I was wondering if some of you have an "easy" way of explaining PCOS to others who you have chosen to tell. By easy I mean a short version, edited, you get the drift right? It just seems so hard to explain to people so I don't even talk about it. I just end up feeling like I want to say (or actually saying it) "I'm fat, have a mustache (that I wax), my hair falls out, I don't have a period etc.etc. because of this hormone thing I have" I don't know what else to say. I am not even sure if I fully understand what's going on!!!! HELP!!!
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Me 27, Dh 33 4/17/96 Evan was born 12/21/99 Logan was born 3/20/02 Nolan was born ME: off the MET!!! BCP's STILL LOOSING WEIGHT!! 170/211/298
I just say it is a hormone imbalance that can cause a variety of problems. If they ask questions, then I go into more detail about my symptoms.
__________________ Janet (31) DH (41) ttc 7 years
Miscarriage 1/19/1999 at 10 weeks
Met ER 2000 mg daily HSG to be scheduled next cycle after af
Waiting on dh's SA results
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Here is a bit of a PCOS summary. I've quoted all the parts from the medical articles here on soulcysters. You can use it if you like. It's a clinical description, not personal. So after they read it you could talk with them about how it is with you personally, or not. I like to use this one for telling men because it explains it is not just all about ovaries and periods and things they are uncomfortable discussing, but lets them know that those things are part of it. Good luck however you explain it. For a brief answer if someone asks, I say I have weird insulin disorder. Not really a good description, but that's for someone you don't want to discuss the details with...maybe someone who is asking about why you eat a strange diet or can't lose weight or something.
Poly-Cystic Ovary Syndrome - "PCOS"
PCOS is an unfortunate term because the word "ovarian" appears in the name of this syndrome. For years, many people automatically assumed that it is purely an ovarian disease. We now recognize that it is in fact, a systemic endocrine and metabolic disorder.
PCOS is a metabolic disorder that disturbs multiple body systems. It is a disorder of the endocrine system, which regulates hormones—the chemical messengers that orchestrate everything from reproduction to metabolism. A woman can have one, five or a dozen symptoms. Most experts agree that the biggest culprit may be the powerful hormone insulin. Most women with PCOS have insulin resistance, a problem with the way insulin acts in their bodies. In many cases, this may mean that they produce too much of it. It is a lifelong metabolic derangement, which means you’ll need to be carefully monitored by your physician. High levels of insulin and insulin resistance lead to high triglyceride levels, low levels of HDL (the "good" cholesterol) and high levels of LDL (the "bad" kind). It also increases the risk of hypertension. PCOS is related to infertility, higher risk of miscarriage, hypothyroidism, depression, anxiety, fatigue, nightmares, acne, skin tags, dark patches of skin, hirsuitism, baldness/hair loss, and obesity. Furthermore, women with PCOS are at increased risk of developing Diabetes, Coronary Artery Disease, abnormalities in the lining of the uterus and an increased risk of uterine cancer, and possibly breast cancer as well. By age fifty, women with PCOS have about a tenfold increase of risk of heart attacks and stroke. The syndrome is still so poorly understood that its cause and cure remain unknown. Right now, many doctors consider metformin, a diabetes drug, the best treatment.
It has been recognized for many years that PCOS definitely runs in families. It is inherited as an autosomal dominant trait. Therefore, if a woman has PCOS, it should be looked for in her mother, sisters, and daughters. Male relatives will also carry the gene. These men are also often insulin resistant and at increased risk for diabetes. Some evidence indicates that the marker for the PCOS gene in men is early balding. If a male relative develops significant balding before the age 30, he should be evaluated (for insulin problems).
__________________ New Year's fitness Celebration: In 2006 I cycled approximately 1800miles, hiked up 4 mountains, took a walking tour of San Francisco, hiked in 4 california national parks, swam in a pool with palm trees on my birthday, hiked and biked along the Oregon Coast, climbed to numerous breathtaking waterfalls, explored a gold mine, a silver mine and a cinnabar mine, and walked a fantastic loop along frozen streams and icecicle waterfalls at Opal Creek in winter.
For me it depends on who I'm talking to and in what context. If it's about fertility, I say I have an endocrine disorder that's preventing me from ovulating. If it's why I can't have sugar and simple carbs, I say I'm insulin resistant or pre-diabetic.
The very short version is just two words - "hormone imbalance." From there I can go on to explain other things, such as why I can't eat certain foods, and so on.
__________________ I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something; And because I cannot do everything I will not refuse to do the something that I can do. - Helen Keller
i tend to keep it pretty simple, as in "i've got an endocrine disorder that affects my reproductive hormones, metabolism and insulin resistance." that's usually enough for most people.
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HELP!! How to explain PCOS to others? 
