Polycystic ovarian syndrome - is a very common hormonal disorder that can cause irregular cycles, 'cysts' on the ovaries, excess facial hair and acne. It can also affect blood sugar levels which can have a known affect on weight gain/inability to loose weight.
The root cause of PCOS is high testosterone/androgen levels. It is important to find out WHY testosterone is high to being with. Read my post, 'The Four Types of PCOS' to help you do this.
Did you know that 15% of women have PCOS!?
So if these symptoms sound like you or if you have already been diagnosed- there are literally MILLIONS of other women who are in the same boat! ❤️
I have worked with hundreds of women with PCOS and it is amazing to see them come back with improved symptoms. I have a highlight on my Instagram where I talk about;
What is PCOS?
Most Common Symptoms
How to get diagnosed
Treatment options
You can find it here. Hopefully, it can help some of you with PCOS or help with your diagnoses of PCOS.
So what can you do to manage PCOS?
Firstly, there is no right or wrong approach. I always feel with chronic complaints that you need to come at it guns blazing, from every angle. Conventional and natural medicine can work so well together.
Both treatments are focusing on two things: reducing male hormone (androgens - like testosterone ) production and also managing insulin levels.
Too much testosterone stops ovulation and high insulin levels or insulin resistance causes an increase in testosterone production, stopping ovulating.... you see the vicious cycle here!
If you opt for the pill here are a few important things to note:
The pill is great at managing symptoms of PCOS as it reduces androgen production so things like acne, hair growth, hair loss can all improve - but in most cases these improvements only last for as long as you are on the pill!
Remember that the pill does not ‘regulate’ your period. I can understand the pill being given to help with androgen production but if you have been given the pill to regulate your cycle, this is not the right approach.
Your period is what comes AFTER ovulation and the pill stops ovulation completely (this is how it works as a contraceptive, no ovulation = no egg being released). You are literally doing the polar opposite to what we are wanting our body to do - OVULATE!
The pill can also make insulin resistance worse in the long term too - hands up how many of you came off the pill and your acne and hair growth was worse than ever before? This is often the reason.
With my clients who are already on the pill and are hoping to come off it. I start working from behind the scenes. i.e. I work on insulin resistance and balancing your hormones, so when you do decide to come off it, you have put lots of the ground work in already!
So, whatever you decide to do make sure to have a chat with your GP, get all the facts and it would also be good to learn a little bit about how nutrition and lifestyle can impact PCOS too. Like I said there is no right or wrong approach - do what fits in with you! ☺️
For more information on PCOS you can check out my Instagram highlight on the topic here.