Ever since I was 16 (or probably younger), I have suffered from polycystic ovarian syndrome. Four years ago I began a dramatic personal shift toward a lifetime of wellness and weight loss and I personally waged the battle against my polycystic ovarian syndrome, beating it into submission.
Polycystic ovarian syndrome isn’t a disease….its supposedly a variation on normal…but essentially you don’t really ovulate, which to me doesn’t quite seem normal. The theory is, a woman has a whole bunch of precursors to eggs that are called “follicles” at the time just before ovulation – one of them is supposed to burst out of the ovary and get released into the fallopian tube (ovulation) – but hormonally in the case of PCOS there’s an imbalance and actual ovulation never happens – so your ovaries have a bunch of little immature follicles that form little cysts in the ovary. The hormonal imbalance leads to other unsightly issues like excessive facial hair, excess body weight (and it is difficult to lose weight), in some insulin resistance and acne. You can see the little ovarian “cysts” on an ultrasound. Its not harmful, so therefore it is usually treated with birth control – it just causes some discomfort – and you don’t ovulate – so when you want to have a baby they give you some drugs and you usually have twins or triplets…good thing for me – I’ll get it all over with at once. It sounds a bit flippant I know…because its something that bugs me for the most part the medical profession doesn’t want to address the dietary component of PCOS. I have personally and as a registered dietitian I am not allowed to speak from personal experience, but as a health coach and ordinary citizen, I can. And I will share it here on this blog, which is more personal than professional in nature even though most of you reading will associate this with me professional and that’s ok! With proper diet PCOS and some supplements like fish oil and maca (although diet alone will do it too) can be at bay, controlled and even in remission…but one has to be strict, relentless even…and its difficult.
Since 2005, I kept things really well controlled with diet. I followed Nancy Dunne, ND’s suggestions in her book: The Natural Diet Solution for PCOS. The amount of carbohydrates she suggests one limit herself to is a bit unnerving and I tried it for a while. Its difficult to stick to and I cheat every so often and then go back. However, over the past year between the stress of the economy, changes in my practice, changes in lifestyle relating to new relationships I was engaged in, the taking of a new full time position and starting graduate school yet again, many of my symptoms have reappeared: periods every two weeks, unbearable cramps, unbearable sugar and carbohydrate cravings, the feeling that I can never be full…its kind of crazy what a few hormones can do, but they are very powerful.
I have been learning recently through my graduate work how obesity contributes to changes in hormone levels and just how important it is for me to keep my weight down , not just for cosmetic and overall health reasons, but in order to keep my hormone levels in check. My PCOS will always be there, but 15 extra pounds and its really spiraling out of control, seriously from only 15 extra pounds…Those have got to come off! Because I seriously don’t want to go back on birth control, which feels like my only option to regulate the symptoms and of course the advice of my doctor.
Since I was 16, I was on birth control pills. They regulated my cycle like clockwork, near the third week of the month on a Wednesday, I’d stain for 2-3 days…for a number of years. I knew exactly when I’d get my period. I never really had a need for tampons, since I’d just stain for a few days. It all kind of worked itself out. I was never huge into exercise, I was always a bit chubby. In 2005 I made a huge change. I started rowing. I started dropping weight in droves. I didn’t even try. I had to change my diet in order to accommodate three practices a week, sometimes four and the bike rides to the boathouse through the Boston streets. I tried rowing in New York, it wasn’t the same. I did triathlons here to make up for the lack of rowing.
I found that low glycemic whole grains, dark green leafy vegetables and fruit smoothies with seeds were a diet that made the most sense for me. Every so often I’d have some grass fed beef along with more dark green leafy vegetables. I rarely touched anything resembling sugar or white flour, but I ate gluten free whole grains: quinoa, buckwheat, spelt. I actually felt these grains break down slowly in my body. I never experienced shifts in my energy level and I was not hungry. I didn’t want cookies or energy bars or the other things I want daily at 3pm. I felt golden and I went off birth control. For nearly three years I had perfect periods. 5-7 days, as regular as clockwork, minimal cramping. Everything seemed to go according to plan. Then 2008 hit. I lost clients. I lost referral streams. I lost corporate gigs and all my efforts seemed to be going nowhere. I was forced to move out of my apartment and take a good long hard look at my future. I enrolled in three graduate courses toward getting a research based degree in nutrition so I could teach at a university, take insurance and always have a “job” to fall back on in nutrition as opposed to the risks associated with running a business, although I’d always pursue that on the side. I started cooking privately and focusing on that more than coaching since it paid more. I fell in love with that aspect of things and built a robust business model for that business. I’m still learning – but I think its coming together well.
However, I gained weight and my periods are all out of whack. I blame three things I brought back into my diet: 1) dairy 2) sugar and some non-whole grains and 3) caffeine…all three addictive substances…all three cause more stress instead of less and all three things I consume now on a regular basis. Dairy is easy to give up…for the most part, except in the form of butter it makes me sick to consume it anyway…except from goats, and its very expensive, so easy to reduce consumption. Caffeine, is a bit harder – but if I bike to work in the AMs and I have herbal tea, I can easily go without. Sugar is the hardest! I’m working on giving up sugar – but its everywhere. Requires so much label reading…also I need time to make my own meals again…bring things to work…really consume things only made in my own kitchen and resist that chai in the AM or that cookie or granola bar in the PM…having fruit on hand…even dried fruit, nuts, apples, dark green leafy vegetables and grains as a snack…just breaking up my meals into fives or sixes as opposed to threes. Back to smoothies for breakfast, back to waking up an hour earlier and doing yoga or going for a run. Also I am eating more meat than I have eaten in a while…I’m experimenting more with plant based protein, that kind of diet seems to work for me given some red meat – but very little chicken or turkey…two things that are deadly for me energetically.
I’m supposed to do the marathon in less than two months. I’ve not been running and I am in the worst shape of my new life, despite some pretty amazing thigh and calve muscles from all the biking and running I have been doing lately – even though I’m not in my prime. I’m wondering if I should just shoot to speedwalk the whole thing just for the experience and plan to finish in 6 hours…perhaps I’ll just run every three miles and wakl a mile or something like that…and train for 2011 (I am too late for 2010 unless I do the lottery!)…there’s just so much you can do in life. I really wonder how people make room for it all…I really applaud mothers for how they do. I don’t want to drop out despite my mother’s prodding and everyone else I know telling me I’m doing too much. I think I’m personally happiest when doing a million things…it actually gets me focused. My brain sort of works at ludicrous speed…for any of you spaceballs fans out there…I hope all of you find something that makes you feel alive as much as running does for me and allows you to focus in on all the other things and get them done…and sleep too!
