I spent the year after my 20th birthday longing for the one thing every young woman thinks they are guaranteed: a period.
I’d first noticed that I hadn’t been menstruating after about three months. I told my OB-GYN that I hadn’t been getting a period, and she assured me that it was normal and must be the result of a new active lifestyle I had adopted.
Three more months passed. Then, three more. Three more again. I went back to my doctor feeling frustrated and confused. I explained my lack of periods, my chronic inflammation, my inability to lose weight, facial hair growth and painful acne. I had no answer as to why I was feeling this way and felt dismissed by my doctors.
It had been 14 months since my last menstrual cycle when I was introduced to the term Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS).
PCOS is a hormonal condition in which the ovaries produce an abnormal amount of androgens (a type of sex hormone) and often result in cysts filled with immature eggs that develop on the outside of the ovary. Unlike normal eggs, they fail to release, which inhibits ovulation. PCOS is among the most common reasons for infertility among women.
According to the World Health Organization, PCOS affects “8-13% of reproductive-aged women” and “up to 70% of affected women remain undiagnosed worldwide.” It is often misdiagnosed and under-recognized by the healthcare system.
Symptoms of PCOS can present themselves in a multitude of ways: It can affect weight, skin, hair, energy, mood, sleep, reproductive health and fertility. Those with PCOS likely know that the immediate doctor’s recommendation is to start taking the birth control pill, which should regulate hormones and lead to a period.
However, I knew the pill would only mask the symptoms I was experiencing and not address my hormonal imbalances and metabolic problems. I asked my doctor for three months to try and treat my symptoms naturally through diet, exercise and lifestyle changes. If nothing improved, I would then start the pill.
Changing my lifestyle was a daunting task. It meant adjusting almost every part of my established routine. My first step was to meet with a PCOS-specialized dietitian, who taught me that a leading symptom of PCOS is insulin resistance, which affects 50 to 75 percent of women with PCOS.
Insulin is produced by the pancreas. It aids in maintaining blood sugar levels and allows cells to use sugar as their primary energy supply. According to John Hopkins Medicine, PCOS-affected cells can be resistant to insulin and do not properly regulate glucose, which results in a buildup and increased risk of diabetes.
A 2021 study published in the National Library of Medicine found that high levels of insulin have major side effects, including elevated hunger, weight gain, stimulated production of luteinizing hormone, decreased production of the sex hormone binding globulin, and an increase in testosterone.
Insulin resistance came as the primary driving force of my PCOS. I had elevated testosterone levels, which explained my lack of periods, hair loss, trouble losing weight and hormonal acne. The high levels of testosterone and insulin contributed to an overall feeling of inflammation in my body.
With this knowledge, I began to examine the impact of the foods I was eating. UChicago Medicine notes that the typical American diet promotes inflammation, so although I thought I was eating moderately healthy, my diet still needed to change. Avoiding foods that aggravated my PCOS symptoms became my first priority.
These foods included refined “white” carbs, processed sugar, red meat, fried foods and alcohol. I needed to focus on high-fiber and anti-inflammatory foods. These include lean sources of protein, healthy fats, complex carbs and whole foods. Entering my senior year without alcohol and fun food felt like setting myself up for failure.
I often looked at exercise as something that needed to be painfully difficult in order to prompt results, so I opted for running and cycling sessions. Not only did this leave me more inflamed, but I learned it was physically stressing my body out. Switching to low-impact workouts such as pilates, walking and yoga helped lower my stress levels and left me feeling stronger rather than worn out.
The final change to my nutrition was the addition of supplements. These included fish oil, magnesium, multivitamin, probiotic and the star of the show: Ovasitol. Ovasitol is a combination of myo-inositol and D-chiro-inositol. Inositol is a sugar that is naturally found in the body that helps cells function. Research has shown that taking inositol supplements improve insulin resistance and lower male hormones, which helps bring back ovulation.
When I was first diagnosed with PCOS, I was overwhelmed with frustration – frustration with my doctors, frustration with my body for what it was experiencing, frustration with the idea of infertility and frustration with the lifestyle changes I had to make. It has been four months since my diagnosis, and I have come to view it as a pivotal moment in my life.
I changed my diet, exercise and vitamin regimes while committing to learning more about my body and nourishing it in the healthiest of ways. Through this, I had a period, lost weight and noticed improvements in my overall state.
For anyone struggling with PCOS, I want you to know that it gets better. Your symptoms are valid, and the birth control pill does not have to be the only answer. In a way, I am grateful that I have managed my PCOS and taken control of my health through diet and lifestyle.
No one knows your body like you do – if something is wrong, don’t be afraid to stand up for yourself and your health.
The publication can be found here.
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