PCOS Ladies

sarahbrown1015

So... I was diagnosed in August. I was so glad to get this diagnosis because I was starting to think I was crazy. I had been working super hard to change my eating and workout habits. Not just diet but to really change and I was getting no results for a year and a half which was very frustrating. How I kept at it I have no idea. So in August I bought a book and tried to regulate my insulin on my own At the suggestion of some very helpful women here, I also went grain free(mostly). The short question after that long explanation is, do you take Metformin? Has it helped? What can I expect? I'm not trying to get pregnant I just want my body to work as efficiently as it can. I am also minus a thyroid so basically I'm a hot hormonal mess... Any feedback is much appreciated.

kazzsjourney

I have PCOS too and didnt find metfromin helped me at all (only made me ill), So i have lost all my weight with out metformin. I ensured I had one grain free meal per day for most of my weight loss, but have recently started eating more "primal" and have cut out grains like you too, altho my carbs are still around 150 grams a day.

TinGirl314

Metformin will make you feel like crap for a good month, but honestly I might not be here if I hadn't gone on it.
I think it depends on the severity of your PCOS, weather or not you're diabetic or insulin resistant, ect.

It's not a fun drug.
It really does work for me though.

sarahbrown1015

why like crap??? I started it on Monday and so far just some minor stomach issues.

TinGirl314

why like crap??? I started it on Monday and so far just some minor stomach issues.

It very well could have been that my diet was THAT bad. If you eat foods with a high fat content, metformin will let you know. Even though my doctor told me this repeatedly I didn't listen. Maybe you'll be one of the lucky ones with no side effects

sarahbrown1015

Interesting. Yesterday I had an emotional binge eating day and my body definitely made it clear that that was a very bad idea!!!!

sarahbrown1015

why like crap??? I started it on Monday and so far just some minor stomach issues.

It very well could have been that my diet was THAT bad. If you eat foods with a high fat content, metformin will let you know. Even though my doctor told me this repeatedly I didn't listen. Maybe you'll be one of the lucky ones with no side effects

So how many and what kind of carbs do you eat in a day?

minkakross

when I first started metformin I felt off for a couple of weeks and my doctor basically explained that my body had built a tolerance to the higher blood sugar and so the adjustment was like a combination of withdrawal symptoms and learning that certain foods just didn't get along with the medicine... aka high carbs or sugar might just send me straight to the potty.

I took it for years and it was what kept me from developing diabetes for a very long time. Don't get too excited about weight loss associated with metformin i've yet to meet anyone who lost weight from the medicine and not by controlling their calories, CARBS!!!, and exercising.

sarahbrown1015

when I first started metformin I felt off for a couple of weeks and my doctor basically explained that my body had built a tolerance to the higher blood sugar and so the adjustment was like a combination of withdrawal symptoms and learning that certain foods just didn't get along with the medicine... aka high carbs or sugar might just send me straight to the potty.

I took it for years and it was what kept me from developing diabetes for a very long time. Don't get too excited about weight loss associated with metformin i've yet to meet anyone who lost weight from the medicine and not by controlling their calories, CARBS!!!, and exercising.

I'm not getting weight loss excited but I am hoping it will help with all that I am already doing. About 100 carbs a day, counting calories, and working out. How many carbs do you eat a day? Do you eat grains?

themommyiwannabe

I have been diagnosed with PCOS too, but losing weight has not been a problem for me (of course keeping it off is a different story, LOL). I lost 75 lbs. before having my 3 daughters by doing low carb. The doctor put me on Glucophage at one point and it didn't bother me at all. After I lost the 75 lbs. it really helped with the PCOS.

miranda_mom

I've been taking it since April, my dosage was doubled in July (from 500 mg twice a day to 1000 mg twice a day). The difference I was in April was my hair stopped falling out, which was a huge, huge thing for me. Very vain about my hair!
Once it was doubled, I had another major benefit which is that my cycle started again. Seriously - I was having no cycle before and now my last one was only 39 days, still long but almost normal!
As for the side effects, they've gotten better over time. I don't think I automatically lost weight on it - I think most of that was from my own hard work.

Anyanka17

I have PCOS as well and I was on Diabex which is like metformin, but it too made me very ill. So I decided to go off it and i chose not to go on the pill as well. I was 69kg when I was diagnosed and then went to 52kg just by excercising in some shape or form everyday and eating low GI foods with mostly vegetables but I have to have no sugar at all otherwise I find I start gaining on weight again.

Now my weight is good for my height of 167cm and I have my cycle now pretty much on cue.

BogQueen1

I have PCOS, but it tends on the mild side. Other then the wildly irregular periods if I drop the birth control and the difficulty losing weight, I don't have blood sugar issues (I've had this tested so many times it's ridiculous, but I've spent a fairly large portion of my life on Atkin's, or at least trying very hard to minimize my sugar intake as diabetes runs in my family too). I've had the hormone assays done, and they aren't HORRIBLY out of whack. I don't have many of the other side effects either, like bad acne, tons of hair in random places and stuff like that.

As such, my doctor has pretty much refused to put me on Metformin due to my lack of blood sugar issues and the side effects associated with it. I've done a lot of reading on PCOS, and the one thing that stuck out to me the most was the book I read that said that while PCOS women do have the problem with sugar and stuff, that a lot of times the extreme low carb diets don't work that well for them either. Which I found, as Atkin's just refused to work for me anymore. So now I'm trying something fairly moderate, I think I'm set at 40/30/30 carbs/fat/protein. I also try for whole grains, veggies and fruits to get my carbs from, and try hard to avoid heavily processed foods and things high in sugar and the 'white foods'.

Best of luck to you.

musiqueange

I should have looked for other PCOS ladies sooner!

Back in March I finally admitted to my mother (and gave in to my friends) that I hadn't had a period in two years and scheduled my first gyno appointment (I'm 25 so I know that's unusual...) I had a couple blood tests and an ultrasound and, although there were no cysts that they could see, they diagnosed me with PCOS. I have some facial hair, acne and have been heavy for about half my life. For some reason, my gyno put me on some blood sugar management pills even though my blood sugar levels were completely fine and some low dose birth control. At my follow up appointment a couple months later, she was confused as to why she put me on the pills when they just made me sick to my stomach. As of now, I'm on my fourth month of birth control now (three changes of BC, though...) and my second month of MFP and things are going okay so far!

When my gyno told me that people with PCOS often have trouble losing weight I felt so much better knowing that there was a reason for either staying at the same weight or gaining (besides eating huge portions, which I now see! :P) Now I'm really trying to lose weight and I've been fairly successful so far and have lost about 1.5 lbs a week (I lost more at the beginning).

I'm glad to see this topic.

footiechick82

I was just diagnosed myself simply becuase I have a cyst that's been checked ONCE. My periods have been all over the place and have started to come more regularly in the past 3 months. I am not taking anything as I'm keeping my fingers crossed my body starts to act 'normally' because I'm so healthy.

I'm very VERY stubborn and haven't started taking anything to 'help' fix this issue. I am probably going to start seeing a friend of mine who does natural healing called the Matrix to fix this. I don't want anymore chemicals in my body. So far, due to terrible eating, i gained about 5lbs in a month and a half.

Can someone explain to me what MFP is? I think I may have a prescription for it.

cebreisch

The metformin actually helps your body to better regulate the hormones. When I was diagnosed, and first started taking it, I lost 40 pounds without doing anything different at all other than taking the medication. Make sure you increase your B12 intake, and B vitamins in general - most medications, particularly this one, will deplete your body of Vitamin B.

amydee714

I was diagnosed with PCOS about 12 years ago. I have never taken anything for it. I tend to eat lower carb (under 100 carbs a day typically) and have lost all my weight that way.

After I had lost about 40 pounds my symptoms started to reduce. Now I have a regular cycle again that is typically pain free.

QTRARO

I have PCOS.. I had a 4kg ovarian cyst removed last year and another one a few years earlier after I gave birth to my daughter.

I don't know if it has affected my weight as I lose weight quite easily so I don't think so but it is a total hindrance to me ever having children in the future.. I'm apparantly very lucky to even have 1 child ..

Gosh women we don't get it easy do we.. !

rydanip

Hi Ladies!

I have PCOS/Insulin resistance. Definitely looking for friends going through the same thing. I have lost and gained back quickly. So sad. I cannot seem to lose no mater how active I am (at least 4 times a week). I would love to know what you all who have had success are doing/eating. I knew I was getting desperate again when my ears perked up during a diet pill/fat burner commercial :-/ I know I don't want to go down that road again. Made myself very ill at one point taking every diet pill on the market. And Metformin wasn't a good match for me, have tried it on 2 separate occasions

brieski24

I have PCOS also, I was diagnosed 2 years ago and started Metformin. I changed my diet briefly to low carb and sugar free, but it was very difficult for me- so I basically just modified my normal diet- limiting sugars and carbs and cutting out soda, etc. With this modification coupled with the metformin therapy I lost 50#. The metformin will make you sick until your body adjust. It is called MDS- Metformin Dumping Syndrome, which will cause nausea and diarrhea. If you can tolerate the MDS, your body will adjust and will be fine, and like I said, I had amazing results with it. I found that eating a solid meal about 1 hour before taking my metformin lessened the effects of MDS because it helped coat my stomach. Hope this helps. Oh, and make sure you begin an exercise regimen- that also fueled my weight loss. Good luck.

dweias

Hi,

I also have PCOS and take Metformin. Once I got over the initial feeling rubbish I found it really helped. I try and restrict my diet to only low GI foods (anything wholemeal or brown coloured) and that seems to be when I loose the most weight. I am absolutely determined to loose the weight this time. I just want to be normal and not always feel like an outsider!

Good luck! You are not alone in this!