I have Poly Cystic Ovary Syndrome. I have had it for years. It’s the reason I needed fertility treatments to conceive, also the reason my Dr. recommended we start our family ahead of our original time-frame. (THANK YOU!) It’s hard to have kids with PCOS, and the longer you have it, the harder it gets. I am incredibly grateful that we have been blessed with our beautiful children. A lot of women with this disease will never know the blessing of being mothers. My heart goes out to them. Compared to the hopelessness, uncertainty, anger, regret, and sense of failure that they are all feeling (I’ve been there) my frustration with the other effects of PCOS seem frivolous.
I started on a medication to treat my PCOS on the 21st. It's called Metformin, and I was a little nervous about some of the side effects, etc. I don't tend to like medications as a general rule, and honestly if I wasn't showing early signs of developing serious complications from the PCOS itself (specifically type 2 diabetes), I probably wouldn't have been open to it. I get to work up to the dosage I’ll end up taking, to help ease some of the side effects such as nausea and diarrhea. So far I haven't experienced much trouble with it. It does make my stomach gurgle and I have had some diarrhea, but only minor and occasional - and no nausea. That should subside as my body adjusts. From reading other women's accounts who have gone through this and are on the same medication, I think I'm handling it well. I really can't complain at all. I haven't experienced anything that would keep me from living normally - feeling like I have to stay home close to a bathroom, etc. It should also keep me from developing diabetes, which is a big deal. Technically, it's a diabetes medication but it is also prescribed to women who haven't developed any early signs of pre-diabetes (like I have) exclusively for the treatment of their PCOS.
While I haven’t experienced harsh side-effects, what I have experienced is HOPE. And it's wonderful. I actually HAVE ENERGY! This is a HUGE deal for me. I'm getting things done around the house. I have the motivation to complete projects I've started. I'm not depressed. I feel good! For the first time in a LONG time, I feel good! I've also lost 7lbs, which is a huge plus. It gives me hope that working out will actually render results this time. I'm still focusing more on being healthy than the weight loss, but I have to say I am really happy that it appears that I will have an easier time losing weight in the process. Last year when I was focused on losing weight and going to the gym, I did cardio for 45 minutes, and added strength training every-other-day in addition to the cardio. I can't even begin to tell you how incredibly frustrating it was to not see any results from working that hard. Making it extremely hard to lose weight is just one of the things that PCOS does to you. It’s definitely not the worst of them, it’s just the most visible.
I feel like I'm starting again. I feel like I'm living again. Did I mention that I have energy? Who would have known?
