melgp

The book is "the low gi guide to managing pcos", but it may also go by the name "the new glucose revolution guide to managing pcos" by Jennie Brand Miller. You may be able to find it listed if you go to s.cysters home page & look up books - I'm just not sure if it goes by a different name in the U.S.
There apparently is definitely a direct link to hormonal imbalances and insulin resistance, which is why ir can make the symptoms of pcos worse. From the book again,
"the receptors for insulin in the ovary are different from those in other tissues, in that when blood insulin levels are high, the ovary doesn't turn down insulin receptor no.'s or reduce their activity. therefore, the action of insulin continues uabated in ovarian tissues.... the result is excessive production of both male (testosterone) and female (oestrogen) sex hormones.... Normally the ovary makes testosterone & then converts it to oestrogen. However, excessive stimulation of the ovary overwhelms its capacity to fully undertake this conversion, with the result that excess testosterone spills over into the blood.the uncharacteristically high testosterone levels in the blood then bring about 'male' characteristics in women, eg hirutism & weight gain. Most women with pcos also produce excessive male hormones from the adrenal glands".
so if our insulin is high, we are getting even more testosterone, and it sounds like pcos already has us producing high testosterone in the first place!!
Sheesh, no wonder I have to wax my lip/chin/sides of face every 3 or 4 weeks!
I thought your 2nd lot of tests was a great change from 97 down to 79, and I am surprised that just being on the bcp altered that, but it could be because it controls your hormones and gets your body into a "regular" cycle, even though it's not a true cycle. The only time i have ever had "normal" periods is on the bcp, when I went off it last year, I think they stayed ok for a few months and then I had periods every couple of weeks again (the reason the put me on the bcp in the first place around 8 years ago). On met and clomid, my cycles have been 35 days +.
Hope there's some more useful info there for you!

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BRbangle

The same thing happens to me. (I've been on and off various bcps since puberty.) But, now that I've found one that manages my PCOS symptoms without making me feel completely psychotic, I'm scared of ever having to get off it.

With regards to the insulin levels... I found out some additional info, after talking to my doctor friend last night. She suggested that metformin is probably responsible for my low fasting insulin levels. She said she would not put much weight on the results of fasting insulin, pending fasting glucose levels are being managed. (This is consistent with how my endocrinologist operates. He originally prescribed metformin for me, based on fasting glucose alone.) When I told my friend that my lipid profiles have been normal, cholesterol is good, blood pressure is low, etc., she said metformin is likely responsible for that, too. (Obviously, she is a huge advocate of metformin for PCOS and for me, as well.)

I then looked online to see how metformin can affect fasting insulin. Apparently, it often significantly decreases it.