Just found out I have PCOS- Got a few questions! Please help...

[momo_baby]

Hi There,

My last period was 2-7 of July this year. And I'd just come off Yaz. Then 7 days later on the 14th of July I started spotting which over the next couple of days turned into a really heavy bleed that lasted for 6 days. It wasn't like a normal period because there were no cramps which I get really bad usually. Anyway, I kept an eye out for Ovulation because my Husband and I are ttc.

I was sure I was ovulating from my CM which was 1 week after the bleed. and I had sore nipples. So, after two weeks and getting BFN, I went to the doctor to find out what was going on which is when I got an ultra sound which showed I had PCOS. Then I got my blood work back today and she said my hormones are fine except my estrogen is raised.

Over the last month I've changed my diet a lot even though I'm not overweight, just to try be more healthy and active.

I'm confused about why my hormones would be fine if I had PCOS and what would be some reasons my estrogen would be raised?

I'm finding this all really confusing and I'm not sure when to expect af or if I should wait until after af comes to start tracking ovulation or to start doing it now.

Any suggestions or help you could give me?

[A1989]

Hi,
ther is always some really mild cases of pcos,
and not all have the same symptoms or have their hormones affected in the same ways
..due to the lack of progesterone production in many pcos patients, estrogen becomes dominent ..

dont worry and i hope u find the right treatment

[BloomingTulips]

Just having numerous cysts on your ovaries does not mean you have PCOS. Here's an article explaining the difficulty in diagnosing PCOS because of a lack of consensus: http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/466018

One extremely common criteria for diagnosing PCOS is having two out of the following three symptoms:

• Menstrual irregularity due to oligo- or anovulation (few or no ovulations)
• Polycystic ovaries (by ultrasound)
• Evidence of hyperandrogenism (high male hormones like testosterone), whether clinical (hirsutism, acne, or male pattern balding) or biochemical (high serum androgen concentrations)

In addition to the above two out of three, other causes of hyperandrogenism and menstrual irregularity must be excluded, such as congenital adrenal hyperplasia, androgen-secreting tumors, and hyperprolactinemia. It is currently assumed that all women with PCOS are insulin resistant, though all do not clinically test as such they all are benefited by IR therapy. Those who are considered "mild" or "borderline" cases usually do not do well with IR therapy.

I would say that the flow irregularities were to be expected after just coming off BCPs and that you don't need any aggressive testing until at least 6 months of unsuccessful ttc, especially since you are already ovulating and had no other complaints. If your progesterone and testosterone were normal, your FSH to LH levels were around 1:1 (not over 1:2), and you do not have a history of irregular periods not otherwise explained (meaning any BCP-induced irregularities are excluded) then you most likely don't have PCOS. These blood tests should ideally be done on Day 3 of your cycle if they are ordered.