[cfelt14]

So for as long as I can remember I have had a lot of male hair growth patterns. Thick black hair on my back stomach butt sideburns mustache chin and neck. Pretty much everywhere we don't want hair as women. I always had super heavy painful periods. They weren't super consistened but never went months without one. I recently started looking up reasons why I have all this and came across pcos. I have struggled with anxiety and depression my whole life and currently on meds, I have acne and dark armpits and way extra weight around my stomach. Every symton of pcos, I have. I went to the doctor and got blood taken and all my doctor really told me was I am prediabetic, and said all the hormones she looked at looked fine and just deal with it pretty much. I'm going for a second opinion next week. My questions are, what hormones should they test for? And even if some are normal can I still have pcos and is this why I'm prediabetic? I'm only 19 and I don't drink pop or alcohol and I have recently lost 30 lbs and eat right. It just doesn't sounds right that I am prediabetic and I am told not to worry about pcos unless I want to have kids. I do have a daughter so I know I can get pregnant but I went 2 years or more without BC without getting pregnant. So I am currently on mirena( which I'm not sure I like) for 2 years and the doctor I seen wants me to take BC pills on top of having mirena. Anyways anyone have any input or answers for my questions? I feel like no body understands what I'm going through. Thank you all in advance

[Rana]

Yes, you can be pre-diabetic and have PCOS. I'm one of those! Or, rather, was, before I started losing weight and removing the foods in my life that were causing the pre-diabetes.

You can go to a second doctor if you want, but the same diet that helps pre-diabetes will also help PCOS. I would work on getting yourself back to a "normal" state instead of prediabetes and then you can work on the other stuff.

For the male stuff -- they should test your androgens and your testosterone levels compared to your female hormones. They may be out of balance. Does anyone else in your family have similar traints?

[Kalaya]

Another diagnostic tool usually used for detecting pcos would be via ultrasound. My hormone panel was relatively 'normal', but my ultrasound was a textbook photo for the condition. You can have this procedure done through your ob/gyn. If you can, I would recommend seeing an endocrinologist. They will be more knowledgeable of the best way to manage your symptoms.

[astrophe]

If you plan to have kids in future, preserving your fertility will be a concern.

We present in at least 5 ways:

http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/pcos...tient-you.html

I am one of the PCOS/IR people.

I remember feeling frustrated at 19 and for me then the solution was to slap me on BC to help with the hormones since I was ALSO looking for birth control. It took me a bit to figure out I needed monophonic BCP. Look at this article to see if it helps you decide what you might need and you can ask your Doc.

I had U/S that showed cysts later in my middle 20's when I was trying to get pregnant. My testosterone is high like guy in my labs.

I am at the perimenopause place. It has been in the last 2 years that I learned to pay attention to Vit B12 (Metformin eats it up), Vit D (PCOS people tend to run low) and to it B8 (inositol.) It is spend but I take D-Chiral Balance for now and it has knocked down my testosterone on labs more than anything else ever did. I am also on prescription progesterone/estrogen to help me deal with those.

If I were still in my 20's, I would have started there with the inositol since it can also help with insulin resistance. But I didn't know then. I also learned eating wheat sets me off on binges. I need to stay away from it because it messes with my blood sugar. Pasta does not -- just baked wheat like cookies, breads.

Do get a second opinion -- see a reproductive endoc if you can. Take a look at the PCOS faqs and Mary's PCOS faq. Be prepared to ask your doc questions and if they don't know and do not seem willing to learn with you, seek another.

HTH!
A.