Some questions about PCOS

jenny95662
jenny95662 Posts: 997 Member
edited October 3 in Health and Weight Loss
Hello guys Well I will start off by saying i am not diagnosed yet but i have 2 doctors who think that is what i have and i have an appt with my ob in a couple weeks.
When I was 13 or 14 i got my cycle for the first time and from then on i prob got it maybe 3 to 4 times a year it was not uncommon for me to go 5 or 6 months without it. When I hit 16 I started noticing extra hair on my face and body and it was dark. I am italian and i was told by one doc its my heritag but neither my mom or sister have that issue nor does anyone in my family and my mom is full blooded and I am not lol I am Irish too. Not to mention its bad enough I need to actually take care of it every day!
Anyhow I also have all my weight in my stomach area people are shocked at how skinny my legs are. My friends always would say they were jealous of my legs and i was 250 pounds lol I have ache issues but not severe.
Now I did not have issues getting pregnant I have 2 wonderful children. My daughter I got pregnant with when I went off BC for a month or 2 by accident (lost the pills) and then with my son we were actually trying and it took about 3 or 4 months. So I have been fortunate with that. My mother has thyroid problems so they have been checking me on that a lot and say it feels like i have an enlarged thyroid so prob will have issues when I am older.
So my question is do they give you actual meds to help you or just put you on birth control? I was put on BC when I was 18 to regulate them for me but recently after having my son i am now very heavy and have high blood pressure so i am going on the merina when ever i get my cycle, they wont let me stay on the pill. Just want some info from others and ask if it helped with your weight loss and stuff.

Replies

  • MissMaryMac33
    MissMaryMac33 Posts: 1,433 Member
    They didn't put me on anything.... I control most of the symptoms with diet.
    I have never taken birth control for it -- but sometimes they do put people on Metformin.
    I currently just don't take anything --- just having PCOS makes it harder to lose weight.

    More info:
    http://soulcysters.com
    http://soulcycers.net
  • Michelle9939
    Michelle9939 Posts: 291
    I was diagnosed in 2009 when it was taking 2 years for me to become pregnant. My dr told me the only thing I can do now since I am done having kids is to get on birth control pills. I have been on birth control pills since my youngest was 6 weeks old. He is almost 2. I first started birth control pills when I was 16 though and never had a problem with my period until I was trying to get pregnant with my 2nd child. Before I had my first child I was at a normal weight. After he was born I was way overweight. That is when I started having period issues. The best thing for PCOS is to lose weight. Most women with PCOS are overweight or obese. I too have hair growth and hate it. I have to pluck regularly. I don't take anything for the hair growth but there are some things you can take.

    Feel free to add me if you want.
  • cmDaffy
    cmDaffy Posts: 6,991 Member
    First off, when they do ALL the blood work for hormone levels, they will also do a fasting for diabetes. If you test positive for that, they will talk to you about diet, exercise and possibly meds - generally Met. A lot of docs will do an U/S of your ovaries to check for the "pearls" that appear with numerous cysts.

    A lot of Cysters have good luck by going on a moderate carb diet, generally a diabetic friendly diet, quality proteins, whole grain carbs, cut out the "white stuff".

    Good luck getting answers for your health problems. BTW, congrats on your children, both of mine are the product of infertility drugs.
  • Artemis_Acorn
    Artemis_Acorn Posts: 836 Member
    They will probably do some bloodwork to determine if you're insulin resistant (pre-diabetic) or diabetic and if you have higher than normal levels of androgens. If you're insulin resistant, it is common for doctors to recommend a low-carb diet and prescribe metformin (glucophage) to address the insulin resistance. There may be some other medications prescribed to address the insulin problems depending on the degree of the problem, and if you're actually diabetic the medications and rigor will be geared to address that. Many women find that they are able to lose weight easier once they are on metformin because the insulin issue is reduced.

    Some will prescribe a round of Provera - which results in what is essentially a chemical D&C. Many will follow-up with birth control after that.

    I'm glad you were able to have children - I was the same. I had issues as a teen but people just shrugged and said "everyone is different" and didn't take things seriously. My PCOS kicked into high gear after my third child was born and rendered me infertile at that time, along with more extreme hirsuteness, especially on my face. There are prescription creams and meds that you can take to minimize that. Laser hair removal or electrolysis alone will not solve the problem - you have to get the Endocrine system issues resolved first or the hair removal will not 'stick'.

    PCOS is not a fun diagnosis, but can be managed. Good luck.
  • countrydarling1
    countrydarling1 Posts: 386 Member
    I have PCOS & was put on BC & Metformin, didnt take it long bc i had major side effects from it. I am now off BC because we lost insurance & i had my tubes tied! I have 2 biological children, bith concieved while taking birth control, the first pregnancy i might have missed 1 pill, but this last time i was religoose about taking them, i was so ready to get a job in the real world with a real check. But i have a beautiful rotten baby boy! lol!

    I have about 1 or 2 cycles a year for the last, about 5 yrs, But now that i exercise, i spot on & off about for a dew days. it will go away & show back up, highly annoying. But i see it as my body starting to get healthier.
  • astovey
    astovey Posts: 578 Member
    I have it, you have some of the symptoms, but a blood test will put the nail in the coffin.

    I was diagnosed at 16 bc I had never had a period...I've had symptoms since I was 10 or so. I have only been put on birth control. Losing weight helped with most of the problems I was having and I haven't tried to have children yet. I guess we will see! Good luck to you!
  • Busichic
    Busichic Posts: 5
    Hmm...where to start on this one. I was diagnosed with PCOS about 12 years ago. It took seeing several doctors for them to figure out the answer. They first ones all kept telling me I just needed to stop eating junk, stop eating junk. My weight was escalating. I was on the pill (um I think lo-ovral at the time) and that regulated my period. But I wanted to get off the pill so that I could try to get pregnant. When I was first diagnosed with PCOS they put me on metformin. If you are not familiar that is actually meds that they give to diabetics. I do not have diabetes. It actually did help with my weight initially. Dropped like 30 pounds. Unfortunately, it still did not control the monthly friend. Sometimes it came and sometimes it didn't. The doctor had me recording it. Very extremely heavy to the point where sometimes I could not go to work. At one point I had my period for 67 days at one time! Talk about serious depression! Doctor put me on hormones to stop that.
    The weight fluctuated but I never really lost more than that 30 pounds initially. Back and forth to the docs every 3 months checking everything. Finally, I started to drop more weight. My periods started getting regular and I got pregnant! My son was born December 2006.
    Not long after he was born the problems started getting crazy all over again. Crazy long periods, my weight was going up again. I had a thermablasion ( I think I might have spelled that wrong) procedure. It's outpatient. What they do is put a tube up into your uterus with a balloon on the end. Then, they fill up that balloon with heated liquid. It burns off the lining of your uterus. My period has been great since then! No terrible cramps, and no overly long or heavy months. You can read about that at www.endheavyperiods.com.
    Anyway, two years back the doctor told me that I was at risk for heart disease. Things were just not getting any better. I had to do something. I had to get the weight off for my son. So, at this point I have lost 110 pounds. I have 10 more to go to get to my goal. Once I had lost about 50-60 pounds my periods started coming every month like clockwork.
    I know this was more information than you wanted so to answer your question:
    Yes, the put you on meds depending on how the PCOS is affecting you. I was on metformin. Putting you on birth control can assist in making the periods regular, but that does not solve the situation. If you want to talk more about it send me a message. Hope this helps some.
  • astovey
    astovey Posts: 578 Member
    Not long after he was born the problems started getting crazy all over again. Crazy long periods, my weight was going up again. I had a thermablasion ( I think I might have spelled that wrong) procedure. It's outpatient. What they do is put a tube up into your uterus with a balloon on the end. Then, they fill up that balloon with heated liquid. It burns off the lining of your uterus. My period has been great since then! No terrible cramps, and no overly long or heavy months. You can read about that at www.endheavyperiods.com.

    I have really heavy painfull periods and it seems like they have been getting worse over the years...to the point I think something is wrong with me. This procedure sounds like it hurts....but sounds interesting at the same time
  • jenny95662
    jenny95662 Posts: 997 Member
    thank you all so so much for the info. I had lost all the weight when i was 21 and none of my symptoms went away or anything but now everything seems worse and i am very heavy after my 2nd child and my dad passing last year so least i am on the right track with getting healthy :) thanks for all the help everyone!
  • megarooni
    megarooni Posts: 50 Member
    I have been on birth control to help keep me regular and to help moderate my hormones. It has worked for me. I also saw an endocronologist about my weight, PCOS, and alopecia. He put me on metformin even though the blood tests did not show I was anywhere near diabetic. There is new research showing that metformin can help put your back into a normal cycle and have more "normal" cycles and flow levels. I stopped taking the metformin because the birth control was doing what I needed it to do. As far as I know PCOS does not run in my family either, but when my grandma (dad's mom) was around there weren't tests for PCOS etc. so I really don't know if it is possible from my dad's side. It is frustrating trying to lose weight, but what I do notice is I go through phases where I can eat anything and everything and don't gain, but have a really hard time losing almost anything. I am going to another endocronologist in the not too distant future to have more thorough tests run and to see if there are more modifications I need to make to my diet to assist in the task of losing some more weight.
  • Busichic
    Busichic Posts: 5
    You are put under for the procedure. The only pain I really had was heavy cramping the next day or so. I was back to work in two days. Totall worth it.
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