Anyone with PCOS? Insulin Resistance?

  • I am a little concerned to start my presurgery diet. All I am allowed to have for two weeks before the surgery is protien powder and water. I have never been diagnosed as diabetic, but because of my PCOS I am insulin resistant- hence why every carb I eat went straight to my a**- My OBGYN put me on glucophage a few years back. I never really lost weight on it, but it did help to regulate my periods and keep me from having severe menstrual pain.
    About a month ago I stopped taking my meds. My scripts had run out and I knew that my surgeon's office had said they would prefer me to stop taking the meds unless medically necessary. Things have been fine except for a couple of occassions where I would feel a bit shaky and sometimes break out in a sweat, but if I drank some juice or a pop it would stop.
    Now that I know I will not be able to have those things I am concerned that it could happen again- My real question- is the trembling that I felt caused because I had sugar in my system and then was dropping- like withdrawl, or because I need sugar in my system?? Just curious what is in store for me .... Any insight????
  • Chunky1: There is a thread somewhere here on this site that deals with PCOS you could peruse. You need to talk with your doctor. I dealt with this for years and since my WLS have had to deal with low blood sugars. Now everyone is different and need to work things out with your doctor, but what works for me is small meals five to six times a day. I have to admit that I think my low blood sugars episodes are better, but sometimes I don't get to eat for six or seven hours and I get shaky, sweaty, fuzzy and grumpy. Talk with your nutritionist also. Hopefully after the WLS this will all be a thing of the past or less severe, HOPEFULLY. WLS sure doesn't cure everything! LOL!
  • Without actually testing your glucose levels with a meter, it's hard to know. I was diagnosed type 2 diabetic in May, and I have been talking to a LOT of diabetics since to try to gather information and learn about how to handle things. I know some people who have been living with higher than normal glucose levels feel like they are going too low (shaky, possibly dizzy, lightheaded, naseous, things like that) when they get down to a normal glucose range because, for their bodies, normal range is lower than what they have been living with.

    IMO, lows are often caused by a spike (reactive hypoglycemia)--your body's blood glucose level shoots up (could be from eating/drinking carbs/sugar or some people are even sensitive to stress, caffeine, illness like colds...anything that sets your body off of a normal routine), and your body produces lots of insulin to deal with that high level of glucose, but you end up over-producing insulin and end up with glucose levels down too low.

    So anyway, back to the IMO part, I think a high protein, low-carb diet may actually help you level things out because you won't be having any high-carb/sugar meals to "react" (as in the reactive hypoglycemia) to.

    I wouldn't worry about it an just follow doctor's orders. The point of the pre-op diet is typically to shrink your liver, so if you feel like you're getting that low feeling, I don't think a few sips of juice or a hard candy or something would hinder that goal. If it does hapen, though, I would contact your doc immediately afterwards to let them know what's going on.

    Let us know how you fare!
  • Thank you all so much. I will have to check out the thread on this website. I haven't had anything today but my protien drink and so far so good. I thought I would test it out just to be prepared about how I will do on the 2 week stretch. Thank you all for your responses. They are greatly appreciated!!
  • Nan is right, you will find the schedule that will help you get through the ups and downs of getting enough nutrition. That will help with the low blood sugars.

    And I agree with Jill, too. The low carb and high protein diet after surgery was the END of my insulin resistance. That and some thing happens when they bypass the duodenum that helps with diabetes, too. I was on Metphormin (Glucophage) for a year before surgery and left the hospital not needing it...there is a lot of research going on right now that is trying to explain this phenomenon of taking away the Insulin Resistance, Glucose Intolerance and other types of diabetes symptoms with the bypass part of the GBP and the DS and we should get some answers soon.

    Concerning My PCOS...after surgery it has improved greatly. I was lucky not to have the 3 month TOM that some do have after GBP. It's more common then I thought apparently...so I AM lucky. LOL Some older women have called my Dr's Nurse saying that they had been in Menopause for a few years and start up again after surgery...blamed her. LOL She's too funny about it! My TOM did become more regular. No pain at ovulation and my PMS has been manageable, down right good, sometimes I don't even know my TOM is coming until it arrives!
    My surgeon was all about me taking my BC pills because "you just CAN'T get pregnant right now!" LOL I'm single and not like that, so there isn't a question for me... but there are a lot of people that have this surgery to help relieve their PCOS so they can get pregnant.

    Hope that helped.

    Angela
  • This is also intresting for me too, as I have PCOS and I am waiting for my Op on the 6th December. I am going to see my consultant tommorow for the first time, so i will mention this to him and see what he says about it.
    I really do hope it gets better once i have lost some weight.
  • Very interested to hear what you find out minijojo. Let's hope that it is good news.
    Angela, I hope you are right I would love to see the day when the monthly pains and cramps come only once a month if at all!!
    Thank you Jill and Nanj- great info and advice.
    I think I am more concerned about the two weeks before the surgery and not having anything but protien powder mixed with water- I agree with you Jill- if I start getting that disoriented, shaky feeling and breaking out in a sweat I will definitely sip some juice or something. Episodes like that are the worst.
    I will see however, that yesterday I did not start out my morning with juice, but water only and then had just my protien drink until lunchtime and had no issues so maybe the issue I had the other morning was actually my hitting bottom from having had that much sugar to start with. Only time will tell. Thank you all for your replies. I really love this website!!
  • It loves you too!!!


    Angela