Life With Polycystic Ovary Syndrome

My aim is for this page to help you with information about Image Credit Amazon.com PCOS For Dummies (For Dummies (Health & Fitness))

I am a person living with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome and not a medical expert.This page contains personal opinions that are not intended as medical advice. The contents are not intended to diagnose, treat or give a medical opinion.

The information here is no substitute for medical diagnosis and guidance. Consult a physician in all matters relating to health, particularly concerning any symptoms that may require diagnosis or medical attention. Never disregard medical advice, or delay or change treatment because of something you have read here. For assistance with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, or any other medical condition, always consult a qualified healthcare professional. You health is your responsibility.

This is a very good book to easily learn about polycystic ovary syndrome in a sensible way.

It explains the condition, covers the symptoms and the longer term risks associated with the condition .

It details a good healthy diet with some recipes and the benefits of exercise and looks at self care and treatments and fertility.

If you do nothing else do get this book, it is the most helpful resource I have discovered so far in helping me understand and manage my PCOS.

Please note this poll is anonoymous

Here are a few links which describe the symptoms

Each symptom may be very mild to quite severe. Some people only have a few outward symptoms, others have many.

You must always be diagnosed by a qualified medical practitioner. Do not assume that you have or do not have PCOS based on the information listed here but if you are concerned get checked by a medical practitioner.

Not everyone will have all the symptoms listed here, many people have just a couple or even only one really noticeable outward symptom.

Please note this poll is anonoymous.

We are all beautiful inside and out. It requires courage and understanding and determination to cope with this condition. You are not alone. Even celebs like Victoria Beckam and Emma Thompson have pcos and they are amazing, gorgeous women.

PCOS is not it seems much discussed and not many people seem to know about it.

The symptoms can be very visible and distressing. It can affect the very self image of a person as a woman. It can occur in women of childbearing age, so can appear in young girls as young as 11 or onset of puberty. Not everyone will be obese or have facial hair but if they do it can understandably be very upsetting. Fertility is often something that requires management if she wants to conceive.

However..... with correct diagnosis at an earlier age, discussions and awareness of PCOS and its symptoms and treatments, the life of a woman with this condition can be easier, healthier and positive.

She doesn't have to have the more serious effects of this condition, she doesn't have to be misunderstood......

Here is some information to help us understand the often complex condition of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome or PCOS.

If you need to know more about poly cystic ovaries and pcos.

Sometimes with this condition and attendant symptoms, hair in the wrong places, weight gain etc its not easy to love your body yet it is essential to do so. If you are going to give it you r best to stick to a low GI diet and do the necessary exercise you have to want to be kind to your body and give it what it needs every day to try to get healthier.

Someone once told me "exercise as if your life depends upon it - because it does"

I have already missed out on children as I was not diagnosed early enough and I know that this condition means that there is higher risk of some other illnesses and conditions so i determined to love my body and do everything I can to help it.

This is just so you are aware of the longer term risks and to take control now if you know you have this condition.

There is a lot you and you r doctor can do to manage this condition and to lead a very happy and healthy life.

From the popular Dummies range, Managing PCOS.

This book helps us to understand how to manage this condition in our everyday lives.

It is a valuable and easily understood resource.

Your Diet

My advice on this is to follow your doctors advice for your condition.

Do not go for fad diets or diets that exclude certain food groups altogether, these are not healthy , generally not necessary and could do you more harm than good.

It may depend to some extent whether you are a healthy weight, overweight or obese what diet you need to follow and should seek your doctors advice on this. Many women with PCOS have gained weight very easily, are overweight and struggle to lose weight, it is just often part of the condition so be kind to yourself and eat as healthy as possible.

In general it is seem of benefit to follow a low GI diet, one that is OK for people with diabetes. Avoid all sweet and sugary foods, white bread, cakes, white rice and white pasta and eat the wholemeal versions instead. Avoid those foods that are high GI. This is really a very healthy diet and one that can help you to manage PCOS more effectively and if you need to give you the best chance of weight loss.

It can seem quite complicated at first so I have included a few links to help you recognise low and high gi foods. The PCOS for Dummies book listed at the beginning of this article also gives very straightforward descriptions about diet so please if you can get that it will be useful to you. The advice there is what I am following to eat as healthy as possible and to try to lose weight.

Have to say that I have lost a lot of weight on this low Gi food plan and it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. I certainly hit plateaus but you have to keep on with it and persevere. My symptoms are getting better too and I am not on any medication for pcos so certainly the change in diet is worth a try

If you are unsure or have other health difficulties please talk with your doctor or a qualified dietition

The most important thing is to eat a healthy, balanced diet with as many low and some medium Glycemic Index foods as possible. Avoid the high GI foods in general as much as you can.

These links are just guidelines, please consult your doctor or dietition for what is healthy for you .

A video about foods to eat and some to avoid. Please only take this as rough guidance or information. You must check with your doctor or dietition what is the correct diet for YOU.

For example my Dr has advised me to eat a very balanced diet, effectively a diet for a diabetic which is a very healthy diet, and not to cut out dairy.

When I was diagnosed I was advised to exercise on a regular basis. I am one of the women who needs to lose weight so this is even more important for me. I was already doing regular exercise but needed to take it up a notch.

I was advised to do a mix of cardio and weights. So I do band weight resistance work, swimming and fast walking. I have also built in pilates and yoga in to my exercise regime. I enjoy gardening so do that as well. Of course as I have a back issue as well I do need to be careful bit I do my Lose the back pain exercises whenever I need to and keep my back in good condition as well.

It is important to choose exercise that you will do and that you enjoy and to have a variety of exercise so that you do not get bored.

What you can do to start with will depend on your current weight and fitness levels so do check with a doctor first before starting any new fitness regime.

Equally important is to exercise as part of your day, so take the stairs instead of the lift, stand up when taking a phone call, walk to the water cooler more often, walk at lunchtime after your meal, be more active around the house etc

This condition can be a cause of infertility among women of childbearing age.

It does not mean you will not get pregnant and carry a baby to full term, but there are things you need to be aware of and changes to your lifestyle and perhaps medication you may need.

It is a very upsetting and emotional diagnosis but if diagnosed early enough there are self help and medical/ drug treatments that can be tried to help you conceive.

This book can help you to understand and give you information but If you are having trouble conceiving please do discuss it with your doctor.

I was diagnosed with hypothyroid before I was diagnosed with PCOS. After a period of monitoring where I was very borderline Hypothyroid my body went over the levels it should be and my Doctor and I decided it was best to go on medication. This helped a lot but he suspected something else was going on as well by this stage and had a comprehensive blood test done and it came out with a diagnosis of PCOS as well.

I am not trying to worry anyone but please if you have either PCOS or hypothyroid do get checked for the other condition. There seems to be increasing evidence that the two can be linked in some way.

It does not mean you will have it but if you do you will make better progress if both are diagnosed and treated.

Essentially if you have been diagnosed with PCOS please ask your doctor to check you out for thyroid function and get your TSH and T4 tested. Equally if you have been diagnosed with Hypothyroid (and are female) get checked out for PCOS.

If yo have both you need to be doing self help and treated medically for both.

For the good of our physical, emotional and mental health it is important to educate ourselves about any condition we have and this is true of PCOS as well.

Take control of the pcos not the other way around!

Learn as much as you can to put you in control.

Here is a list of some of the support forums available .

You will need to judge for yourself if you wish to take part or join any of them. Some require a small fee, others are free.

I would advise that you read the forums first to get a feel for if it would suit you to be a part of that community. as we are all different in what we want or what are main concerns are I don't recommend any specific forums but have just included to give you an idea that support forums are out there if you wish to become involved.

Do bear in mind at all times that posts by members and others on the forums are not medical advice and you should always consult a medical practitioner about your condition. In general Forums are to be treated as there for support not medical definitive advice.

This is not a definitive list and I may add more as I come across useful ones. If you find any particularly useful that are not listed here do let me know.

I would love to hear your thoughts, comments, frustrations and any successes you have had in coping . I am always learning so any insights would be great.

I do read every comment before publishing.

Gentle Hugs