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Update -- Met with Adolescent Health, Got Treatment
The diagnosis of PCOS has been confirmed. I've got all the symptoms except polycystic ovaries, which means I'm in the early stages (thank the Lord!) The doctor---a nurse practitioner named Katie---said that as far as they can tell, I don't have any cysts they can pick up on ultrasound, but they're going to do pelvic ultrasounds every few months to watch for any. She told me that we should be able to hold off the cysts for a while with medication because of how early we caught it. According to the ultrasounds and looking over history---and whatever else it is they do in reverse pathology---I've only had PCOS for about 6 months before my GI caught it.
I met with the dietition this clinic offers, Kendall, after. Part of the treatment for my PCOS is going to be losing 10% of my body weight, which should be regulate periods and help with the insulin. I am on a diet that is low-carb, low-fat, and high-fiber. I've been told to eat more fruits and veggies in replacement for what I'm losing so I get "good" everything, instead of the "bad". I've also got to measure everything I eat now, not just grains and meat like I was doing before. This dietition is a lot better than the last one I saw, by far. She's much more flexible and realistic with my schedule, and her diet isn't one that is impossible to stick to. It's common sense, really, and changes that I can keep up long term without hurting myself. The old dietition really didn't listen too well---she was very focused on having to stick to her plan for EVERYTHING and if there was one little slip, you wouldn't see results. That's just not realistic. Am I supposed to not eat at all because the meal you set out that day isn't on my schedule? No, that doesn't work. But Kendall's plan is a lot better.
I have to add another hour to my exercise every day. I chose Saturday, when no one in my house is around and I have time to work out in the morning, take a shower, and make myself breakfast before we have to run our errans for the week.
On top of this, I'm on a birth control pill call Provera (10mg). I'm supposed to take the pill once a day for ten days, stop, and I should get a period within a few days of stopping. Then, I have to repeat this cycle starting on the exact same day next month. I've got it marked for myself on the calander for this month and next month. Basically, I have to artificially make my body have a menstrual cycle because my body just won't do it on its own.
I have to go back to the doctor in three weeks. They're going to go over blood work (hormones, A1C, the works) and talk about how the diet is working. I won't see dramatic weight loss in three weeks (or I would hope not, that would be scary) but we're hoping for about three pounds lost just by changing diet alone. I also have to check in with Katie to make sure the pills are working right. Provera doesn't always work the first month, but we have to watch it because if it doesn't work the second month then I have to go on stronger birth control to make sure I do get periods.
I'm not on the Metforam yet because we don't know if its needed. My mom really doesn't want me on that or the stronger birth control. The Metforum apparently makes my aunt really sick (I knew she was on it, but not the side-effects) and my mom took the same pill they're going to want me on if Provera doesn't work, but it made her crazy. I don't usually have weird drug reactions like that, so I am still open to trying it if these two months don't go the way they're supposed to. I'm putting my foot down this time around. So what, I throw up a little bit, or I'm a little more emotional? Who cares? As long as I'm getting better, I don't care about the side-effects. I've read the pamphlets and I'm not at risk for any of the crazy stuff like heart attacks or strokes, so I don't see a reason to stay off it. I'll listen to my mom's concerns, of course, but she's not going to shape the way I treat my PCOS. Its my body. Not hers.
I'll keep everyone posted on how the next appointment goes and what we're going to be doing.
~ Em
I met with the dietition this clinic offers, Kendall, after. Part of the treatment for my PCOS is going to be losing 10% of my body weight, which should be regulate periods and help with the insulin. I am on a diet that is low-carb, low-fat, and high-fiber. I've been told to eat more fruits and veggies in replacement for what I'm losing so I get "good" everything, instead of the "bad". I've also got to measure everything I eat now, not just grains and meat like I was doing before. This dietition is a lot better than the last one I saw, by far. She's much more flexible and realistic with my schedule, and her diet isn't one that is impossible to stick to. It's common sense, really, and changes that I can keep up long term without hurting myself. The old dietition really didn't listen too well---she was very focused on having to stick to her plan for EVERYTHING and if there was one little slip, you wouldn't see results. That's just not realistic. Am I supposed to not eat at all because the meal you set out that day isn't on my schedule? No, that doesn't work. But Kendall's plan is a lot better.
I have to add another hour to my exercise every day. I chose Saturday, when no one in my house is around and I have time to work out in the morning, take a shower, and make myself breakfast before we have to run our errans for the week.
On top of this, I'm on a birth control pill call Provera (10mg). I'm supposed to take the pill once a day for ten days, stop, and I should get a period within a few days of stopping. Then, I have to repeat this cycle starting on the exact same day next month. I've got it marked for myself on the calander for this month and next month. Basically, I have to artificially make my body have a menstrual cycle because my body just won't do it on its own.
I have to go back to the doctor in three weeks. They're going to go over blood work (hormones, A1C, the works) and talk about how the diet is working. I won't see dramatic weight loss in three weeks (or I would hope not, that would be scary) but we're hoping for about three pounds lost just by changing diet alone. I also have to check in with Katie to make sure the pills are working right. Provera doesn't always work the first month, but we have to watch it because if it doesn't work the second month then I have to go on stronger birth control to make sure I do get periods.
I'm not on the Metforam yet because we don't know if its needed. My mom really doesn't want me on that or the stronger birth control. The Metforum apparently makes my aunt really sick (I knew she was on it, but not the side-effects) and my mom took the same pill they're going to want me on if Provera doesn't work, but it made her crazy. I don't usually have weird drug reactions like that, so I am still open to trying it if these two months don't go the way they're supposed to. I'm putting my foot down this time around. So what, I throw up a little bit, or I'm a little more emotional? Who cares? As long as I'm getting better, I don't care about the side-effects. I've read the pamphlets and I'm not at risk for any of the crazy stuff like heart attacks or strokes, so I don't see a reason to stay off it. I'll listen to my mom's concerns, of course, but she's not going to shape the way I treat my PCOS. Its my body. Not hers.
I'll keep everyone posted on how the next appointment goes and what we're going to be doing.
~ Em
That's what we're working on right now. I know they said its kind of the last thing they do if the patient doesn't already have diabetes. But I've been treated at the same hospital under five different clinics that help with weight loss and nothing has helped so far. Katie said that's why we have to start considering it.
Kendall (my dietition) said that the diet I'm on right now, along with my exercises, are focused on weight loss that works with the way the body reacts with PCOS. It's like a diabetic diet in many ways. She said the same though: If this doesn't work over a few months, as in we see no weight change, then we will probably go with the Metformin.
Kendall (my dietition) said that the diet I'm on right now, along with my exercises, are focused on weight loss that works with the way the body reacts with PCOS. It's like a diabetic diet in many ways. She said the same though: If this doesn't work over a few months, as in we see no weight change, then we will probably go with the Metformin.
Thankfully, I do not right now. But I bounce around often between insuline resistance, pre-diabetes, and normal without control. The slightest slip, and my numbers skyrocket.
Katie (my doc) wants us to consider Metformin because it can be used as a treatment for pre-diabetes. My aunt is on Metformin for pre-diabetes to prevent it from progressing, though her condition is far worse than mine ever has been.
Katie (my doc) wants us to consider Metformin because it can be used as a treatment for pre-diabetes. My aunt is on Metformin for pre-diabetes to prevent it from progressing, though her condition is far worse than mine ever has been.
Yes, Metformin. Sorry, I get these drug names screwed up all the time and i can't spell worth a darn :/
You mentioned something called "Metforam". I have never heard of this (and a google search didn't reveal anything), but could you be thinking of "metformin" which is a drug used to treat diabetes?
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