PCOS/Insulin Resistance Support - October PCOS WL Support

I hope no one minds me starting this :D


Hello and Welcome All to the PCOS WL Support October 2009 Thread!

http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f189/buffkat00/PCOSRibbon3.gif


This thread is about PCOS and Weight Loss Support. If you have PCOS, or think you might, or know anybody that might have it, or your just curious or you just think we are totally awesome, so you just wanna chat with us, please join us!

Losing weight with PCOS is like trying to rollerskate up an icy hill. With all the wonderful lovely side effects, extra facial and body hair, skin tags, dark skin patches, weight gain, etc, etc, etc........

Everybody is whether you are trying to conceive or not!

Some come on in, get a cupa whatever and join us in a chat.



http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii53/bluidbunie07/winning_against_PCOS.gif

I hope no one minds me starting this thread. I noticed that we two days into October and no one had started it yet so I thought I might as well do it :)

Did you know that September was PCOS awareness month? I've never heard of this before until just today while browsing the net.

Ever since I stopped bcps and started Actos my period never showed up, I'm 3 weeks late, however for the past 3 days my breasts were feeling weirdly painful, I wasn't even able to wear a bra! I'm hoping that it was ovulation and that aunt flo should show up soon...

So how is everyone else doing? Any goals for Halloween?

Hi All! :wave:

Thank You JB for starting up the new thread! I did not know that September was PCOS awareness month.

I am late as well, only 2 weeks so far. I am giving it until tomorrow and if I do not start I am calling and making an appt. with the gyn. I took 3 HPT's all were negative but like you my breast have been tender. DH thought I could be ovulating but how could that be if I had no AF yet??? I dunno.
Just weird because since April of this year I have been starting on the 20th every single month until two weeks ago. So we shall see.

Goals for Halloween? Hmmmmm. Ok. My goal is to do at least 2 hours of exercise a week until then. Not much I will say, but better than now, which is nothing! lol.

Take Care Everybody!!!!

:hug:

Hey ladies!! JB - thanks for starting the new thread :)

Wow! A whole month for PCOS awareness?! That's awesome!!

Well yesterday my boyfriend and I went on a nice long walk with the dog. I told him we have to do this every weekend. Then eventually I plan to get back to the gym. I really need it. Ummmm no goals for Halloween but just keep going to the park to keep walking. It's a good half a mile at least so a few laps will be good :)

How is everyone doing??

Hey ladies! - :)

Sassy - I don't know if its possible you are ovulating without AF. I hope it goes well at the gyn. Keep it up with your exercise goal ;)

Nicoya - I sometimes have trouble exercising over the weekend, its good that you have this planned out and you have your boyfriend to support you.

I am doing ok so far, no cravings and no AF yet. I've noticed that I feel less sluggish recently, I don't know if its Actos, my vitamins or the workouts. I even need less sleep which is amazing because I used to never get through the day with less than 8 hrs of sleep at night.
Ever since I stopped the bcps I've noticed that my hair is getting oily again, my face too and I'm getting a few breakouts on my chin and forehead area. I guess the bcps were helping control these things along with inducing AF but I guess I don't mind this happening as long as I can loose weight. It was too hard when I was on bcps. With the weight loss, I'm sure AF will show up again soon.

Hope everyone is doing well!

Hi Ya Ladies.

Just wanted to let you all know that I go in the morning for a Blood Test to be sure I'm not pregnant. I am pretty sure I probably am not, since the 3 negative hpts, but have to make sure, you all know how it is with this lovely disease! lol. Then I have an appt. with my gyn Nov. 5th. So not sure. If anything I am sure she will give me provera to start my af. Just a big bummer since AF was actually being regular for me for the first time in my whole entire life. Didn't last long, only about 5 months. :( Oh well back to ole drawing board, eh girls? lol.

I hope you all are doing well. I am really tired tonight. :yawn: I was still awake at 2 pm today (I work 3rd). Oh well just have to get through tonight and then tomorrow night then I am off for a few days. ;)

Big :hug:

Morning Ladies!

Sassy: You never know, you might get AF between now and the 5th of Nov lol. Good luck with your blood test. I am getting mine sometime next week, have to get my liver functions checked as well since I'm on Actos.

My thighs, butt, abs and arms are so sore from weight training yesterday but I'm liking this pain because its good pain :D I may be away from home for the weekend so I'm getting in as much exercise as I can because I might not be able to follow my usual routine while away.

Hope everyone is doing well!

Sassy - How did it go??

As for me, I WAS going to take a fitness class at my college but decided against that because I don't think they have a trainer there with you & I already have a gym membership so I decided to take a nutrition class to show me what to eat and what not to eat - then from there as I lose this weight plan to continue with my classes to become an NP :)

I got my period, wo0!! - I know in normal cases its not something to be so excited about but I am!!, This is my first period after stopping bcps!! yay! its really light but I'll take it lol

Nicoya - Good luck with your nutrition class, I thinking becoming an NP will help motivate you to keep losing :)

Sassy - hope you're doing ok!

I weigh in tomorrow ladies, I'm hoping for a couple of pounds but we'll see :D

Good morning!

Sassy, I am guessing since you haven't posted back that you didn't get the news you hoped for. :hug: I know this is easier said than done, but just keep focusing on getting yourself as healthy as possible, because that wonderful day will come before you know it. I know it hurts to focus on something for so long and not get it, so maybe the diversion of focus will do you lots of good. :hug:

JB, congrats on the period! I also got acne after quitting bcp's, but I went to a dermatologist and he put me on an antibiotic and and gave me a mild retinol cream. My skin looked like a desert for about a week (it actually burnt my face,I had to cut my dose down by 75%), but then it cleared up and I had the best skin of my life. But you can't laser facial hair at all if you do use it.

Nicoyaangel, I think the nutrition class sounds like fun! I don't have any Halloween goals either, other than stay away from the candy! I'm going for zero nibbles. If I don't start, I don't have to stop myself.

Ok, off to get ready for work. I've got a long day ahead!

Hey all.

No the test was negative and I kinda already figured it would be since the 3 negative hpts. The reason I haven't been on is because I've been sick. :barf: This is the first day that I have felt "ok"

I went to the dr (family dr) because I was sick and found out I lost another 1/2 pound plus I still had my shoes on and stuff but thats not even counting them.

Anyways, the dr took my blood testing my A1C (Blood Sugars for Diabetics), thyroid, kidney and liver functions heck I dunno what all he took. lol. He sorta lectured me for not taking my blood sugars........but not too bad just told me I should do it............:(

I know I need to do better but its really hard when your husband eats whatever he wants in front of you and brings you home crap. Oh well guess its up to me.

:hug:

Hi Ladies,

So no loss, I'm up 1.3 almost but I guess its because of TOM and the weight training last week.

Sassy I hope everything goes well for you. I need to get my tests done soon too for insulin, testosterone, LH, FSH, and liver functions.

Jennifer, I don't have problems with acne, its my oily hair that is driving me crazy now, its really thin and if I don't wash it every other day -or every day sometimes!- it looks flat and my balding spot on the front shows..lol

Hope everyone is doing well :D

Hello!
Well it's another Monday & Im broke! LOL Well that's because payday is Thursday :) How was everyones weekend?!?! We went to the duck pond again and walked another mile as my bf got crazy feeding the ducks chips and bread LOL I wanted to ask everyone how they felt about Trader Joe's & is it really as healthy as they make it out to be? I mean I love the prices and the stuff is good but I didn't know if whole foods market or regular Luckys / safeway was better?? Any thoughts & opinions?!

Jennifer - Thanks!! I can't wait to start this class. I get anxious just thinking about it. If I learn anything useful to us I will share! :)

Sassy - Everything will happen when it's meant to happen. But I do hope you feel 100% again soon. Something nasty is going around

JB - Thanks!!! And congrats on the TOM!! Oh I hope I learn a lot of things while going on to that journey of becoming an NP. Thanks to all the ladies here the decision came easy especially working with PCOS patients :)

Alright my lunch break is over. Have a wonderful Monday & will check back here either later or tomorrow ::hugs::

Hi Ladies. :wave:

Well I went to the Dr. and got my lab results back and they were ALL good! :carrot: Even my Dr. was impressed! My A1C (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glycated_hemoglobin) is 6.5, which for Diabetics is good. They like it to be under 7. Normal range for normal people is 4%–5.9%. My Cholesterol (http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4500) was 181, which is not GREAT but it is good. (Under 200 is normal but they the lower the # the lower risk you have of heart disease.) My HDL was 36 or something which is good (Under 40 is ideal) and my LDL was 100 and something, which isn't great (they consider under 100 ideal) but he said wasn't awful. My Thyroid, Liver and Kidney Levels were all normal. Just a little health class lesson there. lmao. I included a link for A1C and Cholesterol info in case some of you are not sure about it. ;) Anywho I am just stoked about everything being good. I thought for sure it was going to be bad and my dr even thought it was gonna be a lot worse and was very very impressed by my results. He said that if I lose even more weight that the numbers should dwindle even lower!!! :D

Still no AF or sign of her anywhere in sight. But I have an appointment with my gyn. on Nov. 5th. She probably will give me some Provera to jump start my period. While I am there gonna get some names of fertility specialists since mine retired.

Well that is about all on my end.

Have a Great Day!!!

:hug:

Hello all!

Nicoya - I'm broke too, I've been between jobs for almost 3 weeks now lol but I guess its something I have to live with until I'm done with studying since I chose to do this. I love feeding ducks too, especially when we have lots of old bread lying around. I personally don't go to these healthy food stores based on their claims of being 'healthy', I just buy the stuff that I like depending on three factors: price, quantity and nutrition labels (fats, carbs, cals per serving etc).

Sassy - That's great that your tests turned out ok! I still have to go get mines done but ugh never have the time!! Good luck with AF, are you TTC?

I'm so proud of myself for getting my workout in today, I was so sore from yoga yesterday and was contemplating taking today off but I talked myself into just doing the cardio part, and then when that was over i thought what's 30 mins of weights? I can do this! lol so ya, that's done.

Well ladies, I'm off to class - hope everyone has a great day! :)

Hey everyone!!
Happy Tuesday :) I can't wait for Friday. We are having a nasty storm here in Northern California. I am not sure if it is going to last the whole week or just today but if it's raining Friday I am going to cuddle up to my pillow and blanket & try to read as much as my book as possible :) I need to start taking my Acai pill to get that energy back & start going to the gym again. My gosh I neeeeed to go

JB- We buy HUGE bags if plain chips at costco (Only $2 a bag) and also when we don't use up the bread we feed them that too. But yea it's fun :) I always wonder how often people feed them because their stomachs always seem like bottomless pits - they eat and eat and eat LOL I just hope it doesn't rain this weekend so we can go feed them. What are you going to school for? That's AWESOME that you pushed yourself!!! Keep going! With that attitude and effort you can do anything :D

alrighty ladies I think my lunch break is over. I forgot what time I started my lunch but whatever I have lots to do :-/

have a wonderful day ladies!!!

JB -- Thanks. Yes I am ttc. I have been for about 10 years now and guess what? I think AF started today. I am not sure if its gonna be a full cycle or not yet, but hey its a start, right???!! lol.

Big :hug:

Evening all!

Nicoya - I'm getting my MBA, this is my last semester, I graduate January!

Sassy - hope it all goes well for you. I am not ttc but I will want to next year if everything goes well for me and my fiance, I'd love to have a baby :)

I didn't get my exercise in today because I got stuck in the ER for my sister. She spilled some chemical on her hand during chemistry class. She's ok, it made her skin go all red and itchy. They washed it with saline for 15 minutes and gave her antihistamine for the itchiness. So ya, no exercise..

I've got some reading to do for class and need to start on my paper, will check in tomorrow.

Hope everyone is doing ok :)

Hi All.

Well its official AF is here. Oh well at least hopefully she will be over by the weekend so next week when I am off on vacation, I won't have to deal with her! lol.

JB -- Sorry to hear about ur sister. Glad she is ok. I hope to have a baby too. This is my last year I'm gonna try. :( Just getting too old. So I guess if I do not conceive by my bday next year, we will be trying adoption.

:hug:

Posting again.

You know sometimes I HATE this disease I REALLY REALLY do! :cry:

Hey y'all,
Hope everyone is doin good...
I dont know for sure whether or not I have PCOS...I actually go in to my doc's in the mornin to find out. I just got through being run through the ringer with tests. I have several symptoms: weight gain for absolutely no reason, a couple skin tags, the excess hair in "manly" places, plus those painful infected hair-like sores on my inside thighs armpits and buns. I have the worst scars from them! And this year I have started getting acne all over my body really really bad...
The only thing is I have had a perfect meeting schedule with AF each month...

I have started keeping a food diary, I mean Im not quite sure how Im suppose to be eating if I have PCOS. So for now Im also goin off of what my nutritionist is wanting me to eat, plus taking Alli....

So if anyone has any tips as to what I can do, Im all ears!!

Hi Squeekerz, welcome to 3FC! :wel3:

Weight loss - there are a couple of different ways that might work for you. Many people find that they can only lose weight on a low GI or low carb diet - that generally is an indicator of insulin resistance. So anything from Sugarbusters, to South Beach, to Atkins could work for you. If you don't have any insulin metabolism issues, a regular low calorie diet may work just fine. In either case, the general rule of thumb is that the PCOS'er has to do more exercise than the average chick in order to burn the calories.

My best suggestion is find a diet that you think you can stick with the best, and see if it works for you. If not, keep going down the list. There's for sure a diet for you. :)

Ohh geeze... this explains why I never lose any weight no matter what i do...

well my doc called this mornin to tell me she and another doc had discussed my results its agreed I have PCOS and now she is sending me to an endocrinologist before they begin treatment. Something about my left adrenal glad look a little large?

So I guess I get to inform my nutritionist of this in tomorrow. See how she changes my diet she has me on.

But hey Im glad to know that my weight isnt my fault! Makes me feel a little better.

WOO HOO!! :carrot:

((HEADS UP I tend to ramble in posts sometimes))

SO I went to my nutritionist this morning, and Ive lost 2 LBS!!!
Who knew actually eating would cause weight loss! lol
And I found out, my nutritionist had already put me on a diet for PCOS, and since it seems to be doing me good already Im not goin to change it.

I ended up having to go into the docs the other day, even though she called me, so she went ahead and showed me the results of my tests. And she further explained why Im being sent to a specialist...The only two things that are off on my labs were my testosterone (very high) and the DHEA (slightly elevated). But my glucose and other issues that would occur with the PCOS werent there. So there is a slight confusion to whats going, and that plus the "thick" adrenal gland, is why Im goin to the endocrinologist before they start my treatment.



I know I have heard from quite a few women who have friends that once they started the treatments dropped like 30-40lbs in just a couple months.
Im really hoping Ill be the same way...Gonna stay positive..Im active enough and eating healthy the majority of the time (wont count tonite, 2 slices of pizza and 2 breadstix stretched out over 3 hours :o ... which Ill regret tomorrow, darn Alli!! lol)
All I know is Ill be more than happy if by my 5th anniversary Dec 11, I can put on a size smaller jeans! :D

Hey ladies!!!!

Squeekerz welcome and congrats on the 2lbs. Keep it up!!! I need to do the same - set up an appointment with the nutritionist & I am waiting for my nutrition class to begin :-D

How is everyone doing?? I am doing well -- Working a lot and keeping busy. Not much to report just checking with you all :)

Have a wonderful Sunday :)

Hi all!

Squeekerz - its great that you've lost 2lbs, keep it up. Good luck with your endo appointment & welcome to 3FC :D Keep us updated on your progress!

Nicoya, Sassy & Jennefir - hope you ladies are doing fine!

Carbs started sneaking back into my diet and this started slowing down my progress. Its partially my fault because I'm failing to plan out my day properly but its also due to class stress now that we're stepping into writing our own business plans. I've missed workout twice last week but I'm going to try and catch up, even if it means waking up an hour early to get my workout done and out of the way. I'm bumping my walking routine up by 30 mins this week, will see how it goes.

Have a great day all!! :hug:

Hi everyone! I'm new here, just thought I'd jump right in. It's so nice to see the topics here, b/c I can relate to all of em! With the IR and PCOS, have been unable to conceive thus far, so first of October started on a low carb diet, phentermine, and my bcp again seeing that I am taking the phentermine and don't want to be taking that if by some miracle I got prego ya know? Anyhow, I'm giving myself a year or so trying to lose the weight then we'll be back on the trying to conceive wagon, then I will know it is the not the weight if we are still unable! Until then, hey its fun to practice, LOL! Well that's my story...Look forward to getting to know all of you!