Can PCOS just go away?

Question

Sorry for the book but here is a little back story.  I was diagnosed back in April  2016. After TTC for a year with no luck I went to the doctor and got my diagnosis. At the time I had super irregular periods (pretty much non exsistnat) abnormal hair growth, acne, and blood work came back to confirm it was PCOS (high testosterone), although my ultrasound was clear of cysts. The doctor said it was because I was over weight and my best bet would be losing weight. I couldn't go on BC or any hormone treatments due to having PE's (blood clots in my lungs) during my last pregnancy. So I decided to try losing weight. I was at the time 240 lbs and ate what ever I wanted and never gain any weight (I don't eat that bad when it comes to food but I like my sweets). So I decided to eat clean for a month and meal prepped for 4 weeks straight. Ate basically Paleo - no carbs, no processed foods, no sugar and I also counted my calories, walked 3-5 miles a day minimum...... and I lost 1 lb. So discouraging. A whole month of eating nothing but chicken and veggies, salad, eggs, ground turkey, more veggies, a little fruit and I got nothing for it. So I gave up and ate whatever I wanted again and guess what I was still 240lbs every time I jumped on that scale. So a couple months go by and I decided I'm going to try again and I do. Another whole month and at the end I lost nothing. Like I'm a bigger girl who had lots of LBS to lose and I changed my life drastically so the lbs should have been falling off. So I made another appointment with my dr and told him and he said having PCOS can cause me have a hard time shedding the LBS and that he wanted me to try metformin. Long story short  my dr office doesn't do it it was experimental to the practice it was jumping through hoops for them to do it and I had to hunt them down to even get answers about it and eventually I gave up and said obviously god doesn't want this to happen right now I'll put it in his hands. Well flash forward 6+ months later I am still 240lbs haven't gained a lb. I have however randomly started getting my period the past 4 months like normal (which is weird because I haven't had a period at all in over a year) they are even right on time like they use to be. This week I decided to start eating clean again (3 days ago) and I went to hop on the scale this morning and I'm down 5lbs in 3 days and I didn't even work out one day like wth! Can you body balance itself out again randomly? Can PSOC just disappear on its own without weight loss? I'm so confused I feel like it's just gone.

Answer

PCOS is a hormonal imbalance. By losing ANY amount of weight, you help bring things back in balance.

They way it was explained to me was that PCOS is sort of like pre-prediabetes. We have problems with insulin/sugar, which is why it's hard to lose weight. So eating healthier can have just as big of an impact as losing weight.

But all bodies are different and may respond better to different diets. I found cutting gluten and dairy helped me significantly. I wasn't responding to either the metformin or the clomid until I made that change. And then I started slowly losing weight.

So like diabetes, you can't grow out of PCOS, but you can get it so well under control that it becomes a non issue.

I've also found that my noticeable PCOS symptoms come and go. Some months I'm super hairy and pimpily and find it impossible to drop a pound, others my skin is clear and I'm losing a pound a week. But regular cycles don't mean you're ovulating normally. Probably, but not necessarily. Only a blood test and/or US can confirm that.

So keep up with the diet changes. But don't make your goal to lose weight. Make your goal to reduce inflammation, limit sugar intake, and balance your hormones. The weight loss should happen naturally and healthily because of those changes. But it won't be drastic.

Answer

Pcos will never just go away, it will always be with you... even if you have a hysterectomy or go through menopause... my grandmother works with a woman who had three children with pcos and she got a hysterectomy after the third child and asked her doctor if the pcos would disappear afterwards and she was told it wouldn't... I've lost 25 lbs so far and I feel good! But my periods are still irregular but I will say I have successfully ovulated at least 2-3 times on my own.  But I will be starting clomid again my next cycle bc we are trying to get pregnant again. But everyone is different when they have pcos the symptoms are the same but not everyone has all the same symptoms

Can PCOS just go away?

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