For years I have had suspicions that I have PCOS (Polycystic ovarian syndrome) because I have the majority of the symptoms, but I kept putting it off, and by putting it off I mean putting it off for YEARS, I was hiding in denial and without a doctors diagnosis I thought I could pretend that it’s not happening, which is stupid and not helpful at all. 

The first time PCOS was mentioned to me was as a teenager when I asked someone I knew in the medical field why I had hair on my stomach (it wasn’t thick like a mans body but it was enough for me to notice and when I showed my friends at school they kind of made me feel like a freak for having it) I hated it and wanted it gone and I was just casually told that I probably have cysts on my ovaries and that’s was that, nothing I could do. Really I should have been taken to a doctor because I had no idea about the implications of having PCOS and I could have done more to improve it at a younger age. 

It wasn’t till I came off the pill at 20 after taking Cerelle everyday for 4 years that the symptoms just flared up like crazy and it took me a long time to make the connection between the two, I assume it’s because I went from taking extra hormones everyday to none at all. 

Less than a year after coming off the pill I had rather dramatic weight gain, which I hate mentioning because I’ve always had a fucked up relationship with food, diets and weight. At the time of this weight gain I was also going through an extremely stressful time, which I imagine did not help.

The body hair I already had as teen never went away but didn’t really get worse, I just had to keep on top of removing it, facial hair however, a new symptom I have developed over the past year and half, luckily my facial hair isn’t too severe but it’s more than the normal ladies hair, this is also something I keep on top of removing so it’s not noticeable (except to me lol), this is also known as hirsutism. 

I’ve also been losing a lot more head hair than what I used to, every time i shower I have to gather it all up so it doesn’t go down the drain, I’d hate to think how often my drains would be blocked if I didn’t collect the hair (always got Mr Muscle drain unblocker to hand) 

My periods after coming off the pill were temporarily like clock work and I was really happy about this but they progressively got lighter and lighter, later and later, from a couple of weeks late, to 1 or 2 months, and as of today it’s been over 7 months since my last period. To top it off, and I know this is a little bit TMI but I have been having unprotected sex for over 3 years, (withdrawal method) I don’t want a baby right now but that’s just how sure I was of my PCOS, that I knew that I wouldn’t get pregnant and I didn’t (I wouldn’t recommend doing this btw) 

Those were the main symptoms I had before getting checked out by a doctor, late to no periods, no babies, weight gain and hair growth/hair loss. I would also get dull aches in my lower abdomen and occasionally have a sharp pain in the ovary area when I sneeze, but I’m not sure what causes this or if it’s linked.

I finally took the first steps to get this all invested, which was huge for me, I was so nervous about it all and just cried, it was a phone appointment so fortunately my doctor couldn’t see how much of a mess I was. 

After speaking to my doctor she immediately referred me to have a blood test and booked me in for an ultrasound, when I got my blood results I called the doctor’s receptionist and they told me that my blood was fine and that I didn’t need to speak to a doctor, my doctor had previously informed me that she wanted to speak to me and to book an appointment once I’d got the results, so I persisted and the receptionist begrudgingly gave me an appointment, and it’s a good job she did as they doctor then informed me that my bloods were ‘abnormal’ but she didn’t go into detail and referred me to see a gynaecologist. 

In the meantime I had my ultrasound sound, the results I got from the scan was that my ovaries look fine and healthy, no cysts, she also scanned my kidneys and they’re healthy too! Which is great news for me but also left me feeling confused about what was wrong with me, since the symptom is in the name, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. 

Last week I finally had my gynaecology appointment, where I saw a doctor and a consultant, I basically went through the symptoms I have and the doctor showed me a website with PCOS info and support, she also discussed my blood results in depth which was so helpful, she showed me how healthy they were except have a more testosterone than I should have. 

As a way to help with the symptoms she recommended going back on the pill, of course my concern is that I’d be back in the same position I am in now but when I want to have kids.

However, the consultant offered a completely different option as she was concerned about how long I’d gone without a period and I can’t remember exactly what she said but something about the potential damage to the wall of my uterus and the lining? I could be way off, there was a lot to take in, she was talking really fast and I was a bit confused, she kept mentioning about trying to get pregnant and I had to keep reminding her that I don’t want a baby right now, so she prescribed me Medroxyprogestrone, a hormone medication to help me ovulate and get my period back, and just to use condoms in the meantime to avoid babies. Hopefully this will help my body get back into this swing of working properly! But I’m only on day 4 of taking the medication, no extreme side effects yet except being moody af, Aaron bless him was just leaning on the back of my chair at work and it made me immediately irritable, good job I only need to take these tablets for 7 days! After the 7 days I need to wait for my period to come and then wait 8 weeks after my period to see if I get another period naturally before taking another 7 day course of these tablets.

But yeah, that’s my PCOS journey so far with my symptoms and diagnosis (the consultant confirmed the diagnosis, that I have PCOS without the cysts which is apparently a thing but works in my favour. The two doctors I saw kept mentioning PCOS but would not say for definite that it was that, which it makes sense to do more tests and get second opinions before confirming)

The next steps is trying to get my period back and reduce my symptoms, I have started trying to change my diet to a more PCOS friendly diet but my favourite food is carbs, which is not PCOS friendly! So small changes for now and trying to get into better habits!