Healing PCOS. Amy Medling

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ was a dark moment. I felt helpless and hopeless. I still had no diagnosis. There was no end in sight for my out-of-control symptoms, and now I was facing infertility. Through my twenties, my symptoms worsened. I struck out on my own after college, and that meant eating a lot of inexpensive prepared foods like pasta and macaroni and cheese. I began to struggle with depression. I wondered what was wrong with me. I was a strong, successful, and intelligent woman. Why could I not stop myself from eating Tootsie Rolls? Why was my hair falling out? I was running every day without fail and still gaining weight. I visited an endocrinologist, who gave me spironolactone for my hirsutism (male-pattern hair growth), which did not help because it was only an attempt to treat a symptom. I still didn’t receive a diagnosis.

       Eventually, I married the love of my life. We wanted to start a family, so I stopped taking the pill. My health struggles and symptoms continued, but four years later, with the help of clomiphene (Clomid), I became pregnant with my first son. He felt like a miracle. After his birth, we decided to try the Creighton Model for family planning, because I didn’t want to go back on the pill. I met monthly with a Creighton Model teacher who reviewed my charting, and she soon realized that I was not ovulating. She was the first to notice my patterns and mention PCOS. When we were ready to try for a second child, she referred me to a specialist who put me on Actos, guaifenesin, and Clomid. As with all prescriptions up to this point, I took them without question. No dice. I didn’t become pregnant, and I felt awful.

       Then I searched out a reproductive endocrinologist. She knew the right labs to request and immediately ordered an ultrasound. Finally! At age thirty, I had my official diagnosis—PCOS. I was put on metformin (which made me horribly sick) and monitored cycles of Clomid. With this help, I conceived my second miracle.

      After the birth of my second son, I felt worse than ever. I swore I would never go back on metformin or the pill because both made me feel so awful. I had two beautiful children and a wonderful husband, but I was exhausted all the time and could barely function. My fatigue, hirsutism, brain fog, and hypoglycemia were out of control. I certainly wasn’t the wife or mother I knew I could be. After years of following mainstream advice from countless doctors, I realized that nothing was helping. The drugs they offered made me sicker and more miserable. The drugs that helped get me pregnant couldn’t heal my PCOS. I was way too young to feel so old, and sick and tired of feeling sick and tired—I couldn’t go on living this way.

       I knew that if I wanted to feel better, I had to adopt a different approach. I found a naturopath to help me get to the root of my symptoms instead of trying to put a Band-Aid on each one. At thirty-two years old, I found the right person. She guided me in selecting supplements that could naturally balance my hormones. Maybe most important, she taught me to how to use a glucometer. Thanks to this tool, I made the connection between what I was eating and how I was feeling. I had empirical evidence to help make sense of my symptoms. Glucometer in hand, I began to experiment with my diet. As I mastered this piece of my life, my energy returned, my hair slowly began to grow back, I lost weight, and my menstrual cycles began to regulate.

       In working with my naturopath and doing my own research and experimentation, I realized that I had the power to take control of my health. No one else could do it for me. I couldn’t take advice at face value and continue to think and act like a victim.

       I scoured the internet for information and read books about PCOS and holistic medicine by pioneers like Samuel Thatcher, Walter Futterweit, and Nancy Dunne. I went back to school to learn from experts about nutrition and healing. After hundreds of hours and tons of trial and error, I developed a protocol that allowed me to thrive. I changed my diet and lifestyle and, most important, my mindset. I started taking care of myself. My husband noticed the shift and declared me a “diva.” At first, I was offended, until I realized that in order to be my best and give my best to my family, I did have to be a PCOS Diva.

      When my reproductive endocrinologist started seeing my success and sending women with PCOS who also couldn’t tolerate metformin or the pill to me for help, I knew I was onto something. I received my health-coaching certificate and began to formally coach women one-on-one with great success. Soon I realized that the small, manageable steps of what is now my Healing PCOS 21-Day Plan could help the millions of other women struggling to alleviate their symptoms with medicine and advice that didn’t help. Now sharing what I know about PCOS is my passion and career. And, despite what doctors warned all those years ago, I conceived my third child, an amazing girl, naturally. She’s the direct product of the PCOS Diva lifestyle I forged.

      I want you to know that you are not a victim. Struggling with PCOS is not your fate. There is no magic pill, but you can thrive with PCOS when you embrace the power of knowledge, diet, and lifestyle.

       What Is Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS)?

      You are not alone. Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common endocrine system disorders found in women and the most common cause of infertility in women. As calculated employing the widely used Rotterdam Criteria, PCOS affects approximately 15 to 20 percent of women worldwide, of whom less than 50 percent are diagnosed. It is present throughout a woman’s life from puberty through postmenopause and affects women of all races and ethnic groups.

      As an endocrine disorder, PCOS disrupts hormone balance, negatively impacting many bodily functions including insulin levels, cell and tissue growth and development, metabolism, fertility, and cognition. A diagnosis is often difficult to obtain because PCOS is a syndrome, a collection of symptoms. It affects many different hormones, resulting in an array of symptoms that may seem unrelated and vary from woman to woman. Some symptoms include obesity, irregular menstrual cycles, insulin resistance, infertility, depression, male-pattern hair growth, acne, and hair loss.

      In addition, women with PCOS have a four to seven times higher risk of heart attack, and 50 percent will develop prediabetes or diabetes before age forty. They are also more likely to develop endometrial cancer. The increased risk of these serious health issues makes managing symptoms even more imperative—and stressful.

      What Are the Symptoms of PCOS?

      You may have one or two of these symptoms or a dozen. Although some symptoms are more common than others, there is no single model for PCOS.

       Oligoovulation (irregular ovulation) or anovulation (absent ovulation)

       Polycystic ovaries (20–39 percent)

       High levels of insulin, insulin resistance (30–50 percent)

       Easy weight gain and/or obesity (55–80 percent)

        Fertility issues

       Acne (40–60 percent)

       Cardiovascular issues

       Type 2 diabetes

       Depression (28–64 percent)

       Anxiety (34–57 percent)

СКАЧАТЬ