PCOS: Part 2 (Challenges)

As promised, I am back with Part 2 of my previous post: Challenges. 

I received nearly 500 views on my last post, which is a lot higher than expected considering that I do not advertise my page anywhere. I only post the links on my private Facebook and people share it from there. I would be glad if I helped even ONE more person who can relate to these issues.

For those who were wondering what PCOS stands for, it's "Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome." People in India mostly refer to it as PCOD which stands for "Polycystic Ovarian Disorder." They are the same.  It is linked to insulin resistance that can be tied to diabetes, heart disease, and infertility. It can leave women emotionally and physically scarred from the experience of holding onto their weight despite efforts, excess body hair and acne. I am not a doctor and I am not sure how this disorder is rooted into our body mechanics, but I do have a basic understanding by conducting research.

PCOS is directly tied to insulin resistance. The extra insulin resulting from insulin resistance is the trigger for cyst formation in the ovaries. The production of excess male hormones called androgens (i.e. testosterone) explains why PCOS women have excessive hair and why they store most of their weight in their belly. 

The extra fat tissue makes the problem worse by producing more testosterone, which contributes further to the hormonal imbalance. That imbalance disrupts my period cycle. As you can probably tell by now, it's a vicious cycle. There is some evidence out there for PCOS being genetic. My OBGYN mentioned that PCOS occurs when a woman has a lot of resting follicles (fluid collections that hold eggs), but doesn't actually ovulate. Women with PCOS end up having multiple follicles. The number of follicles is higher than normal which makes your periods go haywire. That is why I bleed all over the place with no tracking of how many days my cycle is. This directly ties into why PCOS women have trouble getting pregnant. Because with irregular cycles, you have a hard time calculating your ovulation. 

I mentioned chronic fatigue in Part 1. It's so counter-productive to keeping weight off and exercising to combat PCOS symptoms. How does one make time for meal prep and exercise after a busy day of work when their body collapses? All I want to do is lie down when I come back from work. Many women with PCOS report increased fatigue and low energy. Well, it makes sense. You can bleed for 30 days at a time. including spotting. How are you going to feel energetic with shedding that type of blood? All I feel is fatigue and cramps. It's not a good feeling. I see tasks like laundry and cleaning. I want to do them but some days, I cannot even get myself to stand. 

PCOS does not refer solely to a hormonal imbalance. PCOS is a complex hormonal, metabolic and reproductive disorder that affects women. It's not only being fat, and tired. It's also battling with the challenges of reproductive problems. It's so difficult to detect PCOS (as discussed in my previous post). That is why my family doctor was always quick to dismiss the idea. It is because it never showed up in regular testing. This is why many women don't find out about PCOS until they want to get pregnant.  I am not even going to go into the challenges with fertility because I don't want to put myself in that zone. I want to work towards Part 3 which is the resolve.

A positive mind-set is so important. But how do I feel positivity when all I deal with is anxiety? I get stressed easy, overthink and absorb a lot of negative energy. I worry a lot. I feel overworked. I feel exhausted all day long, despite my activity throughout the day. All I want to do is sleep. I don't want to say this - but lately, it feels as though the lower half of my body is dead. It is extremely difficult to come up with a plan to control my symptoms. This is what I did over the last week in Punta Cana while I was on vacation. I took a book with me, "Woman Code" by Alisa Vitti. I got to read some of it on my flight. I have a basic vision of what I want to do from now on with my diet, exercise and general life. A lot has to change. 

I have to become intuitive and intune with my body. Generally, a lot of don't listen to our bodies. I feel as though I have a dairy intolerance now. That wasn't the case before but I feel that any food or drinks with cream inflame my stomach. By reading this book, I am becoming aware of food products that disrupt the endocrine system. Once I know what my red flags are, I can eliminate those foods from my diet. By doing this, I can tell if there is a difference. 

In addition to food and exercise, STRESS is an undermined topic in relation to PCOS. It greatly affects our health. It is problematic for PCOS in particular. We are far more susceptible to stress than others due to our unique hormonal imbalances. Stress can even disrupt any progress you make with diet and exercise. Our pituitary gland is the "master gland" that controls most of the hormone function in our body. With PCOS, we have low progesterone and stress steals that particular hormone. In a normal menstrual cycle, there is a predominance of estrogen that rises up until the time of ovulation at mid-cycle. After ovulation has happened, the progesterone levels should rise. There needs to be balance between these two hormones for normal cycling and healthy fertility. Knowing that cortisol is released in times of stress, it's important to understand that your adrenals are going to use up whatever progesterone you have floating around to make more cortisol when you are under stress. This is why there are statistics to prove that women with PCOS have higher rates of anxiety, depression and other emotional disorders that are aggravated by stress. There is a huge psychological component to PCOS and stress will only make it more challenging. 

In addition to all of the above-stated, there is also the risk of diabetes due to blood sugar levels. I won't even get into that. Basically, it all boils down to a lifestyle change. It's a NECESSITY. That is why they say there is no proven cure for PCOS. Because it takes a lot for you to control all of the symptoms. In my next post, I will get into specific steps you can take to help with some of these issues. Before I write that, I would like to finish my book and become more informed about how I can help myself and others feel better.

Thank you all for being patient with these long posts.

Have a goodnight :)