Who else here has PCOS?

Syntria

Hey guys! Looking for more friends who have PCOS/Pre-Diabties and have experiences with it.
I'm Female, 26 years old, and 175 pounds. I haven't really gained or lost a significant amount in a decade, which I suppose is good and bad. My max weight has been 185, lowest 165 in the last 5-10 years.
I've been on Metformin for about a few years now, and on birth-control since I was 18. I never had a period naturally.

I'm really concerned I'm going to become diabetic if I don't loose some weight and start being more self conscious about my diet. I've been fairly consistent with only taking in 1200-1500 calories a day but my sugars and sodium are almost always to high. I enjoy fruits/salads and I generally work them in daily but I always have that one processed food in a box or from eating out that just puts me over limits.

So, yeah. Hi. Random little blathering on. Any other PCOS Girls out there?

alexa_image

Hey girl,
I don't have that condition, I just wanted to mention that I've heard that Shakeology helped a lot of patients of PCOS and diabetes
You can search more about it if interested.
Keep it up!

missikay1970

i was diagnosed several years ago while suffering from infertility. i used metformin for a while but now i am not on any meds. i have managed through diet and exercise to lose weight and also get my blood sugar (and cholesterol) down. i regulated my periods with natural remedies such as soy isoflavones and red clover leaf extract. my Ob has a great PCOS support group, and you can also find some online. good luck with your journey - it impacted my life drastically at first b/c i had terrible cysts, pain, and infertility but working with my dr i have found great answers and things that worked for me.

KayteeBear

I was diagnosed with PCOS at 15 after going without my period for 8 months. My mom has it as well so she suggested it to the doctor. I went straight onto the pill and now I'm 19 and went off the pill a couple months ago. I never had really severe symptoms but I don't know if it could get worse when I get older or not. But I did notice after going off the pill I gained a bit more weight while trying to lose weight and I'm STILL trying to lose what I gained plus what I originally wanted to lose.

edisonswifey

I have been told I have PCOS and I am also pre-diabetic. I really want a baby so I am super focused on losing a dramatic amount of weight. When I was young I would menstrate on my own no problem but as I got older and put on quite a bit of weight I no longer get a cycle regularly. Good luck to you hun. Lets keep in touch so we can help each other out on this life changing journey.

Syntria

Thanks everyone! @Tebbs915 Yeah I've been working fairly solidly at a 1200 calorie diet for a month and it's not really showing any signs of helping, plus working out 3-5 times a week. I certainly feel better, but no weight changes so I figure it's time not only to eat low calories but to also get some low GI and low Carb meals in.

Any recipes would be great. I make a lot of soup and pots of beans at home, though the beans are pretty carb heavy--they do have low GI. I'm not sure, I get a little over wealmed trying to figure out what's good all around so I end up just eating based on the calorie count instead because it's simpler. ;_;

@Missikay1970 - Wow didn't know you could regulate it like that. I went off my pills for like 6 months in my early twenties and I had period's that lasted 20-30+ days and HEAVY AND like 1/3rd of my hair on my head started to fall out (grew thinner and thinner till it just began to be easily pulled out of my head) It was absolutely horrid. My Obgyn said I'll have to be on the pill the rest of my life to regulate and that the chances of me having kids is fairly slim (though I've never really been to interested in having kids).

I'm not obsessed with weight loss, I'm rather happy with my appearance now actually. I hope if I can loose even just 20 pounds, that it can really make a difference. I get achene really bad and harism. Arm hair/body hair/face hair grows really rapidly and it's a pain to maintain.

@KayteeBear - when I went off the pill, I gained weight to. I tried to stop taking it hoping to loose weight when I was younger but it totally didn't help.

@EdisonsWifey - Yeah let's be friends.

Yanicka1

Hey girl,
I don't have that condition, I just wanted to mention that I've heard that Shakeology helped a lot of patients of PCOS and diabetes
You can search more about it if interested.
Keep it up!

This is bull****.

I have PCOS. losing weight is really hard, I lost 15 pounds in a year. Keep at it

Syntria

Yeah. I don't expect to drop even 1 pound per week. I know it's a very slow process. I'm just trying to make changes more then a 'diet'. I don't want to deprive myself of the normal food I eat, I just want to be more self conscious and where I can make replacements for better things and try to fit in more natural whole foods.

I want to work out some foods I eat really often that could be problem food and try to cut them out or replace them with something similar or better. So hard. Easy to count calories, but hard when it comes down to counting carbs, sugars, and salts to x.x

Syntria

@Yanicka1 - Yeah, I'm not going to try Shakeology. I don't want to do any temporary diet's to get me started, I want to make gradual changes to my eatting habits.

rita27ny

hi girls,

Anyone of you diabetic? If your sugars are high what do you guys do besides taking meds? Like naturaly route.

Thanks

rita27ny

Do you girls get really bad cravings? is it the pcos causing this?

Lozze

Another PCOS here. Diagnosed at 19 and now 28. I've reached a point where I need to be healthy. I'm doing JC because I struggle to do it myself. When I hit 90kg I'm switching to doing it by myself for the last 20kg. Another 5kg and I'm on two days of my own. Can't wait!

Metformin helps me heaps. I can lose almost like a normal woman. Have to be low GI though. And at least 30 min of exercise. Even just my 30 min walk to work does it for me.

justbeachy01

I was guess I was just diagnosed today. I'm a bit upset that my weight loss may be stinted by this condition.

Any tips or any meds out there that help w/ the pcos and weight loss?

Feel free to add me!

Caperfae

pcos here. diagnosed in 2003.
weight loss is entirely possible by eating right and exercising. no fad diets ... lifestyle change.

apple cider vinegar is good as well as cinnamon.

angsmith79

I have PCOS, I was diagnosed in 2007. I got pregnant in 2006 and had an ectopic pregnancy. We started trying to conceive again, and after a year of no luck, I was tested and diagnosed. I have been yoyoing with my weight ever since then. I did low carb for about 5 months a few years ago and lost 45lbs. But as soon as I stopped I gained all of the weight back. Now, Im trying to lose the weight with no fad diets. I have been prescribed Actos, Metformin, and Spironolactone for the past year. I have been taking the medication off and on, but not consistently. I still have not had any luck with conceiving. Although PCOS can lead to diabetes, heart disease etc,. my main goal of surpressing the symptoms is because I want a baby. As long as I exercise at least 5 days per week for at least 30 minutes, my cycles are regular. I don't know if I really ovulate during those cycles or if my eggs are immature. I crave sweets and carbs constantly when im not taking the metformin. Metformin helps me with the cravings and makes me feel as if I don't want to eat much.

michellevt725

I have PCOS and have been ttc for the last 4 years. It sucks. I was on metformin for a few months and found that it didn't really do much for me. I don't eat white bread, rice or potato. Also, only plain fat free yogurt. Even with whole wheat pasta & brown rice I try to limit that to once or twice a week. This was so hard for me when I first started, I grew up eating lots of pasta and H really loves his potato & bread. I'm hoping that sometime soon all the weight loss & exercise will start me cycling on my own. Keep your chin up girls! If anyone wants to add me as a friend, feel free to do so!

sassyshook

Bump
I possibly have PCOS, havent' been diagnosed by a doc just a doc telling me it was possible.

♥_Ellybean_♥

I've had PCOS for a very long time LOL ... and have been TTC for 4 long years.. I follow a low carb/low glycemic lifestyle

ajanders21

I too have PCOS. I was diagnosed when I went to college (though I had missed my period for months at a time during high school). I was heavy all throughout college (only prescribed birth control to regulate my PCOS) and finally was able to get my weight down/BMI down to a high, but "normal" range and I stayed there (which was very hard) for almost 10 years. Then, I decided I wanted to have a baby and went off birth control, and my weight ballooned up. Thankfully I was able to get pregnant with the help of Clomid and am now struggling to lose the baby weight (plus what I packed on after going off the pill). Its even more difficult because I'm breastfeeding and that limits my contraceptive options.

I read that almost 10% of women have PCOS, you'd think they'd be trying to figure out how to find better solutions to our health problem when that many of us suffer!

jclmrn

I was diagnosed in March. I never showed any symptoms until after I had my youngest (who is 13 now). She was a huge baby & after her I started gaining weight like crazy. I gained 60 pounds in 6 months then another 20 or so a little at a time. I had a ton of extra hair growing in - I felt like an amazon woman. I was SO tired all the time and TMI I am sure but sex was not enjoyable as it actually hurt. I couldn't understand why I kept gaining weight as I didn't actually eat badly. I went to the dr & they tested my thyroid & then announced I was fine and were pretty much done with me. It was very frustrating. By the time I was sick of it & switched doctors I hadn't had a period in 7 years. My new dr is wonderful! She also has PCOS so she knew what to look for & took me seriously. I have been on Spiro & Zovia birth control since March and they added a low dose of Metformin in May for IR. I try to eat low GI foods & excercise at least 4 times a week. I started at 232.5 pounds in March & am now 184 but the best thing is how good I feel. I didn't realize how tired & old I looked before until I recently saw pictures of what I looked like at Thanksgiving last year vs Labor Day this year - I was like wow I looked like my mother before & now I look like what I use to look like 10 or 15 years ago. YEAH me!! Plus now I have the energy to do things just for the fun of it like kayaking or hiking.
Luckily I'm not dealing with fertility issues (since I have already had all the kids I am going to have) but I do worry about daibetes so I am doing what I can to keep my numbers good. Good luck to everyone, it is hard to loose the weight but we can do it!

becabean

i went and sore a dietitian on tuesday for PCOS and she told me to follow a low carb/low glycemic diet and high protine :flowerforyou: x

LexyLou_5

I was diagnosed of friday, didn't come as a shock to me as I've thought it for the past few years,.

I do not want children, i suffer with weight issues, lots of hair and acne.

I have just joined an amazing group on Facebook, even though I've only been on since yesterday I'm loving and they are so helpful

feel free to add me

Maddi_InBetweenDays

Hi hi! I was diagnosed 16 years ago, but with weight loss I am almost symptom free. It most definitely is a lifestyle change, with diet and exercise being the best (and safest) treatment, for me at least. Feel free to add or send a message and we can support each other and share suggestions

sthomse5

Meeeee! I do, it blows. Feel free to add me!

MrsObundles

I have PCOS. There is a support group on MFP and I've found it useful to read the blogs and to ask questions. PCOS Cysters Losing Together is the name of the group. You can also friend me

michelle_mareshfuehrer

Wow--we sound very similar. I was diagnosed with PCOS/insulin resistance in May 2009. At that time, I weighed 186 and was miserable. I have been on 500mg of Metformin every day since then. When I started getting some energy back that Christmas, I lost a few lbs. and held on at 179 for a long time. My lowest weight SINCE PCOS was 162, which is what I was this past May when I got married. Before PCOS, I weighed 135. I would like to get back to 135. I'm on the 1200 cal diet, but also am challenged with the sugar. Would love to be support buddies on here.

CharisSunny

I was diagnosed in 2009 and put on Metformin and BC. My insulin resistance levels were 3times normal at the time.

Cycles have been like clockwork since and I don't do anything special to boost my weightloss.
I eat more than I did, because I have a slow metabolism and I eat plenty fruit and vegetables. Also get up and move my ample behind as much as my health will allow.

I want to be retested in a few months so I can eliminate the Metformin from my daily pill regimen.

All the best.

pandelka

I don't have PCOS, but I'm Pre-Diabetic. I am on Metformin. Two and a half months after I started taking it I am finally able to loose weight like a normal person (-15lbs). Of course it's not a magic pill, it will not make the weight dissapear by itself, I've accomplished that with exercises (3-4 times a week) and diet (1200kcal).

JaclynnGail

I was diagnosed with PCOS about 6 years ago. Never had a regular period....would have 2 in a month, and then not have one for 6 months. Tried to conceive for 2 years, 6 months of that with the help of Clomid. Had no luck...I never even got a positive ovulation test. Last fall, I decided to try to lose weight. Busted my butt for six months...it's hard, and I know that no one thing works for everyone. What worked for me was taking up running and netting between 1200 and 1500 calories a day. I ate lots of vegetable soup with beans, salad, vegetarian options, lean meat a couple of times a week, switched to black coffee and gave up desserts and beer except for the occasional weekend treat. Over the course of the six months, I went from about 170 down to 135. For the first time in my life, my periods became regular.

Much to my surprise, within a couple of months of my periods becoming regular...I became pregnant. I am now 15 weeks along and doing great. I'm able to eat a few more carbs and some of the other things I was limiting, and have had no ill effects. Have gained 5 pounds since becoming pregnant and am able to stay moderately active. So....it IS do-able. It's hard, but I recommend experimenting and figuring out what works for you. There is no magic PCOS fix, unfortunately...but, for me, it was like my body suddenly gave in to what I was trying to do. For the first month or so of running, eating healthy, etc., nothing happened and it was extremely frustrating. Then, it started coming off. I recommend working closely with your doctor through all of this and definitely staying away from fad diets and/or eating plans you won't be able to stick with long term. Good luck!

LoriInnerStrength

I'm a personal trainer who has a client who has suffered from extreme endometriosis, PCOS, and infertility. She's had a LOT of success giving up dairy. I blogged about this a couple of months ago...here's the link. Good luck!
http://innerstrength4life.blogspot.com/2012/04/chronic-inflammation-vs-determination.html

ryansjo

I'm so glad I found this thread! My husband and I have had no luck ttc, and finally the dr said I have pcos. I really had never heard of it, though after researching it, I realized I had always had several of the symptoms since I was a teenager. I had periods, but they were every two weeks and the bleeding lasted from 10-12 days. She diagnosed me with hypothyroid, and so the Synthroid helped reglulate my periods. But....still no ovulation. So she put me on clomid, then I stopped having periods naturally. So she put me on Provera. Since then, My periods have been pretty normal, but still no ovulation. I decided to get serious about the weight loss, and wait for a while before trying the Clomid again. I've been on metformin for about 3 weeks now, and have lost 6.2 lbs. yay me! But I have a looong way to go. Hopefully the weight loss will be the key to get me ovulating again, so we can finally have a baby!