I feel like my body is falling apart

janinez · 07-01-2004, 08:19 AM

Hello everyone,

I have not officially been diagnosed with PCOS - well, my gynea did not tell me the name for it. She has put me on Glucophase 500mg twice a day and told me to wait at least 3 months (or was that 3 cycles?) then we can meet again to discuss my options. This is now my third cycle and I am currently on day 14. My cycle seems to have levelled out at 34 days approx for the last two months.

I am trying to get pg and have been trying for the past 5 years, since my daughter turned 1. Only recently did I hear about the link between IR and fertility and I phoned my gynea and she said, "sure, that could be your problem!" Makes me mad that I had to tell her - I was diagnosed in 96 and put on a special diet but no meds, and I must admit that I find it hard to avoid sugar and carbs totally.

Anyway - I wanted to know if anyone else suffers from sore joints? I keep getting inflamation in my wrists and sometimes even my spine and they tested me for arthritis (sp?) and auto immune disease but now I am wondering if it has anything to do with insulin levels?

I also get sharp shooting pains in my groin area round about the middle of my cycle, especially if I have been sitting and then get up suddenly. Could that be due to PCOS?

Towards the end of my cycle I seem to have a very sharp acidic odour from my Vagina - anyone know if this is due to PCOS?

I get headaches, suffer from anxiety and mood swings, heat flushes, I have some long hairs growing on my chin and stomach that I keep having to pluck. Recurring yeast infections. Not acne but lots of pimples at certain times of the month, excessive hair loss, enlarged breasts since my last pregnancy, extremely heavy and painful AF ( I hope I used the right abbr!).

Please let me know if anyone has these same symptoms and what can alleviate them? I would also like to hear some pregnancy success stories if there are any - just for a little bit of hope!

Regards

Janine

kis95 · 07-01-2004, 11:25 AM

Hi there, and welcome!

PCOS can cause all kinds of weird and wonderful symtoms. I would be willing to bet that a lot of what you've mentioned is related either directly or indirectly to PCOS. What I would suggest is learn absolutely everything you can about the syndrome, and go to your Dr armed with information. This site is an excellent source. I had a Dr who thought she knew a lot about PCOS, but she really didn't. She was the one who originally diagnosed me, and at the time, I hadn't educated myself and I believe I suffered as a result. Knowledge is power, and that's how you'll get the very best treatment.

As far as pg success stories go, I have one! My DH and I haven't used birth control for most of our 5 years together. I was in another long-term relationship prior, and I didn't use b/c for a lot of that either. Through all of that, I only conceived once. I made it to 12wks pg, only to find out that the baby's heart had stopped beating at approximately 9wks. I didn't miscarry naturally ('missed abortion') and had to have a D&C. Following that, I only ever got a positive pg test once, and it turned out to be a chemical pg.

On September 03, 2003, I asked my Dr for Metformin (aka Glucophage..which I believe you're on?). Again, I had educated myself and researched it on these boards. On September 29, 2003 I did a home pg test, and got a positive!! It seems really fast (just over 3 weeks) but I've heard Metformin can work that way! I had read that the med can also help prevent m/c, so I stayed on it for my first trimester. I also went on progesterone suppositories, since a lot of PCOS women have low progesterone in pg, which can also cause m/c.

On May 23, 2004 I gave birth to my beautiful daughter Emily! I am still in awe, and I truly believe that it would never have happened if I hadn't come to this site and asked questions and researched as much as I could. I wouldn't have known about Met/Glucophage, progesterone, fertile CM, etc, etc. I credit the wonderful ladies on these boards for my successful pg.

Good luck with everything, and again, welcome to the boards! I hope to see you around!

Cheers,
Christine

janinez · 07-01-2004, 11:56 AM

Thanks for your encouraging reply! I have been on the Glucophase for about 3 months now - hoping for a miracle soon.

Btw - I see your birthday is next week - Happy Birthday. Mine is on Saturday. I had hoped to have my family completed before I turned 30 but I suppose everything happens for a reason.

oohmercyme · 07-01-2004, 01:01 PM

Hi Janine! Welcome to soulcysters!

ABout 8 months ago I thought my body was falling apart too. It was very frustrating as a 32 year old should not have that many health problems!

I have been on 1500mg of Met since October and things are finally coming together for me. I have had AF since starting Met, but this past month just had my first under 30 day cycle in about 10 years.

I too suffer from terrible mood swings. I have taken an anti-depressent for years (currently take Celexa), but in January the depression/ mood swings got so bad I had to take a 6 week leave from work. I am sure my depression is exacerbated by all the wide and wackiness of PCOS. But it is now under control too.

The pain you feel midcycle is likely ovulation pain. It has a fancy German name which I can't think of, but it is not abnormal. I never had that pain (that I recall) until I began taken Met. OF course, I hadn't ovulated in about 10 years, so maybe that's why I didn't recall that pain. If regular pain meds don't work for you, ask your doc for an anti-inflammatory like Bextra or Toradol. As for the odour near AF time, I have noticed that myself since taking Met and I never experienced it before that.

Hope this helps! I'm sure you'll find lots of great info and support here!