I'm new and heres my story.

missmurder · 07-11-2008, 04:54 AM

Hi everyone I'm a new person for you to read about,
I am currently 20 years old and in college. Lets see here, my problems started out when I was about 11 or so. I got my period when I was 11 and had problems immediately. If I would get my period it was very heavy and very painful. Not just your average cramps, like screaming in pain wonder if the tampon gave me Toxic Shock Syndrome. Then around 12 or so, I had not got my period in a year and my mother took me to the gyno.

My mother has PCOS, or rather we certainly think so, hence she has all the symptoms, but for some reason the clinic we go to doesn't want to acknowledge its existence.

Anywho, I was there and the gyno didn't believe me when I had currently had hair growing out of my chin(like one at the time). Also, my skin had darkened under my armpits. She pretty much interrogated me believeing I was sexually active and pregnant which is why I had not got my period in a very long time.

Well they put me on Zovia, or rather the generic for it. As I got older I got heavily depressed, and gained a lot of weight.
I was probably 5'6"-145ish when I went on the birth control,
and now,
a little taller closer to 5'7" and 220 lbs.
I deal with depression, PTSD, anxiety, and different aspects of eating disorders. I don't believe the weight IS the fault of the pill, but moreso a result of a huge increase in appetite I experience on the pill.

I had gone on this diet in highschool, where I pretty much ate lettuce and very little else. I also exercised an hour a day on the treadmill. I lost 45 lbs and kept it off for a good 8 months until college. (got to like 170lbs) Then I ate like a crazy person and gained it all back and then some.

I was never formally diagnosed with PCOS, though I'm relatively sure that's what it is. Well, I'm almost 21 years old and I'm sick of wondering why I'm so stressed out and depressed. I also wonder why I'm alway so freaking hungry.

So June 22nd of this year I went off birth control. Already my appetite has decreased a bit. However, my skin is getting acne again(also it's really greasy and while I was on the pill it was very very dry). Though, my mood has risen. I don't know if I'll be able to get my period, like ever on my own without medication. Even on the pill the period would only last 2 days or so and was very weird for a female, in that it was dark brown, barely red, and chunky.(gross I know, imagine having to live with it -_-)

I was wondering if anyone has any information on stopping birth control, like symptoms and how long it'll take before the body reaches a normal state. I also read that saw palmetto can be good for lowering androgen levels, has anyone had any success with this or any other natural supplements?

I'm so sick of being way overweight, depressed, and stressed. Slowly, I feel a little emotionally better everyday, but today I was so unbareably tired like I have the flu.

I hope I'm welcome here, and one day I will change to a clinic with doctors who will help me in some way. I just need to know what my body will do without these terrible meds. I need to give my body a break after 9 years on the medication. I was still going through puberty and I feel like it was all just put on hold because of these meds. My mother was much taller than I was, as was my father. My pediatrician said before I went into college I'll probably go through another growth spurt, probably wishful thinking. lol I'd like to be taller.

I'm looking for people to talk to about going off birthcontrol. My body just needs a serious break. I have also noticed my body reacts funny to bread or anything starchy like that. I get really tired about 15-30 mins after eating bread. I think maybe that's something about insulin resistance.
I'm not entirely sure. So I try to avoid it entirely, which isn't easy since I love bread rolls, bagels, and all things of that nature. /drool

I just wish I had a doctor that had TIME to do tests on me. I go once a year to the gyno who just does the basic stuff and is out of the room. Stick some swabs down there pull them out and send them to the lab.
-_-
Very impersonal.

I often wonder if I'm even fertile. Like, maybe I was born without any eggs. I really don't know whats going on down there and going on with my hormones.
I'm just trying to find my natural state so I can properly assess myself.

I know my mother had problems getting pregnant and took medication to get pregnant...she has 6 kids. haha So theres always possibility.

I had read on one site sometimes zovia is prescribed with people who have endrometriosis. -_-
So confusing and complicated.
Wish I had a normal body.
Very aggravating.
I hope I'm welcome here. =)
Thanks for reading my story.
Comments are appreciated. =D

nrsurbooboo · 07-11-2008, 08:28 AM

sounds like pcos to me. i suggest finding another dr. and fast. you need someone who is willing to listen to you and help you find out what is going on. good luck and keep us updated.

turtle_d · 07-11-2008, 10:08 AM

yeah you really need a new docter... like meee
you need one that will listen to you talk for a good 5mins while you complain about everything thats wrong with you. and do some tests and then lable you with pcos, so that you can get some propper treatment.
i got labeld pcos... but told theres no point treating me since im not after babys right now.
but there are certain teas that will help some of the things.. try looking for a herbal docter, as that wont do your body soo much damage as other meds

SashaMcGuire · 07-11-2008, 01:23 PM

Hi,

Welcome. I just want to say please keep trying to find a doctor who is sympathetic, knowledgable and willing to help or refer you to someone who can. Persevere. I am now 46 years old and have dealt with this from my early teens. I wish I would have been more aggressive in finding a doctor who knew about PCOS. I had some drs. who would say I had PCOS and others would say no. I just kind of gave up trying to discover why I had abnormal hair growth, messed up periods etc. etc. and just treated the symptoms individually. BCP, electrolysis, etc. Now after years of battling hair where I don't want it I am losing scalp hair. I can't help but think that if I'd had a dr. who was following my symptoms and trying to figure out the root cause I could have possibly avoided some of the problems I'm having now. I went to a dermatologist for the hair loss and he put me on Spironolactone which is supposed to help with abnormal hair growth as well as scalp loss by blocking the hormones which cause these nasty symptoms. Now why did no other dr. tell me about that! Well anyway- please keep looking for a good dr. It can be exhausting, expensive and sometimes humiliating but trust me it is well worth it. And YOU are well worth it also. Our bodies don't work correctly and if one dr. can't figure it out find one who can. Endocrine drs. are a good place to start. Good luck and let us know how you're doing.

elisse04 · 07-11-2008, 02:38 PM

Okay, so after ready your little bio, I have decided that you are my PCOS twin. Except the difference being that I wasn't really told I had PCOS until I was trying to concieve for about a year. My advice for you is to go and speak to a doc ASAP. Maybe he/she can put you on something like metformin, my miracle drug, that can help you regulate your periods.( you can stop BCP and take metformin and the period pain is almost nonexistant) When I was younger and still got a period when I was about 80 pounds lighter, it was like hell. It felt like my insides were trying to come out or something, the pain was unbearable. My husband wanted to take me to the hospital during one episode. My advice for you is to get a new doc, and have him and YOU take control of the PCOS. Because when it comes time to conceive it would make your life sooooo much easier already having your hormones back in balance, and only having to take clomid to get pregnant. With most of PCOS gals, we have to get the hormones back in balance and then look at getting preg, well at least I did. When it comes to the eggs thing, I'm sure you have tons, it's just the fact that your not ovulating. Literally for 14 months I had sex, sex, and more sex and nothing I didn't even think that I was pregnant at all. The entire time I wasn't getting a period either, but I didn't know that you have to have a period in order to ovulate, well usually anyways. If your not worried about getting pregnant right now, just worry about the hormones and the PCOS, ovulation can come later. Just my advice, message me if you wanted to talk a little more, we're the same age, and going through the same crapola!!!!!!!!!!!!!

LaTejanaFria · 07-11-2008, 03:51 PM

Quote:

i got labeld pcos... but told theres no point treating me since im not after babys right now.

ARGHHH!!!! So just because you aren't ready to have children, you shouldn't have good health?!?!?!? What kind of logic is that?! I know that this is the reaction that many doctors have to women who present with PCOS, but it so much more than just fertility! It's your overall health. I say find another doctor NOW! Find one who is interested in helping you get healthier so that when you're ready to have children (if at any point at all). Don't settle for this horrible "treatment.

LaTejanaFria · 07-11-2008, 04:15 PM

You, Elisse, and I must be triplets, because your story sounds so much like mine. I couldn't believe it when I got to this part:

Quote:

Originally Posted by missmurder

She pretty much interrogated me believeing I was sexually active and pregnant which is why I had not got my period in a very long time.

I had totally forgotten this had happened to me. I went into a gyn in my second year of college and he insisted that I must be pregnant since I hadn't had a period in over six months. I mean really! If I had been pregnant, you would have been able to tell by six months. I'm 4'9" and there's nowhere for a baby to go but OUT!

Quote:

So June 22nd of this year I went off birth control. Already my appetite has decreased a bit. However, my skin is getting acne again(also it's really greasy and while I was on the pill it was very very dry). Though, my mood has risen. I don't know if I'll be able to get my period, like ever on my own without medication. Even on the pill the period would only last 2 days or so and was very weird for a female, in that it was dark brown, barely red, and chunky.(gross I know, imagine having to live with it -_-)

I was wondering if anyone has any information on stopping birth control, like symptoms and how long it'll take before the body reaches a normal state. I also read that saw palmetto can be good for lowering androgen levels, has anyone had any success with this or any other natural supplements?

In late March, I finished my last pack of Yasmin and decided to do the same thing that you've chosen: I'm giving my body a rest and I'm treating the PCOS with supplements instead of traditional meds. I haven't really experienced any really bad symptoms as a result thus far, but it's still early yet.

I'm using the Insulite program (a package of four supplements that are taken over the course of the day that helps to regulate the cycle, insuline resistance, etc.), but there are a lot of women on the Alternative Remedies board that are using different methods to regulate their cycles. I always recommend looking at SoulfulQween's signature because it lists all the supplements she's taking. IIRC, she's taking Saw Palmetto.

Since late March, I haven't missed a period yet. The June period was 10 days late, but it came and that's what counts. I'm having to deal with "normal" PMS symptoms now: tender boobs, moodiness, etc. In some ways, it's almost a relief to get to this stage.

I've changed my eating habits to follow a low gi eating plan. At the beginning, I eliminated sugar and artificial sweeteners. This helped to eliminate the sugar cravings that is common in people with insulin resistance. Even though I can now add those back to my diet, I've decided to maintain these habits because I feel much healthier. I allow myself to have a treat every so often (I had a small slice of apple pie at my book club meeting earlier this week) so that I don't get too hung up on what I can't have.

I'm losing weight slowly (about 1 1/2 lbs since mid-June) but I'm happy with my progress because it means that my body is getting healthier and any progress is better than where I was.

Stick with your decision and start looking into the changes that are right for you. Hope to see you on the Alt. Remedies board. Good luck!

Gamer_Girl · 07-11-2008, 04:18 PM

My mom had tons of health issues, like 3 different kinds of cancer, all sorts of random stuff going on. So I learned from her that you need to keep a steady record of your health, detailed info on what's you've done what you've felt. And to find a doctor who will actually listen to it.

The last doctor I had was horrible. It took 3 months to get an appointment, 2 hours more in the waiting room (after the scheduled appointment time) 30-45mins more waiting in the doctors office, and then she was in and out without listening to anything I said.

I went in for shortness of breath and heart palpitations, so she ordered me to get an xray of my lungs. The whole time I was giving her all my symptoms, she wasn't even listening at all, she didn't hear me mentioning the horrible headaches, the fact that I had PCOS, nothing. So I just dumped her and went and found another doctor.

Come to find out it's hypertension (high blood pressure) that's causing all of this! It's just one of the many wonderful symptoms of PCOS. My other doctor didn't even once check my blood pressure. My new doctor also found out I had a fatty liver, which I've been trying to work on as well.

Finding a doctor who will actually listen, read over your pages and pages of health issues, to help you find a solution is the doctor that every PCOS women needs. So don't just settle with any doctor, it's your health and it's important.

Eva37 · 07-11-2008, 05:39 PM

welcome to sc

hope a new dr is better. I had to change dr to get any pcos help, too. What id suggest is writing down everything that you want to ask/say so you dont forget (thats what i always do).
eva