So scared about PCOS

Hi girls

I'm so scared about PCOS. We have been TTC since Jan 06, had one m/c, and are obviously still having difficulty conceiving. I have always had a fear that I would have difficulty conceiving, and have been doing some research on PCOS and the majority of the symptoms apply to me. eg being overweight but having real difficulty shifting the excess weight, excess hair growth, really long cycles, etc.

I will go and see my GP on Tuesday to try and get sorted in regards to diagnosis,etc.

I guess I'm just really upset because all I ever wanted to do was be a mum and now it looks like I'm going to have a really hard time being able to be a mum.

I also just got some news that one of my Dh's friend's partner is pregnant, it was not planned, and I just can't get over how UNFAIR it is. I'm just in tears because I should be pregnant!! We've been trying for so long, and she never even wanted to be a mum. It's not fair!!!!

Can anyone recommend someone good to go and see in Brisbane? Doesn't matter where.

Thanks for your help

Kylie :crying:

Oh Kylie... :hug:

It is scary... but it's also not the end of the journey. I'm afraid I can't recommend anyone as I'm in another state, but I do want you to know that I can relate...

You have to believe, that even if you are diagnosed with PCOS, that with the right treatment you can overcome it and you will one day hold your precious little bubba.

BW

Thanks BW, it really helps to know that other people are going through the same thing.

It certainly does. And while I'm not (yet) one of them, there are so many PCOS women that have had miracle conceptions. It just means we need a little bit of help.

The right medications work wonders. The metformin has helped me a lot with regards to weight issues, and while it didn't start my reluctant ovaries working, I'm starting clomid as soon as AF arrives, and hopefully that will be the magic combination that works... but there are still many other options even if it doesn't.

BW

ohhhhhhhh babe :hugs:

I so know how you feel. my stroy is I always knew thery a was somthing wrong but it didn't get diaognosed unitl feb this year when i demnand a internal and blood tests. My cycles reanged form 36-77 fays and we have been trying since NOV 2005 but becuase of my cyclel ength it's only been about 6 months ( if that makes sense) Turned out i had 20 cyst on my left and 30 syst on my right and my blood test showed elevated male hormones so PCOS :cry: So since feb i have been on metformin 1500 and thisis my first month on clomid. I have lost weight ( but i was not overwieght before) and I had No side efect form clomid

:

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I guess I'm just really upset because all I ever wanted to do was be a mum and now it looks like I'm going to have a really hard time being able to be a mum.I also just got some news that one of my Dh's friend's partner is pregnant, it was not planned, and I just can't get over how UNFAIR it is. I'm just in tears because I should be pregnant!! We've been trying for so long, and she never even wanted to be a mum. It's not fair!!!!

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This has happened about 10 times since i've been dainosed at lease 10 people have been pregant without trying :fuming:
i just really know where you are coming from and BW is right too medication AND venting helps a lot!.

we are here for you it;s hard to accept that your body just does not work right when it seems so easy for other.

HTH
love

Hi Kylie

I was diagnosed with PCOS after 13 long months ttc Gemma. I saw Dr John Hemming on wickham terrace and he was wonderful, a bit of a nerd but good!LOL! I had u/s's and b/t's to confirm that I had it and went straight onto clomid after it was confirmed. PCOS is not the end of the world. For a start it is quite common and personally I beleive the pill had alot to do with me getting it.(I was on it for many many years). I have high testosterone levels(lovely, what every girl wants to hear!), little sprout hairs that grow on my boobs and inbetween my boobs, no facial hair thankfully, just small cysts on my ovaries,no insulience resistence or diabetes and excess weight around my middle(when NOT pregnant!LOL!)Oh and my periods were sooooo erratic that just before I got pregnant with Gemma I hadn't had a period in over 3 months!

Look up Dr Hemming hes wonderful. You'll just have to get a refferal from a gp, they will run some tests first then referr you to whomever you pick. I like him cause he was a straight shoter and didn't confuse me with things. Goodluck and don't freak.........easier said then done I know as I did when I suspected I had it and even more when I was diagnosed!

Princess - thanks so much, your story sounds just like mine. I will have a look at the website and do some reading. Thanks!

Kirsy - I am going to see my GP on Tuesday, and I will talk to her about Dr Hemming. A straight shooter sounds just like what I need. Thanks so much, and congratulations on your beautiful daughter!!

Thanks Kylie!!WIll ahve 2 beautiful daughters soon!

I'll be keeping an eye on your progress and reading your BFP soon then!!

:hug: Princess.. i can understand how scared you are at the moment.. that was me about 18 months ago.
i was diagnosed with PCOS after we have been TTC for only 6 months. My Dr only sent me for u/s and BT as my cycle had not returned to normal after having an implanon removed. She didnt mention anything about possibly having PCOS. I have been overweight since I was a teenager and always put my hairiness down to my spanish heritage and I really had no clue what PCOS was. The results of my u/s showed what my Dr said was "the worst looking ovaries she has ever seen" She then went on to say that they looked so bad to her it was not likely I would ever be able to have a baby and she even started talking adoption when I had JUST been diagnosed. Now that is NOT something any Dr should say to their patient - needless to say I changed Dr......
Anyway, I just wanted to say to you that although it seems really scary and you might feel like you will never get the chance to be a Mum, there is so much the modern medicine can do for you. PCOS doesnt necessarily mean life without babies!!! I just had my little girl 2 months ago. She was conceived after I was on Metformin for about 5 months, then after 1 cycle of chlomid when met alone didnt work.
I will tell you though that the medication might not always be nice ( I had terrible side effects) but so worth it when you finally have your bubba!!!
Hope all goes well at the Dr...
Will be thinking of you

Jen

Kylie - my GP sent me off to an ob-gyn after we'd been TTC for about 9 months, as I took in my temperature charts and I showed her that I wasn't ovulating, so she said there was no point in TTC the full 12 month.

I saw Dr Alison Garvin, first of all, at North West Medical Centre. She was great - very thorough, took a comprehensive history, did lots of blood tests, then sent me for scans and a HSG, which was then followed by a diagnosis of PCOS. So maybe she would be another option if you would prefer a female Dr.

I was dumbfounded to find out I had PCOS. I only had some of the symptoms - overweight, really long cycles, and infertility. I didn't have the acne or excess hair which I thought everybody with PCOS had.

:hug: Hugs for you!

Hi Kylie,

I was diagnosed with PCOS in September & have a referral to an obs/gyno to talk about it & take the steps so I can conceive and go to a full term pg. My cycles are long, am overweight & have some of the other symptons.

In the meantime (before seeing the obs/gyno), I have found out I am pg, so it really is possible to have a baby. I have heard from the other gals here that the clomid & metformin is what really helped them.

Good luck

Cherie - thanks so much for that recommendation. We live about 5 minutes from North West so that would be great for me. I will mention her to my Dr as well on Tuesday. Congratulations on your BFP - it gives me hope!


Jooleshere - thanks so much for your positive words of encouragement. Congratulations on your BFP!! Wonderful news!

Jen - thanks so much! You have given me so much hope. I know that I have not been technically diagnosed yet with PCOS, but as a nurse I just have a feeling that it is something that will apply to me, and I just want to get it sorted so that DH and I can move forward. Thank you for your kind words, will let you know how I go.

Kylie,

I'm another PCOS girl and whilst TTC also discovered I am insulin resistant. It took us nearly 3 years to conceive, and I am 5wks pregnant now after taking metformin & clomid. My FS held off on prescribing me Clomid until this year, because I had to get my diabetes under control first.

There is also an organisation called POSAA - Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome Association of Australia which has a website containing lots of information for PCOS sufferers.

Wishing you all the best on your TTC journey :)

No worries Kylie - I hope you find the answers you are looking for. Let us know how you go :)

I have moved my Drs appointment to today, just because they have asked me to do an extra shift tomorrow. Can you lovely ladies give me some questions to ask my Dr? I don't want to seem paranoid, but I would like to sort out any problems and get the ball rolling. Thanks!

I can't really think of much to ask, as I'd also suspected PCOS and had researched into the area before my diagnosis, and researched a lot more thoroughly after my ultrasound revealed PCO, so I knew a lot about it before I saw my GP again.

Basically, you are going to want in internal US to check your ovaries, and you are going to want blood tests to check hormone levels. It may be an idea to get other tests done (such as thyroid) so that you don't end up missing anything by skipping to the obvious - this is what I'm starting to suspect may have happened with me.

If they do diagnose PCOS, make sure you ask about metformin and other treatments.

You may find that a GP is reluctant to actually do too much themselves (and they mostly don't appear to know about metformin as a PCOS treatment yet) and will mostly want to just refer you to a specialist. In that case, insist on the internal US and blood tests first so you can take them with you to the specialist and get the ball rolling from there rather than having to wait for other tests first.

BW

yeah- i agree with BW-

just and internal and a blood test to check for hormone levels

love

Hi Kylie. You haver come to the right place to vent sweetheart. I don't know if I would have missed you before you went to your GP but I see Dr Barbara Hall who is in spring hill. She has been the most wonderful doctor to me. She always makes me feel really comfortable which is important as this is such an intimate experience. She is one of the doctors in the Queensland Fertility Group. What I love about them is if you need a blood test you go to them in the morning by lunch you have the test results. They also have a website that lists all of the doctors as there is a few of them. Also they have been running seminars recently and I beleive that they are going to be having more soon I went to one on the weekend and it was really informative. Keep an eye out on their website for that, maybe you would find that helpfull.
Good luck today and just remember that we are all here to help. :hug:

How did u go at the Dr Kylie?
Have u been referred for u/s and blood tests?
Did ur Dr refer u to a gyno yet?

Hope everything went well

Jen
:)

Hi girls!

I went and saw my GP, and she was so helpful! She really affirmed my research and said that I had a valid concern, so she has sent me for blood tests (including a fasting glucose and thyroid test), and and internal ultrasound.

She basically said that when we get the results back she will refer me to Dr Alison Garvin, who also works for the QLD Fertility Group, so that we can get the ball rolling.

Thanks so much girls, you have helped me SO much, and I am so grateful!

ktgirl - I will have a look at the website, thanks so much for the heads up!

oh kylie that is the best news!! I remmeber teh releif tht i felt when the doctor listened to me.

we princesses need to stick together!!

as for me CD 35 and my doctor said to wait 5 days before testing. no hopeful though.

Did your specialist give a reason for waiting another five days, princess? Did they give you an estimate of when you might ovulate after the scan?

Kylie, I'm glad to hear that you are being taken seriously and are on the way towards the proper treatment.

BW

BW- It was the nurse that called- i'm assuming it's because my cycles were screwed up because of my levovist test. and are s olong anyways.

feel quite normal today though- not sick like the last few days - heaps of creamy CM though

That's great Kylie - I'm so glad to hear that everything went well with your GP.

Princess Kylie,

Good luck with your tests.

I was diagnosed in April. I hadnt had AF for 6 months at that stage and had gained 20kg in the last year, despite the fact that I ate not much and I mow lawns for a living! I also snored (eww) and got acne..I didn't get the hairyness problem.

My hormone levels were checked in a blood test, they were menopausal even though I was only 26. I had an internal scan were my ovaries looked like craters with cysts all over them.

PCOS was what I expected and told my doctor I wanted to be tested, and in a way, it was good news when I found out. It explained so so much, symptoms I was worried about, especially the weight gain.

I was put on metformin and I was already on the pill to help control the catergory 4 endometriosis I had that kept growing back after surgery. And would you believe, without trying and having basically no sex life, I conceived this baby! I was told I had a 2% chance if any because of both problems, but particularly the endo. I wasn't trying or planning to conceive, but it's amazing how much metformin can help.

Sometimes I think having a diagnosis for fertility problems and other symptoms is a relief, you have a name for it and you have treatment options.

I can't wait to hear how you went, and I'm really thinking of you. I hope this is the beginning of your answers.