Nadalia

ok so i was diagnosed when i was 17 by a regular Gyene. I'm 19 now. Then i went through 3 differen't ones and they all just changed my BCP. I've been on ortho, nordette, and yasmin. I started going to a specialist but no longer do because of money issues. but he had started me on Avandia to see if it would do anything for me but i only took it for 2 weeks and didn't like the side affects at all. He never seemed concerned about me though. I feel like crap all time. I have acne and the hair is coming. I've never been over weight and now i can't eat with out getting bloated and feeling fat. The pounds are pilling on though. Depression has always been an issues for me but my mood swings and sensitivity is out of control. I always have extreme pelvic and abdominal pain and lower back pain. as i read all of your little replies about yourselves and what you taking I don't understand why i've not been told or prescrible Met or told about any of the herbal remedies available. Does anyone else think this is odd. or have suggestions about what they take and if you think it would help me???

DancesWithTubas

It's hard to say what's odd without knowing your exact situation. Have they confirmed that you're insulin resistant? To do so, they should have run a certain blood test. If you are insulin resistant (IR), then I would say it is a bit odd that all they gave you is BCP. Often, they will simply help to regulate periods and mask other problems that are, in reality, the bigger root of the problem. Even if the BCPs are helping to regulate AF, if you're still having problems with your insulin, the base problem remains and you're not going to get much better, you know? And in your case, it sounds like the BCPs aren't helping all that much anyways (although you don't seem to be on them long enough before they're switched or stopped...)

Anyways, what kind of specialist are you seeing? If you haven't seen an endo yet, can you get a referral? No matter who you're seeing, they should have checked your hormone levels, checked for insulin resistance, lipids, thyroid, etc. Only when you get a complete picture of what's working and what's not can they start to acuratly treat you. Advocate for yourself and tell them, point blank, that simple BCPs ARE NOT working! Ask them about metformin and other meds like that and make them explain to you whether or not they think it would be helpful (if you aren't IR, then it wouldn't help). If the doctor isn't willing to take the time to explore other options with you, you need to find another doctor, preferably one that specializes in PCOS, or at least in hormone or reproductive sciences.

Good luck!

-Dances

P.S. I would also reccomend educating yourself as much as you can about this. The more you know about PCOS in general, the more you'll know what is or is not normal for the doc to be doing. It's of course never an exact science, but it's good to have some idea of what to expect. There's a forum of good books and websites that you can visit to get more info.

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