PCOS Syndrome Ladies Please Help ~ Not Ready to Give up!!!

Hi Kiki

My best friend Amanda was diagnosed with PCOS for the last 5 years and I can tell you I sympathize with you. It is not an easy road especially when it comes to weight issues

She and her husband have tried 3 invitro fertilizations all which failed because of her condition and weight. What finally helped her was to drastically reduce her carbs almost to the point of total elimination.If you still want to eat carbs try reducing you daily intake to about 35% of your diet and eat alot of protein and exercised at least 5 x a week. She dropped 25 lbs and behold she got pregnant naturally last year. They had my beautiful God duaghter Amaya 7 weeks ago.

I highly recommend see a dietician, they might me able to give you a better approach to weight loss specifically designed to you.

I have PCOS which lead to infertility. I started a weight loss program (lower carb, cardio, strength training) and lost 30 lbs in 2010 and BAM... I got pregnant after 4 years with only one previous failed pregnancy. I quickly followed with baby number 2...15 months later. I am successfully exclusively breastfeeding which is made more difficult with PCOS by taking a ton of suppliments.

I am 45 days into being committed to this and down 14lbs. It can be done and from my personal experience, losing weight can be a big factor in fertility with PCOS.

A lot of people say following a low-gi diet works well for PCOS. I was diagnosed 2 years ago and losing weight feels like an uphill battle but you can do it!

Low glycemic diet. I've tried it and it didn't do much for me and I find it hard to follow a restrictive diet (it's not bad, but you have to limit your carbs and balance them with protein).

I was diagnosed with PCOS over 20 years ago when I was 17. I have been through ALL the fertility treatments, up to and including IVF. We were not successful, but MOST women with PCOS are able to conceive with fertility treatments so there's definitely hope!

You stated you wanted to have children AND be pregnant. If you get to the point where having children is more important than being pregnant, you can look into adoption. We have three amazing children through adoption and if you told me you could cure my infertility right now, I'd say no thank you. If we have another child, they will also be adopted.

I have lost 40 pounds while being insulin resistant, hypothyroid, adrenal fatigue and having PCOS. It is possible. I am on metformin..and aromour thyroid. i do believe these have helped with the weight loss.

I lost my last 10 pounds..and 3% body fat by doing a Paleo diet of 30 days...now I am maintaining..between 135-138..which isnt bad. i have started lifting heavy weights...to try and drop the body fat to 25%...

I was unable to conceive..didnt try once i lost weight..but have 2 beautiful daughters..12 and 16

Metformin and low carb (under 50g net - net = total carbs -fiber) have been the biggest help for me. Together they allowed me to lose 12 pounds and get pregnant, and then lose all the weight on my ticker since pregancy.

PCOS support groups on MFP:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/3070-p-c-o-sis
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/3089-power-cysters
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/4339-pcosers-unite

PCOS - polycystic ovarian syndrome - in plain terms, there's little hard bumps on your ovaries. Naturally, your eggs come out of your ovaries but if you cover it in little bumps (possibly originating of previously unreleased eggs), it is harder for the egg to pop out, which could effect your fertility chances. Thus, losing weight - which means lessening the fat tissue around your ovaries, the 'load' that ends up on your pelvis when you sit, would help. In other words, if your body stops pushing on your ovaries, then your eggs can push out of them. This is what I got from all the research papers I read about it when I got diagnosed. I'm a biomed scientist.

So these stuffed up ovaries of mine likes to work against me in that they produce more androgens. WTF does that mean?

In simple terms - Androgens make Estrogens - Estrogens help your uterine lining get thicker, collect more fat, in preparation for pregnancy.

So if you make *more* androgens, there's a higher chance your body is making *more* estrogens than what should be normal for you, thus causing you put on more fat than normal - all the time.

We can help reduce fat by reducing the amount of things that create fat. So the typical pharmaceutical treatment for PCOS is metformin. It is a diabetic drug and helps your cells increase intake and utilization of sugar so it doesn't get stored as fat. For me, that didn't work long term- altho I expected it to. It took me a while to realize that I wasn't noticing the slowing progress I was making and then a complete reversal of what it should be doing. I worked with my doctor and found a better drug and went off metformin. I'm losing weight now and my mood and stability is better. For me, it took some monitoring of my daily habits and looking back long term to realize what I was doing wasn't a long term solution. Hopefully this one sticks with me, but the take away here is this: Your body IS working against you, with that understanding, consult your doctor and/or dietician and change accordingly. Plain exercise sometimes just won't work.

I struggled with PCOS for 5 years before I think I've finally got a handle on what works for me. Lots of research and experimenting but I found that these things are key to controlling it.

Working off the knowledge that PCOS is essentially a hormone imbalance my goal was to do everything in my own power to naturally re-balance my hormones. It's important that you work towards harmony with ALL your hormones. Not just the ones we PCOSers have a tendency to focus on (estrogen/progesterone/testosterone).

Diet - What you eat will have a huge effect on your body's hormone production. When I try to encourage some particular hormone production I do everything I can food-wise first before turning to medicine. I strive for a plant-base, whole foods diet with plenty of natural fats and a controlled amount of carbs. I MADE time to cook at home so I cut down on highly processed foods and on eating out. I also cut out most dairy because unless you're getting it raw from a cow that is not pregnant, it's giving you more hormones and/or stimulating other hormones that you don't want stimulated atm. (You're welcome to use recipes from my blog: RillsMenu.com)

Exercise - When you exercise you stimulate the production of and balancing of most of your body's hormones. Some hormones cannot be stimulated (other than with drugs) without exercise. Get some kind of exercise every day. Doesn't matter what, as long as you sweat and get your heart rate up. I take long, vigorous walks, dabble in aerobics (I'm not that coordinated lol), and do some training with a stability ball and weights.

Late/No Periods
No birth control pills. At first I was on them to regulate my period but I'm off them now and have fairly regular cycles by my own efforts. Hormones cannot balance out correctly when I'm forcing high levels of estrogen into my system. I drink a combo herbal tea a week before my period should begin to encourage the right hormones for that part of my cycle. If I'm a couple weeks late on my period I'll use progesterone cream for 10 days then stop.

Insulin Resistance
Insulin is a hormone produced by the pancreas and it's main job is to stabilize your blood sugar. Avoid things that 'rock the boat' and mess with your blood sugar. You can have stuff. Just keep it under control with a low carb or low glycemic index diet. Additionally, I've found the best thing to help has been Raw/Organic Apple Cider Vinegar (the stuff with "the Mother" in it). I take 1 Tbl with 1 Tbl of water in a shot glass then wash it down with a glass of water. Some people take metformin but that stuff actually made me gain weight. It may or may not work for you. The ACV has more beneficial effects too like appetite suppressant and reducing stomach acids (if you have trouble with heartburn/acid reflux).


Sun & Fun
Stress and low vitamin D levels also affect your hormones. Laughter and good times stimulate the kind of hormones that lower the stress hormones. Also things like yoga, meditation....generally relaxing things. Vitamin D supplements are all well and good but getting it directly from the source is best. I do 15 minutes (direct sunlight, no sunscreen, no sunglasses, no hat, sleeves/pants rolled up) on my porch in the morning, 15 minutes during lunch and 30 minutes when I go on a walk with my hubby in the evenings.


*hugs* and good luck! Just remember, it's hard to make an overnight change! Take it one step at a time and you'll be working toward your goals in no time. That's what it took for me. ^_^