This page is
dedicated with love to women who have PCOS. I pray to continue to locate and fill this page with good and
helpful
information to encourage women
who suffer from a condition that's
difficult to
understand and even more difficult to endure.
May the LORD be with and bless you if you
are suffering from PCOS.
You have our sincere love and sympathy.
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scroll below for links, articles, book
suggestions, prayer requests, and if you'd like to sign our guestbook, you can let me know that you'd like
to share *your* PCOS journey story. I will
write to you and would be happy to post your
own story as a means to encourage other
women who have PCOS or have questions about
the condition.
(pamela@AChristianHome
DOT org) |
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So you begin to notice you have a number of
"symptoms" or conditions in your life that you perhaps
don't see in or occurring with other women you know.
You've probably always thought there was just
"something" wrong with you... you have unusual periods,
maybe you don't have them at all, you may have
uncontrollable or unexplained weight, that no matter how
much you attempt to control your diet or exercise, you
have a bit more "bulk" than other women you know.
Or, you have facial hair... and not just a few strays
here and there, but, perhaps an embarrassing amount of
facial or body hair. Perhaps you have high blood
pressure for your age and perhaps you simply "cannot"
get pregnant.
You may wonder why in the world you still have acne when
your skin should be clearing up now that you're out of
adolescence. When you have a physical exam
and your blood work comes back with high numbers for
hormones, cholesterol, blood pressure or you show
insulin resistance, then perhaps you might look into the
possibility that you have PCOS or PolyCystic Ovarian
Syndrome, sometimes referred to as Stein-Leventhal
Syndrome. What is
PCOS? Is there help for you? Yes. Is
there a cure? No, apparently not really... but there is help
to address some symptoms. Apparently,
because insulin resistance is the great problem, a low
carb diet and elimination of weight makes a huge
difference in PCOS sufferers. Here are some PCOS treatment options:
Standard Therapies for the treatment of symptoms of PCOS.
Letter
Updated 1-31-10
Dear
sisters...
This website,
and this page, in particular is this
Mother's Journey. I hope my
search for help for PCOS can help
you, too.
If you have
suspicions about your health or your
daughter's health: *ACT* on them... meaning:
if you think something's the matter
—
something's just not quite right,
then *go* get an opinion from a
professional. Ask questions!!
If you're not satisfied, ask more
questions. From personal
experience, a family practice doctor
may entirely miss the problem or
misdiagnose your/your daughter's
condition. Please don't put
things off till later!! If you
have suspicions now, don't "wait and
see" what will happen. Years will go
by. Trouble or symptoms will
intensify --- really: risk "hurting
feelings" and *go* get help!
It's worth it to get help now, mend
hearts along the journey to health.
Above all, pray for God's direction
and His plan and purpose.
Don't put
off that visit to a professional
healthcare provider!! Get as
accurate a diagnosis as possible. GET INTENSIVE BLOOD WORK DONE!!
Have a pelvic examination (which may
include a pelvic ultrasound), breast
examination once a year, or more
frequently if advised by your
physician---fear or ignorance will
only contribute to your
problems---fear never helps anyone.
LEARN about
healthful foods and then learn to
incorporate them into your
diet---you really can learn to eat
healthful foods.
Improve your immune system and
health by eating healthful foods, by
drinking lots of water, by
exercising regularly, by avoiding
stressful situations, by getting
enough sleep, and by avoiding
self-destructive lifestyle
habits---which probably aren't what
you're doing, but it's important to
examine things we do and why we do
them. But an example might be:
laziness... sedentary
lifestyle---eat less and move a lot!
~smile~ Every day eat
fresh, deep colored vegetables and
lower carb fruits. Eat a
significant amount of protein and
fiber and try to reduce fat in your
diet---or at least, eat the right
fats. No pop! Lower salt!
Choose hormone-free meats, poultry,
eggs and dairy. Seek natural
sources for your foods whenever
possible. Try to eliminate all
processed foods/refined foods---this
is hard for us as we have soooo many
habits that need changing! As
our friend, Kelli, says: make a
change at a time, slowly eliminate
the worst things---slowly work from
where you are to where you need to
be.
Again,
above all:
pray! Abide in the LORD and
Pray that the LORD will guide your
path and direct your studies, plans
and medical visits/decisions!!
With love
and blessings for health and
strength and the Lord's will.
A NEW page of Stories from readers
of this website.
PCOS Stories |
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newest article additions...
http://pcos.insulitelabs.com/PCOS-Insulin-Resistance.php
Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: Clinical Considerations
(new!)
PCOS FAQ's
High Testosterone Levels
Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome Association
- support
and information for women with PCOS
Shedding Light on the Subject of Polycystic Ovary
Syndrome Dr. Joseph Mercola
PCOS and
Insulin Resistance and Pre-Diabetes
PCOS and Carbohydrates
Hormone Foundation Treatment Options for PCOS
Women's Health...PCOS
Health Information for Teens
Young Women's guide to Polycystic Ovary Syndrome
Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Gabe Mirkin MD
Vitamin D for PolyCystic Ovary Syndrome Joseph
Mercola MD
More
help for women... though this may not be
directly related to PCOS, you may find some
helpful information here:
A Women's Guide to Alcohol and
Drug Rehabilitation
http://www.recoveryconnection.org
PCOS Pavillion
Some commonly prescribed drugs & therapies
-
Low Carb or Low Glycemic Index diets seem to hold a
crucial key to diminishing PCOS Symptoms
scroll down this page for ideas
-
Metformin (Rx)
-
Spironolactone
(Rx)
This drug seems to help with the reduction of
excess facial/body hair that tends to be a common
problem for women with PCOS. Spironolactone
is a diuretic, which gets rid of excess salt and water
in the body. It also reduces androgen levels in women
with PCOS.
Vitex - Chaste Tree
Berry (Natural herbal product for Women's Health -
purchased at the health-food store or online)
-
These are the different conditions that
Chaste Berry seems to help: to
normalize irregular or scanty periods,
symptoms of PMS: cramps, headaches,
depression, water retention, constipation,
acne, breast tenderness, and irritability..
For women who stop taking birth control
pills (to normalize cycles).
These are the herbs
and vitamins I'm looking into...
Saw Palmetto Flax Seed Stinging Nettle Milk Thistle |
Chromium Magnesium Alpha Lipoic Acid Vanadium
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[On January 27, 2008 Christina M. from
Meridian, Mississippi wrote:] “Hello, Just
browsing your site and noticed the info on
PCOS. I haven't seen any info on Iodine
deficiency as the main cause so I'm assuming
you haven't seen the work of Dr. Jorge
Flechas of
www.helpmythyroid.com . I, too,
had PCOS along with its two sister symptoms,
fibrocystic breasts and thyroid nodules or
goiter. I am free of all of these and owe it
to the supplementation of Iodoral to my
daily supplementation. I also have no more
uterine fibroids. They are completely gone.
Hope this helps. Feel free to contact me.
-
For
more healthy ideas, I'll continue gathering info
on helpful herbs and tinctures for PCOS, Insulin
Resistance, Diabetes, hormone activity/balance,
etc. I will post the page when more
becomes available.
Weight loss seems like it's practically
impossible for women who suffer from PCOS---but
there are some very helpful ideas and plans and
though the results occur very slowly, with
diligence you really can lose weight. The
most important thing is to eliminate white food!
Hard! yes!! White food---refined
foods---they really are poison and only
exacerbate PCOS!! High Glycemic Index
foods, high carbohydrate foods are sabotage
weight loss and only pack on weight.
Really... the hardest thing will be to *change*
your thinking and *change* your lifelong habits!
Plan ahead for *every* situation... what you
will eat, how you will *not* indulge---how you
will *not* give in to "cravings" or give up when
the weight loss is slow. Your *LIFE*
depends on what and how you eat---starting
today.
Here are some basic suggestions...
these have proven to be helpful.
We are finding that it's VERY
important to get a handle on
PORTIONS, too---not just carbs and
fats, and not just calories---but
VOLUME! Most of us eat too
much---probably way too much!!
WALK... exercise!
LOSE WEIGHT for your health's sake,
for your heart's sake.
This is
a LONG HAUL project, not just a
sprint!
Every morning - begin the day with a
tall glass of the juice of one lemon
and warm water.
This will cleanse, detox your liver
and will help your body to be more
alkaline rather than acidic.
Water Go easy on the coffee... if at all.
Try to avoid caffeine and don't
drink sodas---even diet sodas.
Just
drink water with lemon, or drink
Iced Tea (herbal) with lemon.
Drink Water!
Eat plenty of vegetables and then
you can occasionally enjoy
grapefruit, strawberries, berries,
apples. So.... Eat salads! Eat Tuna or
Salmon Meats, eggs, fish are great.
Go easy on the Nuts & Cheese bcz of
the high calories. For breakfast, buy or make cereals
with a base of oats, barley and bran
--- eat a smaller portion.
Drink More Water! Make or buy breads with whole
grains, stone-ground flour, sour
dough Reduce the amount and frequency of
potatoes you eat Enjoy most all types of fruit
and vegetables by the way,
watermelon is high and dried
apricots are high. (bananas are very
high: so eat these *rarely*) Use Basmati rice - but no more than
a half cup---it's not necessary Try brown rice or grains like
bulgur, wheat berries, millet, or
hulled barley to have with your
dinner. Smaller amounts of whole grain
pasta, noodles, quinoa, too.
Drink Lots of water! Again, eat plenty of salads,
spinach, vegetables and use a
vinaigrette dressing instead of the
higher fat type. |
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Of
course, *your* letters, ideas and suggestions and
personal solutions are *welcome!*
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The "Teal Ribbon" is the
nationally recognized
ribbon color
for awareness and support of Ovarian Cancer and
related Ovarian diseases.
The month of September has been chosen as the
National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month.
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Helpful Books and more Articles
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new article links:
Stories
do you have a
story to share?
PCOS Letters
and Stories sent in from readers of this website
PCOS Natural Health Solutions PCOS "Success
Stories"
If you have
a PCOS story you'd like to share, please sign
our guestbook
and I will reply
and give you an email address where you
can submit
your PCOS journey story for publication here.
Support PCOSA
What else can you do right *now?*
Get as healthy as you can. Really.
There are also health
concerns. Having PCOS makes you more prone to developing
diabetes, with up to 35% of overweight PCOS sufferers
showing signs by their 30s. There's also an increased
chance of high blood pressure and high cholesterol, both
of which can lead to heart disease; of miscarriage,
should you become pregnant; of breast cancer, and of
endometrial cancer since, with irregular periods, the
womb lining is not shed frequently.
More links and
information will be added in time...as I find them and
as we learn more about PCOS and helpful treatments of
symptoms. Thank you for
coming by today. I pray the LORD will help you and
encourage you and that you will receive the help you
need and encouragement to have your health restored.
I pray the LORD will comfort you as you deal with
difficult and often embarrassing situation and grief
over what might seem like a hard road to travel.
God is sovereign and will carry you through as you trust
in Him.
PCOS and other
Fertility Challenges
Hannah's Prayer
Ministries
Christian Support for Fertility Challenges
Hannah's Prayer Community Forums
Online forum support for women
EXTRAS! EXTRAS!
PCOS related
"gifts" for your computer or print for artwork for your
home.
CLICK
HERE
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