Ok, so the first take on my PCOS edition quick takes is not PCOS related. But I wanted to mention my post yesterday because I am looking for guest posters! Check out the subject matter (A Day in the Life) and let me know by emailing me at buttercup419@gmail.com if you'd like to post. Speaking of email, I made a catholicandcrunchy@gmail.com address a while back but I feel like it's more work switching back and forth between them (especially for commenting, etc) than I want to deal with. Ah, laziness.
One of the things that sometimes makes me angry about PCOS is the healthy foods I'm not supposed to eat. The bad foods? Yeah, I get that. But when I start really liking something that's healthy, and then find out my body doesn't, that's a bummer. Enter my 4 year love affair with edamame. And then I found out within the last year that my body reads soy as estrogen... no bueno. So out went the edamame. Not to mention hormone laden milk, cheese, yogurt, and cottage cheese, all of which I drool over and miss. I have them often enough to keep my cravings at bay, but not nearly as often as I'd like (and do purchase rBST free).
It's frustrating that with PCOS it's of utmost important to be a healthy weight, but it also makes it next to impossible to lose weight. I also am bothered by the fact that I lost a ton of weight quickly (70 lbs in about a year) with Weight Watchers, but did it in an unhealthy way. Everything I ate was either fat free, sugar free, low fat, etc. which meant super processed foods alllll the time. Now that I'm exercising generally 6 days a week and eating whole, fresh, less processed foods, I'm sort of at a stand still. I guess I need to combine the two (count points but on my current foods, which are generally higher because things like nuts that are awesome for me have a lot of good fat, which WW doesn't recognize) but I've lost all love for point counting. I used to thrive on it. Now it makes me angry. Le sigh....
I think I'm going to go gluten free next Lent (not this Lent). I've read multiple places that, though there's not a lot of official research, women with PCOS who go gluten free generally get their cycles back within a few months. Why not this Lent you ask? Because I think going gluten free and then going back to 'regular' foods the week of the wedding and on the honeymoon would be a recipe for disaster for my sensitive GI system! And I'm not NOT eating the food at the resort or our reception, that's for sure. Me not eat wedding cake? You must be crazy. I've already requested one slice of each flavor. Plus it will give me another year to see if this diet (lifestyle, rather) and exercise I'm doing now, along with charting, will help me figure my body out or not. If not, then gluten free next Lent it is, and I will have had plenty of time to prepare. Man, I love wheat.
Though my short lived, post pill acne has left (for the time being, but hopefully for good), another hallmark symptom of PCOS has reared its ugly head this past week. Ready for it? Hirsutism. You know what that is? Hair in places that you don't want hair (no ladies, that doesn't include your bikini line, leg, or armpits). I know the ones I've gotten have been invisible to other people, but that doesn't make me less self conscious about them. I've noticed some small hairs on my chin that I've immediately plucked out. Luckily they appear as blonde on my face (but not the normal peach fuzz so that's how I know what it is) but when I pull them out they look dark! I'm so glad they aren't showing as dark on my face. I've only had 4 so far, and not at all the same time, so I'm hoping it doesn't get any worse than that. I know many post menopausal women wax their chins for this reason, but I may have to start 30 years early if it doesn't stop! I don't remember more than 3 stray hairs from my last venture off the pill (7 months) so hopefully this will come and go like the acne did.
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I love that with as difficult as it is for you, you are finding something to be grateful for. And be sure to have the staff pack up some wedding cake for you to take with you to the hotel for the night. The pieces that you gulp down at the reception are hard to savor and enjoy, with everything that is going on. Later that night you can enjoy a piece with your new hubby and just relax and talk about the day!
ReplyDeleteOh, I like that idea soooo much!!! Thank you! We are both huge cake fans, so it will make a really sweet (pun intended) memory to share cake while we talk about the day!
DeleteThat's an amazing idea. We chose our cake soooo painstakingly, and I barely remember the one bite I had. The venue packed it up but my in-laws accidentally ended up taking it back home with them, so we got a stale piece two weeks later. I'm still sad about that!
Delete3 - Ditto, constant struggle. I also find that if I don't work out often enough I get very lethargic & depressed & lose all motivation to work out. Rock on PCOS, thanks for that!
ReplyDelete4 - Way to go! GF is hard! And, for me, rice four & other refined carbs are all in the same boat. I aim for almond flour & fava/garbanzo bean flour (when I'm being good).
5- From what I understand (no Dr, just a lot of PCOS research) progesterone straightens things out in the second half of the cycle - post ovulation. I guess (oh joy of joys) we're pretty prone to (IF we ovulate) chemical pregnancies because our lack of progesterone makes us more prone to miscarriages. I don't believe it helps with ovulation. I'm sure you've done your reading on inositol vs d-chiro-inositol, fish oil, fiber, green tea, saw palmetto, etc etc etc etc until you're taking 12 pills. I've been doing some of them - no steady results yet. Here's hoping.
5 - Another great one! Saw palmetto helps with this AND with scalp hairloss (from what I've read). But better still I found a groupon for 6 sessions of laser hair removal, so that's what I'm doing. Cheating? Probably. No one else notices? perhaps. But every time I look in the mirror I see a beard and a mustache (sure it's only four little hairs NOW . . .). I'm right there with you, and I can definitely recommend laser hair removal if you can find a good discount. It's expensive because it works.
7 - Yes, yes, yes - agreed.
YES, if I skip a day then all of a sudden I'm super lazy and start skipping many, then hate myself for it, then feel sluggish. It's a horrible cycle. Yeah, I've done a ton of research on supplements but too chicken to make my own cocktail. Some of them are pretty powerful, so I really want to have a naturopath lead me in the right direction. I do multivitamin, fish oil, and flax seed but nothing past that now. I'm really interested in Vitex.
DeleteSaw palmetto freaks me out a bit because you aren't supposed to be on it while you're pregnant (or so I've read). It makes me nervous that I'd be on it at least until I realized I was pregnant, but I might be over worrying on that one.
I've totally debated doing laser hair removal, but will probably never have the extra money for it. I only have a few hairs right now, but we might have to FIND the money if it gets worse!
3. I've been working out too. I hate WW. But I know it'll help. Ugh. Hate hate hate hate hate.
ReplyDeleteOkay. I'm done.
6. I get random hairs on my neck. It bothers me so much. And my chin. I feel like a man sometimes.
7. Ditto.
Sooo anyone else think all the ladies with PCOS should all do some sort of post about it on the same day? Cause I think we should. Like what we don't like about it/positives about it? Maybe? Yes?
Yeah, the hairs kill me. Acne bothers me too, but lots of people have acne. Most women don't have hair on their chin so that one really gets me! I'd definitely do a post like that. Or you could always host a super awesome PCOS series ;).
DeleteI'd be down for either of those.
Deletemaybe we can set something up? all the PCOS ladies :)
DeleteI have a friend with PCOS and she really doesn't do anything about it other than take the pill. It really bothers me because I know she should be doing more, we've had discussions about it (only when she brought it up) and I'd love to be supportive but I know any help I offer will come off the wrong way. So glad you are taking care of yourself!
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately doctors are so quick to prescribe the pill, and don't educate us on what's actually important. Unless she researched it herself, it would be hard for her to know all the information. Honestly, I only started really looking into it when I wanted to see how it would affect my fertility, and then luckily learned all the other stuff.
DeleteHere's to blessings in disguise.
ReplyDeleteJeanne G.
Is Metformin an option for you? That can keep a cycle very regular, and help with some of the other symptoms of PCOS.
ReplyDeleteI'm trying to avoid it because there are so many accounts of women being successful without it. As a general rule, I try to avoid medicine if there is another, more natural way of handling it. It may become necessary in the future if nothing I do helps me to be successful, but for right now it's not an option. I definitely appreciate the input, though!
DeleteI have to wax my chin. :( I hate that I have to. I know the exact hair on my chin that it started with, and for a while I got away with just plucking that one, and then later a few more. Now it's outta control. Most are blondish but either coarse or long (the downy ones). Then I have a few dark ones that I'm mortified of even though they're thin enough that no one can see it unless they come right up to my face. I finally gave in and started waxing, which was worth it just to feel less self-conscious! I started by doing it myself, but I'd miss spots, make a mess, and I hated how much packaging was wasted. Now I do it at a salon by my apartment. It's $10 and takes them 25 seconds, and lasts me about three weeks. (I was spending almost that much on at-home waxing.) I just hate that I have to do this though...I shouldn't have an old-lady beard at 28!
ReplyDeleteYeah, I feel the same way. LOTS of things bother me, but having hairs on my chin bothers me on a deeper level. I know I need to work on my perception of that (like it doesn't really matter, it's an easy fix, etc).
DeleteThe hair thing. Yeah. It sucks. And mine isn't just on my chin - it's also along my jaw line. Sometimes I feel like a man with all that hair. I tried laser hair removal a while back. And it worked well....until my hormones just kept making more hair grow. It does take care of whatever hair is CURRENTLY growing, but it won't keep new hairs from growing :( Alas, I've learned to just deal with it and I try to remind myself that it isn't my looks that will get me to heaven (although it's hard to remind myself of that most days).
ReplyDeleteHave you tried taking metformin? It helps with insulin resistance which a lot of women with PCOS have issues with. I lost 10+ pounds with a few months of taking it. I have been taking it for around 10 years now and it really seems to help (and I take a very low dose). It might be something you want to talk to your doctor about next time you visit.
I think knowing NFP is really helpful for women with PCOS because it's not uncommon for us to be fertile and just have wacky cycles. So, knowing where you are in your cycle can be really helpful if you're trying to get pregnant.
I could go on and on about PCOS - keep up the great work. I think PCOS is just recently becoming well known and it's great to see someone talking about it. I look forward to reading more posts!
You are so right- looks AREN'T important in the scheme of things and often times we give way too much thought to it. It's definitely a work in progress. That's good to know about laser hair removal! As for metformin, I'm going to copy/paste my answer from above as someone else suggested it as well:
DeleteI'm trying to avoid it because there are so many accounts of women being successful without it. As a general rule, I try to avoid medicine if there is another, more natural way of handling it. It may become necessary in the future if nothing I do helps me to be successful, but for right now it's not an option. I definitely appreciate the input, though!
Building on that, please know I don't 'look down on' anyone else's path with PCOS. I'm not saying I think metformin is inherently bad or anything, just that I want to seek other ways first before resorting to it.