Sharon Munson is 26 years old and lives in Georgia. She was diagnosed with Polycistic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) about 2 years ago.
PCOS is a syndrome that is not well known even though about 1 in 15 American women are affected by it! Symptoms include irregular periods, obesity, and infertility. Many women go undiagnosed.
Sharon was suffering with many of the symptoms for years before she was diagnosed. Within a few months of starting the Zone, the symptoms of PCOS that she had been experiencing had virtually disappeared. The Zone helped Sharon regulate her periods enough so that when she and her husband decided to try to have a baby she didn’t need fertility treatments (as the doctor told her she’d probably need since she had PCOS). She got pregnant on her own the first month, with twins!
She’s just thrilled about her identical twin daughters. Isabel was 6lbs. 7oz. at birth and Abigail was 6 lbs. "I tell everybody [The Zone] is the best thing I’ve ever done. I’ve got two babies because of it. You can’t replace that for anything."
Read how Sharon suffered with PCOS symptoms for years without ever knowing it. Hear what she did about it when she was finally diagnosed, and how her search for treatment led her to the Zone.
In the coming weeks Sharon will tell us how the Zone helped her and her husband conceive, naturally, and helped with the pregnancy and birth of their beautiful identical twin daughters. You’ll also hear about some of the other results Sharon and her husband experienced on the Zone.
Sharon, pictured here with her identical twin daughters
Can you tell me about your experiences with PCOS?
Throughout college, I was on birth control pills to regulate my period (it had become very irregular during high school). As I approached graduation and was making plans to get married in the fall I decided to stop taking the pill. I had put on a few pounds and didn’t feel good (headaches, low energy). I assumed that going off the pill would help me to lose the extra weight and was hoping it would make me feel better.
I had always had trouble with headaches and low energy. I never seemed to feel "great" but we could never find the reason. Allergy tests revealed nothing, doctors never had a satisfactory answer.
I went off the pill and started walking and exercising. I watched what I ate and anticipated losing the extra around my middle that I had put on in college in time for my September wedding. Well, it was a frustrating summer because the weight wouldn’t budge (and it wasn’t that much, maybe 5 pounds).
I really believed that it would just melt away, after all I was young and I was eating right and exercising. I had a fantastic wedding in spite of the extra 5 pounds and after that I just ignored my continued weight gain.
I also ignored the fact that my periods never became regular and that the headaches and low energy continued. I ignored it for 2 years, finally my doctor recognized the symptoms of PCOS (thanks to my hormone levels, continued irregular periods, one that lasted 10 days, and other classic PCOS symptoms). The recommended "treatment" was a return to birth control pills until I was ready to get pregnant. This didn’t sit right with me so I did some research (thank goodness for the Internet!) and found the wonderful web based PCOS support group.
Through e-mail discussions with fellow PCOSers I was lead to the low-carb concept. I looked at the Atkins plan first and was scared by it. It didn’t make any more sense than other diet fads out there. Then I found the Zone.
I remember looking at ETZ in the bookstore and being shocked by the first paragraphs I skimmed, it was the part where Dr. Sears explains the link between evolution and our diet. Not only did his program make sense but it was based on scientific research and testing. I was very impressed by the Type II Diabetes tests that he was running, especially since PCOS has a strong link to Diabetes.
I decided it couldn’t hurt to try it for a month so I left the birth control prescription at the pharmacy and gave it a try. That has turned out to be the most important decision I have ever made!
How long into it did you realize that the Zone was having such a positive effect on the symptoms of PCOS.
It was real hard at first because the insulin was still in my system. I know now that that’s what it was. I was real uncomfortable and I didn’t understand what to eat. I measured everything and decided that I wouldn’t give it up for at least three weeks.
After I got through those first few days I started feeling better. I immediately started losing weight.
I started it in September and by February it was starting to make a real difference. I had had three periods in a row that were regular. I had lost 25 pounds. I didn’t have headaches any more. I had a lot of energy and felt just really good. My cholesterol had gone from 286 to 191.
Do you still have any symptoms of PCOS ?
No. I had never heard of PCOS. I had seen myself getting more and more symptoms of something not being right. The doctors could never figure out what was wrong. It was just very frustrating to not know what was wrong. It was wonderful to finally find out and be able to put a name to it. Then through that to find the Zone. Which is basically the solution for this syndrome.
It’s just, eat properly and not have too much insulin in your system. It has just been the biggest life altering thing I have ever had happen.
It hasn’t been debilitating or anything but it’s just been enough of something going on that we couldn’t figure out what it was. For me not to feel great. To come along and find this and get on the Zone I feel so great. I can’t believe how many years I’ve spent not feeling good and not knowing why.
Sharon before the Zone
Tell us about the birth of your twins 5 months ago.
The doctor told me having PCOS there was a high likelihood of needing fertility treatments which would probably start with Clomid. That scared me a little bit. So we got on the Zone and I started having regular periods and I decided to chart my basil body temperature to see if I was ovulating. When I first started doing it I could tell I wasn’t because my temperatures were so erratic.
It was neat because the longer I was on the Zone I could actually watch my body come into balance as temperatures started doing what the book say they should do. I could tell by the temperatures that I was actually starting to ovulate.
I went to the doctor and showed him the charts and he said that I could go ahead at any time and try to get pregnant. So we decided to try and that first month, we got pregnant, just by charting the temperature. We were shocked! I went to the doctor probably about a month after I had seen him and told him that I was pretty sure I was pregnant and he was just amazed that I had gotten pregnant so quickly.
We were so shocked to have twins. They always say that if you have to have Clomid you have a higher chance of having twins, but we didn’t have to have fertility treatments. We got twins, they’re identical twins. It’s the best thing in the world. I always knew I wanted more than one child but I never meant that I wanted them both at once.
You got right back down in weight after the delivery?
Yes, easily. I had not really put on any extra weight, which everybody was very amazed by. Just by staying close to the Zone throughout my pregnancy. I mean, I had a perfect pregnancy. I think the Zone had a lot to do with that.
I didn’t do what a lot of pregnant woman would do is just to feel like they have a license to eat. I understood what my body needed to help with the pregnancy. It was an absolutely perfect pregnancy and I was able to have the twins without having to have a C-Section. I think a lot of that is thanks to the Zone. One of them was breach. I was healthy enough that the doctor was willing to go ahead and do it. I credit all of that to the Zone without a doubt.
I tell everybody it’s the best thing I’ve ever done. I’ve got two babies because of it. You can’t replace that for anything.
It has changed our lifestyle to the point where we’re not worn out at night when we get home. We have the energy to be together and be with our children. We just feel so much better. We’ve got twin babies that are just wonderful and we get to enjoy them.
We understand how we’re supposed to eat to feel good and to teach them when they get old enough to eat right and just know that we’ll be healthy for them. I’ve been on it so long now, it’s hard to remember what it was like before.
What are some of the other results you’ve experienced following the Zone?
In September of 1997 I weighed 161 and had a body fat percentage of 43. By November of 1997 I had lost 15 pounds and was down to 33% body fat. At my first prenatal appointment (June of 1998) I weighed 129, and now (5 months postpartum) I weigh 125.
Jonah, my husband, also lost 30 pounds and dropped his body fat percentage by 5% (his wasn’t bad to start with).
We have more energy.
When we first got in the Zone we were amazed by the change in cravings we had. We had always eaten a lot of breads and pastas, often we would skip meat completely. Cookies, pastries and other desserts had always been a weak spot for us but I didn’t feel like we ate badly.
The Zone made me realize that every meal and snack does count, that every time I eat is an opportunity to make a difference. Also, once we got in the Zone we lost interest in eating as entertainment. We didn’t have any desire to eat desserts or breads and pastas, they just didn’t appeal to us.
Did your results surprise you? Were you expecting any of this to happen?
I really didn’t know what to expect when I started it. I was just hoping it would do something to alleviate some of the symptoms of the PCOS.
I did not expect the dramatic change that it brought. When I got into the Zone and my body was working at its best for the first time. I would actually feel euphoric after I ate meals. It was just amazing to me. I would feel so good when I would eat right. You can really tell when you’re in the Zone.
What was your diet like before the Zone?
In my past efforts to eat healthy I would try to follow the Food Guide Pyramid, but always had a hard time eating this many servings of such-and-such and that many servings of so-and-so. It was difficult to keep up with and never felt right. Dr. Sears’ 40-30-30 plan made everything so simple. I could concentrate on making each meal or snack balanced instead of worrying about daily servings or total calories, and it felt so natural.
What really floored me about Entering the Zone (which I read cover-to-cover over a weekend) was how much common sense it made. Low fat never made sense to me. Everyone was always saying "cut out the fat and you’ll lose weight" But I didn’t eat a lot of fat and still I was overweight and my cholesterol was high.
After starting the Zone and becoming aware of protein and carbs I was shocked by the content of the foods we had been eating, especially low fat items because they seem to replace fat with carbs.
There’s so much highly processed convenience foods available these days, we’re becoming dependent on it and our health is suffering because of it.
Do you use the ZonePerfect products?
I do. We couldn’t get by without the products. We did at first. We did it just with food, but they really help when you’re rushing around in the morning. Breakfast is usually a Zone Shake and a bar. Which I’m so glad y’all have the shakes now.
What surprised you the most about the program?
I guess the headaches. I had always thought they were allergies or sinuses and had really been pretty miserable with them most of my life. To go for weeks at a time without even thinking about having a headache, it’s just been so relieving and has freed me up to think about other things.
What are some of the things that you do eat now, some of your favorites?
We love the Fajitas and the Swiss Chicken that’s in the ZonePerfect Meals in Minutes. We really enjoy the Mexican style dishes. Like Southwestern Chicken w/ pepper & bean salsa, Tex-Mex Beef Stir-fry, and the Taco Burger.
In the summertime we especially enjoy throwing fresh vegetable packets on the grill while we slow-grill some lean meat (usually boneless chicken breasts, which are a staple of our diet). Top it off with some fresh fruit for dessert and it’s a great meal to enjoy on hot nights (with the bonus of not heating up our kitchen and no pots to clean!).
Have you told anyone else about The Zone?
My mother-in-law was very skeptical. She saw me losing the weight and looking so great. Finally she decided she should see what all the fuss was all about. She’s been on the Zone now for a good year.
I tell everyone I can about it! My mother does it, my sister-in law’s tried it. There are two or three people at work I’ve gotten to go on it. Any chance I get. Because it’s made such a difference in my life I just want other people to know about it.
What do you tell people just starting out to help them along?
I tell them to measure everything.
I tell them to give it three weeks without giving up. If you’re going to do it, commit yourself to giving yourself three weeks to do it and then decide. At first you won’t be sure about it because it’s so different from what you’re used to.
I encourage them to get the book and read what he has to say about it.
OK, to sum up, how has the Zone impacted your life and changed the way you look at food?
I didn’t think about food in the same way, before I was always thinking about what I was going to eat next and would often go in the kitchen to try to figure out what I was craving. On the Zone I don’t have cravings, I feel satisfied. This is so freeing!
Most people on diets are always talking about food and saying "Oh no, I shouldn’t have that". On the Zone (which is not at all like being on a diet, it’s a lifetime nutrition program) I find myself saying "Oh no, I don’t WANT any of that", "bad" carbohydrates lose their appeal. I was very surprised to learn that fruits and vegetables were considered carbohydrates. I had always thought that grains and cereals fell into a different category than fruits and vegetables (thanks to the Food Pyramid).
For the first time, I feel like I have control.
I’m not trying to follow some made-up artificial diet. I am eating healthy easily and I understand the why behind the how. This makes a huge difference to me, I’ve always been an information driven person, so knowing the basis for the program helps tremendously.
I have come to realize that insulin is very much like a drug. The first few days of getting the excess insulin out of your system are somewhat uncomfortable but once it’s out of your system you can’t believe the difference.
After launching part one of this series we received a letter from Sharon's mother. We have her permission to share it with you here:
I just finished reading the article about my daughter, Sharon Munson on your web-site. It is exciting to see this information available to other people. As a mother who was aware that something wasn't right with my daughter's health even during her highschool years, it is hard to describe the complete joy and relief that I felt when Sharon finally discovered the Zone. We spent many years searching for the cause of her headaches, low energy, & high cholestrol. Sharon may have forgotten the number of times I made appointments with allergists (since I suffer from multiple allergies), and internists to only be told "she'll outgrow it", "you need to watch her diet", and that "you are too concerned about this". We tried allergy shots, physical exercise, and different nutrition plans. A mother's instinct is often right, but until Sharon found the Zone nothing helped. Doctors seemed bewildered and as a result advised us not to worry. Sharon's determination to not succumb to a possible medical "solution" with numerous unwanted side effects gave her the needed motivation to discover and follow the Zone.
The Zone moved Sharon from being a miserable victim of nature to being a vibrant, entergetic, and healthy person. I am thankful for the Zone, but even more thankful for my daughter's self discipline and her determination to be healthy. As you can guess, this carries over very well into her role as the mother of twins.
Thank you for sharing this information with others. Hopefully, other mothers will be able to consider the role of the Zone in resolving concerns they may have about their children.... and find the value of the Zone in their own lives as I have.
UPDATE: Since we last spoke, Sharon has signed up for the course to become Zone certified. She is looking forward to sharing her knowledge and experience with others.
Zone Diet Online program:
Zone Diet Meal Delivery:
Source:
http://www.zoneperfect.com/Site/cont...ail.asp?id=338 
Zone Diet & PCOS 
