isn't the nicest or most patient but I'll try say to do them at the next appointment. Thanks a mill. This thread is so reassuring that it not in your head.

 

[soymilk]

hi everyone! just wondering, do any of you take any supplements to help with symptoms etc and have you found them helpful and do any of you take alternative medication to the pill and how does that help you?
- interested to see bc I really hate being given a pill as the "only" solution