PCOS

rachelboddy

That is RIGHT next to where I live!! This is incredible. I'll definitely give them a call after the first of the year (for insurance purposes) and see what he can do for me. I would love to have a consistent doctor who knows what he/she is talking about so that I'm consistent and can trust the doc, you know? Thank you so much everyone.

JULIUSKITTY

lol we dont live very far from each other. Im in Taylorsville too... such a small world lol. Let me know how it goes, when you do. In the meantime a low carb wouldnt be such a bad idea to help control the insulin deal.

rachelboddy

So I'm assuming a protein and vegetable diet? Limit fruits and of course all grains, pastas, etc? Is it ok for your body to be on such low carbs since that's what the body burns to function?

JULIUSKITTY

It is okay to be on a low carb diet. I have done it before and it did work very well. I also did the atkins diet but that is such a strict diet and not recomended. I would just like you said, limit pasta's, fatty foods like chips, potatoes, white bread, etc.

rachelboddy

I was so excited to eat potatoes too! LOL. Last time I went on a very restrictive carb diet I went through withdrawal I guess, and got bad headaches. Did you ever experience that or been told what to do?

JULIUSKITTY

If your getting headaches dont push it.. its because your body is going hay wire wanting more and more carbs.. making them. craving them but not seeing them unless you eat alot... the metformin will fix all that hay wire stuff.. if it makes you sick without it I wouldnt eliminate it just limit it.

JULIUSKITTY

I dont remember ever being sick not having them, but my sister has pcos and she has.

eddyca

I would stay away from the evil IUD. My best friend is on it and her testosterone is through the roof. She has terrible acne flare-ups and is experiencing hair loss. Paradoxically though, she has lost a ton of weight since she's been on it. You should try Yasmin or Safyral first because you can easily stop taking it if it doesn't relieve your weight gain problem. The IUD is much more of a hassle to remove if problems arise.

AdAstra47

So I'm assuming a protein and vegetable diet? Limit fruits and of course all grains, pastas, etc? Is it ok for your body to be on such low carbs since that's what the body burns to function?

Actually, there are several different ways that your body can get energy. One way is by burning carbs. Carbs provide "instant bursts" of energy, which are useful if you have to hunt down your dinner, or if your insulin & carb processing systems work just fine. But neither of those apply to us.

But carbs are NOT the only way to get energy. We people with metabolism challenges do much better if we avoid carbs. This forces our bodies to get energy through a different chemical reaction: burning fat & protein. If no carbs are available, our bodies are forced to switch over to using these other energy sources, which are more steady and slow-burning and let us avoid the constant spiking and crashing caused by carbs. And the great thing about this is that the chemical reaction requires 3 parts fat to one part protein. So if you eat few carbs and plenty of protein, you can force your body to burn fat in this way.

Yes, some people who are "carb-addicted" do go through some withdrawal symptoms, including headaches and minor fatigue, for the first few days / up to a week. Drinking lots of water will help, because when your body switches over from being fueled by carbs to being fueled by protein it can cause minor dehydration. But in my experience, it's over quickly and SO worth it in the long run! If you find a low-carb doctor who can guide you through the process, that is a big help.

Once I got through the first week, I've had more energy than ever before. I used to go on a carb binge, then get really tired & depressed once they wore off, and then I'd crave them again in this vicious cycle. Now I just keep my body constantly fueled & working steadily with the protein, and it's wonderful.

tillmanlady

Sorry if you go back a week or two before Thanksgiving you can see a twoo week period where I actually kept track of my journal. I skip once in a while because I'm so consistent that I am pretty aware of what I'm eating. Yes, they've tested me multiple times for all of those tests, and the last person I talked to was my gyno, I've had the ultra sound done and they counted over 14 cysts on each ovary easily. My gyno told me I would be fine with a normal diet of carbs protein and fats. She didn't say there needed to be any special diet. That's why this is so frustrating.

I was DX with PCOS when I ws 19, I too had the "string of pearls" about 12-14 on each ovary. I was put on met and provera I took myself off of both the met because of stomach issues and the Provera because that is a horrid drug they should have kept on the shelf. I balloned up 100lbs to 415 over an eight year period... Around 2008 I started watching what I ate and cut fast food down to almost never then I started losing weight fast over the next yr and a half I lost about 95lbs started Zumba and got pregnant (after 9 yrs of TTC) So now my son is 9 months old and I am back on the bandwagon to continue my weight loss and I'm going back to my low Carb, low sodium mostly home cooked meals diet.

There is a wonderful PCOS website http://www.soulcysters.com I learned so much there over the years and have made some great friends from the site... Its worth a look if nothing else, there is a lot of great info on there.

tillmanlady

I hated the pill because it added to the weight gain and I was really against BC period because I firmly believe the Depo Shot has a lot if not all to do with my PCOS.

But since having my son I'm not yet ready for another surprise so I'm using the Nuva Ring and have not had any problems with it at all and I have been surprisingly very reg.

DonziGirl

I had 4 doctors miss the PCOS diagnosis. Once one did, life turned back around for me. I dropped 80 lbs (on Yasmin and Metformin). I do have insulin resistance. The nutritionist explained to me that I must eat lilke a diabetic. More managed carb than low carb. 35 to 45 g of carbs per meal - 15 to 20 for snacks. Avoid any starchy white carbs such as potatoes and white bread. Multi-grain/wheat is much better. She told me anything white essentially just turns back into pure sugar, which is bad. If stick to the carb limit, I generally lose weight. I've been at a plateau for awhile now but just need to figure out how to break out of it.

karenhs2

Responding mainly so I can keep track of this thread as I have a young adult dd with PCOS. It should have been diagnosed much sooner than it was as she had several classic symptoms but all they treated was the depression and at the time, I didn't know to link the hair growth and other items together. It is really frustrating once you do discover it and find it is so common WHY isn't it routinely considered and eliminated for any female showing any of the signs?!!! If hers had been caught when it really should have been, it would have saved her about 150 lbs.

rachelboddy

you're right. and the other frustrating thing is that a lot of doctors do not seem to be on the same page for treatment. I wish her well and I hope she has better luck than me! I can run a mile, I eat pretty dang good (however I'm at about 100g of carbs per day) and I would say I eat a decent amount of protein. So we'll see what happens when I try harder with my eating and find a birth control right for me. I keep ballooning and I know that's not normal for anyone who has a normal functioning body. I should at least be at a plateau but not gaining.