pcos questions

[stickygingerbread]

I've just had an ultrasound result suggesting pcos. I am so surprised, yet not. already have 2 dcs, but the specialist named off several symptoms I do have. last pg showed insulin resistance, which I understand to be underlying condition?

Please helpful mn'ers can you direct me to the best info on pcos and share your experiences?

[EuroShagmore]

If you have 2 children already, it seems like it doesn't affect you enough to stop ovulation, which is the main fertility-related PCOS problem. You can ease the condition by eating a low GI diet (basically limiting the amount of simple sugars).

I'm similar, btw. I have polycystic ovaries, some unwelcome hair and insulin resistance, but I ovulate every month and am not overweight. Nothing has been mentioned about it affecting my fertility because I ovulate.

[stickygingerbread]

Thanks for your informative response EuroShagmore. I have been getting positive OPKs every month, but there is clearly much more to learn.

I am a little overweight since having dc1, and perhaps the pcos explains the difficulty shedding it when there was never any trouble before. I will look into the low GI diet, thank you.

[AttilaTheMeerkat]

It is not adviseable to use OPKs at all if you have PCOS as these can and do give misleading results!!!. Please bin them forthwith. These kits anyway have two major problems, firstly they assume that there is one rise in LH every month and that every such rise is followed by ovulation. Both of these are simply not true. As many women with PCOS have an excess of LH to start with the kit just reads that level. If you are also happening to be getting multiple positive results this is why.

PCOS cannot be cured but it can be managed to a certain extent; following and sticking to a low GI/GL eating plan can help.

//www.verity-pcos.org.uk is a good website.

[stickygingerbread]

ty Attila especially for the Verity link. What a tremendous resource. It may seem odd, but I am feeling excited about this diagnosis, because it explains so much.

I have very regular cycles now but in my teens and 20s they were extremely irregular. Never had a weight issue until pg with dc1. Then gained weight rapidly and have not been able to move it in almost 6 years. Now I see why. With dc2, suspected gestational diabetes. Did the 3-hour glucose test and measured short of actual gd, but the insulin resistance found is a red flag in retrospect.

Main symptom would be some excess hair, and irregular cycles earlier in life. I can see in retrospect how lifestyle changes made a big difference to me. In my 20s to early 30s I worked hard to improve diet, decrease stress and exercise regularly before ever being aware of pcos - and my cycles became regular. Especially exercise and working to create a stress-limiting lifestyle (job, friends, family).

So I can already see that much health management is in my own power, and I can offer encouragement to others - 2 dcs with a managed lifestyle.

I will have to pursue more information with doctor and research to understand if I am really ovulating or not, but thank you for the heads up that I may not be. This is so important to be aware in pursuing the main objective: another dc.

But pcos provides potential insight into family medical history too. My mother and her mother both gained weight after childbirth, around the middle, whereas they were very thin previously. Also my mum is on statins for high cholesterol, and her mum died of heart attack. Just based on limited reading so far, I feel the information is out there to help me live a healthier life and manage risks that previous generations were not able defend against.