So I have been feeling a bit off for a while. I went off birth control in December because I wanted to start timing my cycle so I would be prepared when Matt and I wanted to start trying for another baby :)
I had never been off birth control since I was 18 except when I got pregnant with Lily and with Lily I basically got pregnant the week I went off birth control so there was no time for me to track my cycle.
So, back to my story, January came and went without a hitch....feeling pretty normal, regular period, all is well.
Then February comes, no period....getting more zits.....notice hair starting to get thinner on my head.....notice my leg hairs are darkening and thickening.
Then March comes, still no period....multiple pregnancy tests, all negative.....more zits.....hair thinning but started taking hair, skin and nails vitamin which seems to be helping....ummm, is that hair on my upper lip?! waxing time!
Then, April comes, STILL NO PERIOD WHAT THE HECK?! Get an appointment with my Gyno since its been 8 weeks since I had my period. Find out that they don't usually do anything for a missed period less than 3 months, so they did take some blood to test and sent me home with a ultrasound prescription to go and get done if I still didn't get my period for 6 more weeks. Well wouldn't you know it, I get my period 6 days after that doctor visit! What a relief, all is well in the world again!
Then, May comes, no period....zits...hair...this sucks! What is wrong with me?!
Then, June comes, no period.....zits.....hair....something is not right!
Then, July comes, no period....okay its been 11 weeks since my last period close enough to 3 months, I need to figure out what's happening to me!!!!! Appointment with my Gyno for more blood tests on July 2, appointment for ultrasound July 6, results appointment July 8.
So the results are I have PCOS, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. I have done a lot of Googling on this and apparently you get diagnosed for you have at least 2 of the 3 following symptoms:
1. irregular periods
2. high levels of testosterone (male hormones)
3. polycystic ovaries
Lucky me, I got the jackpot of all 3! This explains so much of how I have been feeling lately!
Day 1: Living as a PCOS woman!
I am still googling and researching like a mad woman to figure this all out, but highlights of what I have learned so far:
- my body doesn't properly regulate its hormones, so I need to be on a hormone treat of some sort for the rest of my life
- I might have fertility issues
- I will forever have a hard time losing weight, but I have to keep myself at a healthy weight to help ward off other risks I am more susceptible to now
-50% chance Lily has PCOS
- this explains the extra pesky hair and with hormone treats should go away :)
- there is no cure, but with treatment life can continue as normal
So I considered keeping this to myself and my family, let it be our secret and my struggle...but then I thought, what if someone else I know has this and can give me words of wisdom? Or what if someone else is too afraid to speak up and is waiting for a someone else to be the first? And you know what, life is too short for secrets! So here's my struggle, hope I can help you learn something as I grow through this!
Next up: My treatment, how am I going to fight for normalcy!!
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