Positive I have PCOS.. some advice needed !

[allcatsaregrey]

Hi everyone. Well, I don't remember being officially diagnosed with PCOS.. but I am positive I suffer from it.
When I was 15 and lived in England ( i now live in the states), I went to my doctor there about my periods, and explained they had never been regular since I got them at 11. She had me do an ultrasound of my ovaries, but she didn't find any cysts. She prescribed me birth control, and she said that I will have a hard time trying to have a child when I am ready, and she told me to try for a year and then go see a doctor.
(I was young, so I didn't really care about that part of the conversation)..
However, I am wondering if she was thinking I was developing PCOS.

However, now I am 19.. 4 years later, and over the last year.. I had gained about 50lbs in a matter of 3-4 months. I couldn't stop it, in some cases it was 10-20lbs in a week I had gained.
It didn't make sense, I have never been a big eater.. if I ever ate at all. I was always very skinny until last year.

I went to my doctor, and asked him if it had anything to do with me going OFF birth control.. I told him I went off the birth control because I thought it might be causing the acne on my chest area. He said that going off the birth control probably messed up my hormones and made me gain weight.
He wanted to represcribe me a different birth control, and he said that it should help me lose the weight again.
He knows that my periods have never been regular..

He never asked me to do insulin or any other tests.. he says the reason I gained weight was to do with hormones.. I don't know if he knows about PCOS or not.

Anyway, along with irregular periods.. (I get maybe 1 heavy 60 day long period a year if i am off birth control) .. I have very bad acne only on my chest area, and jawline, and I have skin tags and I am noticing increasing facial hair on my upper lip.
And.. with the fact that last year I gained 50lbs within a matter of months, makes me positive something is up with my insulin levels and that I may indeed have PCOS.

I am feeling discouraged, because I am trying to lose the weight.. and everywhere I look for PCOS diets.. it says "the best way is healthy eating and excercize".
As I mentioned before, I've never been an over eater, and I have never eaten junk food. I eat maybe 1,000 calories a day since as long as I can remember.. and I am a fitness fanatic ( I go to the gym for an hour every day) . I suffered from an eating disorder when I was younger, and some ideals have stayed with me.

I can't lose this weight, no matter what I do. I am positive I need a medication of some sort.. but I don't know if my doctor is aware of PCOS or not.
I am scared my insulin levels will show up normal if I have a test, and I will be stuck with this weight I gained.

It seems so unfair.. my diet is perfect and so is my excercize.. I can't eat any less or excercize anymore...

I am wondering if going on an insulin regulator would help, and if some kind of testostorone blocker would help with my acne and also with weight gain.. or at least how the weight is distributed ? I am more top heavy than bottom heavy ..

Sorry for the long post. I am just so frusterated !!

- Jennifer

[CathyWood]

Hi Welcome to SC. I am glad you found us. I know how you feel. Hang in there we are here for you.

[red dirt girl]

Hi Jennifer,
I'm fairly new myself, but maybe I can give you some ideas...I had to be very proactive to get a dx, sounds like you may need to be as well. I went to the dr. and said I thought maybe I had a hormonal problem due to difficulty losing weight, excess facial hair, and irregular periods, and I asked if I could have bloodwork done to rule out metabolic disorder and thyroid problems. With all of your symptoms laid out like this, your dr. might be more likely to realize you have PCOS.

You don't have to have cysts to have PCOS, but most people do, I think. You also don't have to have irregular insulin levels--I don't.

One of the most common medications to be prescribed for PCOS is Metformin (the generic form of glucophage). A lot of women (myself included) experience weightloss as soon as they start it. You don't have to be insulin resistant to benefit from this drug. Check out the Metformin message board for info about it.

Hope this helps!
Karina

[dazlebell]

Hi Jennifer,
I was just told I have PCOS about weeks ago. I just wanted to let you know you're not alone, right after I stoped the pill I gained 50 pounds in 3 months as well, and the hair growth started shortly after as well. Right now I'm looking for an obygn that well treat my PCOS.
Sorry I don't have much time to write right now.
TTYL.
Carol
PS just try to smile cuz now that we know what it is we can fix it, right?




Carol, 23 phila. pa

[Japan]

Hi Jennifer, I just wanted to add to the above. Congrats on being so dedicated at dieting and exercising. I have a question though - what kind of diet are you following? Not everything widely considered "healthy" is necessarily good for a cyster. Being on a low-carb diet is probably your best bet here, especially if you can go on Metformin, but even without it. You will find more info on what kind of lc diets are out there in the Diet/Exercise forum.

Personally, I don't think BCP's are a treatment for PCOS. At best, they mark the symptoms, but they don't treat the problem.

It sounds to me like you might very well be insulin resistant. Please get tested, and hopefully you can get a prescription for Metformin.

I hope you will find Soulcysters as helpful and empowering as I have. Welcome aboard!

[Jashobeam]

I hope you get the tests you need, and a doc who knows a lot about PCOS! I would ditto the asking a doc about Met. I am not and have never been on birth control pills, but gained weight pretty rapidly in my early 20s, even when I was exercising a lot.

A lower-carb diet has definitly helped me. I would also get a second opionion about your having fertility problems. Not all Cysters do have fertility probs, and some have had success with a low-carb diet and certain medications.

Here is my blog about my diet. I've lost 42 pounds so far in a little over 2 years.

http://daretobethin.blogspot.com/