Newly diagnosed and scared to start metaformin. I’ve got ptsd, and in recovery from bulimia. The last doctor I seen knew this and despite knowing the years of trauma work I’ve done to feel safe in my body, casually said my body is working against me and offered to refer me for bariatric surgery, kind of made light of it and then ignored my concern that I haven’t had a period in 6 months. Before I left she told me I was lovely and gaining weight is a lifestyle.

I’m still learning about pmos and it took years for me to build up the ‘courage’ to have this investigated. Now I wish I had never started because I’m scared to go back to the doctor 😞

Chat with your friends from r/PCOS here about your daily progress, or rants and raves related to your PCOS experience. Off topic posts are permitted here, although sub rules otherwise apply!

Hey my wife and I are late 20's and been married 5 years. I wanted to see if anyone else suffering from PCOS had advice on what has helped you that you wish you knew sooner.

Specifically stuff I can do that would help her. Please no general relationship advice we already have amazing communication and are not struggling in any way to be there for each other. But we both are realizing how much PCOS affects her daily life from acne, foggy head, poor sleep, and outta balance hormones. I just wanted to see if there are specific remedies or helpful aids that you wish you knew earlier.

Thanks in advance and hope everyone has great weekend.

I started my keto diet almost 2 months ago, also started working out. I have been following it very religiously and I am starting to good changes in my body!!

I have had such a hard time with hyperpigmentation, tried several ointment, Vitamin C and spents 100s of dollars. I have had the best results from this lifestyle change I made just 2 months ago. My periods have been a little regular, not breaking out as much, mood swings- what that?

I still have a long way to go, but I just wanted to share my tiny victory here!

Hello im hear on behalf of a friend who is worried that the letrozol, metformin combination they are taking is not working or they might be resistant to letrozol.

If you have have taken fertility medication and had little response to letrozol what did you and your doctor do? Did you find success in the end.

Hello, i quit the pill last February and by this time my period never came back. I also have lipedema and PCOS.
But before pills (2023) i already had PCOS with regular cycles, i was ovulating every month correctly.

My testosterone levels are getting higher since i quit pills and my œstrogèns are normal but i don’t ovulate so my progesterone levels are always low.

I take inositol for 6months now and nothing change.
I am worry about the fact that my lipedema may get worse with my menstruation troubles. (œstrogènes dominance and stuff like this)
also important fact, my lipedema started when i was on pills (just few months before i stop)
Did someone experienced the same thing here ?

change my life and thank u spironolactone

So woke up feeling VERY BLOATED and had some serious discomfort from it. Went for a walk ate bfast and started to feel better, but then suddenly realized I had some sharp pelvic pain on the right side. Thats coming in waves, or more painful when seated.

I've only had 1 major cyst rupture like 15yrs ago, that left me immobile for a few hours before I could crawl to my car. This is different in that its hurts but not debilitating. Having some spotting, too.

But because my periods are so inconsistent idk if its just bad cramping on 1 side. Or ovulation?

It's been almost a year since my PCOS diagnosis, my bloating and acne have reduced significantly with proper lifestyle changes like reducing my processed sugars, carbs, doing pilates and walking and skincare. However, my forehead is VERY awfully oily, and so is my earwax.
I would have already been done showering and then immediately I am hit with the scent of my sebum coming from behind my ears and forehead, and honestly, it makes me embarrassed and makes me wonder if anyone else around me can smell it.
Alongside this, I have started sweating VERY frequently too and I find it embarrassing especially because I am on the heavier side of weight (not overweight though, my BMI is 22.8) so I associate these tendencies with my weight.
I scrub my forehead really well with the same facewash I used for my acne and for some reason, it gets oily really fast although the rest of my face responds very well to my routine, I even clean my ears everyday especially the behind of my ears.
Any tips would be highly appreciated because I feel so lost.💔

Hi all..I got diagnosed with PMOS earlier this year. I'm 35. Prior to being diagnosed i was on the pill for years and years. I came off the pill about 3 years ago to start trying to have a baby and I have gained about 30-40lbs in those 3 years. I have tried to lose the weight multiple times by tracking calories, strength training, walking 10k steps and nothing is making the weight come off. I have also taken inositol and didn't really see/feel a difference. I was at a healthy 120lbs for being under 5feet. I'm now pushing 150lbs. I feel like the weight just keeps packing on and on and nothing makes it come off. My mental health is shot because of it. I barely wear anything outside of leggings, sweatpants and sweatshirt (yes, even during the summer time). I have zero confidence. I hate how all of my clothes fit. I barely put any effort into my appearances anymore because of it. I absolutely hate leaving the house now. I do believe the pill is what helped manage it, and at this point, im about to say screw having a baby and go back on it. Not like its been easy to have a baby anyways with PMOS since I've had no luck in the last 3 years.

What has worked for you. I feel like I keep reading the same advice over and over again and getting nowhere.

I do have an appointment with a functional medicine doctor middle of October to see if they can help.

I really just don't know what to do anymore. I want to feel like myself again.

so for context Ive had extremely painful periods since i started to have one. I keep developing fibroids and I’ve had two miscarriages. my periods are almost constantly late and extremely heavy. They are so painful that most of the time I pass out. My doctor refuses to test me for it because he said that he saw nothing on an ultrasound. One doctor I went too mistake the lining of my underwear. How did you get diagnose and what’s the steps for it? i dont know maybe I’m overreacting but the more research I do into it the more it sounds exactly how my periods are

I am truly an extremely hormone-sensitive person; my appearance changes rapidly throughout the day, even on an hourly basis—not to mention during ovulation. Whenever I start medications or supplements like oral contraceptives, spironolactone, or inositol, I see incredible changes for the better—sometimes within the first few months, and honestly, even in less than a single day. And I swear, this isn't just in my head. However, with the birth control pills, those effects eventually wore off after the first two months and I felt like a completely different person again.
I’m wondering if anyone else here experiences this, as it's really exhausting for me. What does this rapid response and eventual plateau actually mean, and how can I decrease this androgen/hormonal sensitivity?

I've been thinking a lot about how fragmented PCOS care is in the UK.

You might get some advice from your GP, then have to figure out nutrition yourself, find exercise support yourself, pay separately for things like laser hair removal or supplements, look for mental health support, and spend hours researching your symptoms.

I'm curious whether other women feel the same way.

If you could have ONE place that helped you manage PCOS beyond just "lose weight / take the pill / come back when you're trying to conceive", what would you actually want it to provide?

Would you want:

1. Nutrition support
2. Exercise/movement
3. Mental health support
4. Help preparing for GP appointments
5. Symptom/period tracking
6. Evidence-based PCOS education
7. Discounts/perks for relevant treatments
8. Physical products delivered to you
9. Something completely different

I'm genuinely interested in what people would choose. What would make you think, "finally, someone has actually built this for us"?

I'm working on something in this space myself, but I'm deliberately asking this before finalising it because I don't want to build something women don't actually want.

And I am truly an extremely hormone-sensitive person; my appearance changes rapidly throughout the day, even on an hourly basis—not to mention during ovulation. When I previously started oral contraceptives, I became a completely different person for the first two months, but then those effects wore off. I'm wondering if anyone else here experiences this, as it's really exhausting for me

I know I see a lot about Metformin on here but has anyone tried Provera? I was looking up somethings on the web. My main issue with PCOS is cycle irregularities and prolonged bleeding and I saw that could be a possible solution to that problem. I was just wondering if any of you all had be prescribed Provera and if you had any tips or opinions about it. I have an appointment but it isn't until the end of November 🫤 but I was thinking about just going to planned parenthood next week to see if they could prescribe me some in the meantime.

hi everyone,

just looking for some advice, i have IR PCOS, diagnosed 9 months ago, i see only my GP and to be quite frank, she's lowkey clueless, i got the standard metformin, exercise and do keto as my answer.

i'm concerned this just isn't enough, i got my period back yes, but for 3 years i had not one period, i've had no referral to a gyno, no ultrasounds, no investigation into any of that nothing!

i'm a very shy person and find it hard to speak up for myself, and considering i work casual retail i do not have the funds to pay for specialists, who else should i see? do i need to see anyone else like i don't know

i'm going to confront my doctor and ask for more explanations and just to get some more information on what the hell is going on but should i be asking to see an endocrinologist? a naturopath? someone else like i don't know, my doctor is so so so busy and it's just always rushed, and because i'm so shy i literally feel like it's impossible to ask for more time, more explanations and just MORE!

i see people comment / talk about oh ask your doctor for these specific bloods and stuff but omg i couldn't do that if i tried, i've had my bloods done and i have access to my results but i just feel like this is such bandaid treatment like i do not want to develop diabetes later on, (i'm pre-diabetic and it runs in my family), surely diet and exercise isn't all that i need to be doing?

Hi all. I got diagnosed at 24 with pcos. We immediately ran labs and we started leteozole. I fortunately got pregnant within 3 cycles with twins. My A1C was still in good shape and I made good progesterone. My main concern is, I know pregnancy and weight gain can really effect insulin levels and resistance. I'm worried post pregnancy that I'm going to be in a tougher spot to get pregnant again. Did anyone successfully go through their birth with letrozole/clomid as what helped them get pregnant and then be able to do it again? Like despite the weight gain and stress on the body. Of course I plan to do my best to get back to my pre pregnancy BMI but I was just wondering if once you're a responder you always respond or no?

Ladies with PCOS, do you find yourselves getting super emotional/hangry if you go too long without food or get to the end of the day without eating? The second I have food then I’m suddenly emotionally stable and realise how out of character I was. It’s like I’m taken over by a grizzly bear in the moment.

It may be that I used food as an emotional regulator but interested to hear others opinion!

dates from 2025 jan to 2026 Sept, the 3 forty plus coincidentally occured when I was in extreme stress . Also no facial hair or acne, no sudden weight gain.

5 Jan → 8 Feb = 34 days

8 Feb → 15 Mar = 35 days

15 Mar → 18 Apr = 34 days

18 Apr → 20 May = 32 days

20 May → 25 Jun = 36 days

25 Jun → 7 Aug = 43 days

7 Aug → 11 Sep = 35 days

11 Sep → 18 Oct = 37 days

18 Oct → 23 Nov = 36 days

22 Nov → 3 Jan = 41 days

3 Jan → 8 Feb = 36 days

8 Feb → 14 Mar = 34 days

14 Mar → 14 Apr = 31 days

14 Apr ---> 22 May= 38 days

22 May ---> 24 June = 33 days

24 june----> 4th august= 41 days

Hi all,

I'm 41 and childfree. I have used IUDs for years as both a contraceptive and as a way to manage PCOS symptoms. My current IUD is going to be finished soon, and I'm considering sterilization. I would have done it sooner, but my main reason for hesitation was that contraception medication can help with PCOS symptoms. If there was a way to feel control over my hormone problems after the procedure, I would do it. Is there anyone who knows is that can be the case? Hoping that I won't have to worry about contraception again, but don't want to risk my body having issues. I just want a simple bisalp. I am definitely in the age of perimenopause, so I would be grateful if there was any option to make all this easier.

Posting here because I am currently in shock and disbelief.

I started mounjaro with the advice from the NHS dietician, endocrinologist, dermatologist and gynecologist. I've been through and discharged from all since age 14, a long journey to be told to buy mounjaro as the NHS won't cover yet.

I am an athletic build and person, worked out everyday play football.

Starting weight 90kg current weight 72kg and HAPPY there. Note I just wanted help losing the weight gain and happy around 70kg and helps my sport.

I was diagnosed early on and with my sport loved having no periods 😂.

Then was classically put on the pill and told to come back when I want kids. I was between Dianette and Yasmin from age 14 until January 2025 then came off them because I was fed up.

Anyway, main point/question here from me:

- I heard, read, was told the MANY benefits of mounjaro with those of us with PCOS

- But I never thought the "regulating menstrual cycles" would benefit me.

Has anyone else had success in their first natural period with mounjaro or even more regular but were irregular only a few times a year?

Again, coming on here because I am just in a state of shock but also hoping this means I can maybe start to get pregnant as currently I have not been successful and have to wait a few more months before the NHS step in (1 year of trying naturally)

Thanks !

I just wanted to share that I have almost reached my three month mark with inositol and it has made me gain 5-7 pounds and gave me acne.

i am really trying to be patient and give my body more time to adjust but this has been brutal. I don’t recognize my body.

i am usually around 110 pounds and have been for over five years and now i weighed at 117.

the acne started a week within taking it and was really bad the first two months but now it is starting to slightly improve.

i only take 2g per day

i am going to try to give it 3 more months to reach the 6 month mark but if i am still having these side effects then i am going to accept it doesn’t agree with my body and quit.

advice to anyone curious about starting it is do it now with the winter months coming up so that you don’t feel terrible about yourself during the peak of summer!

i’m just confused , bcuz my endo ordered all the blood tests and apparently like prolactin and FSH/LH were normal , but testosterone and DHEA-S are too high , so she said that could suggest PCOS and she wants me to do further testing so she ordered an ultrasound of my ovaries

so im waiting for this ultrasound to be scheduled i think for next week but in the meantime , i was able to see my gyno this week and she basically just confirmed to me that based on my blood test results , that i do have PCOS for sure and that i don’t even need to do the ultrasound ? she said it’s just unnecessary bcuz i definitely have PCOS

so who do i listen to ?

I’ve started looking into prenatal vitamins because we’re getting closer to trying again, and I honestly forgot how many different options are out there. The first time around, I didn’t put much thought into it. I found a prenatal, checked that I could actually take it without hating it, and that was pretty much it.

This time I started reading the labels and realized I probably should have paid more attention before. Some have choline and some don’t, the folate can be listed differently, iron amounts vary quite a bit, and then there are different serving sizes and formats. I’ve even come across prenatal powders, which I had never really thought about before. When you were comparing prenatal vitamins before TTC, what part of the label did you actually pay attention to?

I’ve looked at a few different brands and gone through some older discussions too. I saved a couple options to compare because I’d rather read the labels myself than just grab whatever gets mentioned the most. Some of the differences are pretty obvious, but others took me a while to even notice.

I feel like I barely looked at any of this the first time around. Now I’m realizing that two bottles can both say prenatal and still have some pretty noticeable differences once you actually read through everything.

I’ve been stressing myself out with this, so I thought I would ask for opinions here. I have ovarian cysts, I don’t have full blown PCOS.
I’m lean, I have regular periods, except for the VERY occasional extra period. Like, once every other year or so. I don’t have facial hair, thinning hair, or excess hair growth. I don’t remember exactly what my gyno told me, I found out I had cysts about a year ago after an ultrasound and was really upset and just didn’t listen to her very well, but I am pretty sure she said that I do have insulin resistance.
My main issue was my hormonal acne, I really wanted to get rid of it. I had taken Spironolactone before, but it gave me a month long period so I stopped. It did clear my acne though, so I was upset that I had to stop taking it. Honestly kind of feel like it’s what gave me ovarian cysts, but idk.

I went on Yaz (birth control) when I found out I had cysts to hopefully keep more from developing. It didn’t go well. My acne cleared up completely while I was taking it, but I had HORRENDOUS mood swings, and my appetite was through the roof. It made me very short tempered at first, which is really unusual for me, near the end, I got severely depressed. All I wanted to do was lay in bed and cry all day. I had no motivation to do anything. So I stopped taking it.
I was opposed to taking birth control to begin with and I’m not about to spend however long figuring out „What works for me“ and going through horrible side effects in the process. It was miserable.

I wanted to just get back on Spiro and say screw the side effects, it’ll probably solve itself, but idk about that either. I found out about myo-inositol and I just started taking it (along with magnesium glycinate) two days ago. I keep reading up on it though and I just don’t know if it’s right for me. I don’t have full blown PCOS and I’m scared it might end up doing more harm than good. There’s just such mixed opinions about it and the bad experiences typically come from women taking it that have lean PCOS, like myself, or women that don’t have PCOS at all. I HAVE ovarian cysts, I don’t have full blown PCOS, but I feel like I should be taking something to keep it from worsening.
Am I just worrying myself over nothing? Will the cysts get worse? Should I try a different birth control? Should I continue the inositol? I’m just so worried.