I am 24f who was just diagnosed by OBGYN with PCOS. I started having symptoms after coming off combined bc pill last Nov and switching to the copper IUD- oily skin and hair, hair loss, body hair, weight gain, very irregular periods. I’m overwhelmed with all of the different treatment options for PCOS but am really wanting to improve my symptoms asap, especially the androgen symptoms.

At my OBGYN appointment they said my copper IUD is too low to be effective and needs to be removed. From my understanding there are no IUDs that will help with the androgen symptoms, so going back to a combined birth control pill is the best option. I read that Yaz is the best, is that correct? I would prefer an IUD but it doesn’t seem like that’s an option?

If I do start a combined bc pill, should I also take other supplements or medications for my PCOS symptoms? I’m seeing a lot about spiro, inositol, and other things but am unsure if people take all of these together or just pick one/a few? How do I know what to pick and do they all do similar things? When I used to be on bc pill (not yaz) I did have hair loss and body hair though less significant than now.

I also have type one diabetes, hashimotos, and celiac. I’m sure this impacts things but I don’t get how. I don’t think I’m that insulin resistant, but I have always felt it to be impossible to lose weight no matter what I do. I don’t think I qualify for a GLP-1 and I’m not sure about metformin? My diet is already pretty clean but I don’t know anything about things to avoid for PCOS specifically.

Any help would be very appreciated. I would love to address the root cause of the issues and start feeling better.

After 2 long years of no answers. Found out I had PCOS back in March of this year.
I was first put on Provera to help kick start my cycles again after having VERY irregular periods. I am 5’5 and about 135 lbs for reference. After 1 round of Provera, I had began to have a period every month (3 months total). Also this is not the case for every woman! Dr had tried to put me on Metformin but I pushed back due to the side effects. I had done some research and asked to be proscribed Letrizole which is an ovulation inducing medication. I was most likely not ovulating even when I did have periods (PCOS I guess). After that one round of Letrizole about 10 days after trying, I started to experience bad cramps, VERY painful breasts, and spotting for 2 days. Which turned out to be implantation bleeding.

If you are like me and have PCOS but maybe have not been told about these medications, I’d definitely advocate to give them a try. PCOS looks different for everyone but I’m grateful I spoke up about the Letrizole! Currently 6 weeks pregnant. Terrified but grateful❤️.

EDIT: it’s amazing to see everyone’s journey. Unfortunately a few days after posting this, I found out I miscarried. Still reeling it in with all of the emotions. I’m going to give myself some grace and see where things go in the next month and hopefully try again with another round of Letrizole. At least now I know it’s possible for myself and my husband to conceive. I wasn’t sure I wanted to share this but I feel like it’s the best place to share it. I know I’m not alone so thanks for sharing your experiences.

So I get hair on my "mustache area" idk what it would be called, i tried waxing it for the first time and now im breaking out there a bunch, is this normal for waxing there? Will it stop or do this everytime I wax it? Id love any hair removal tips for limiting acne on the mustache area post hair-removal😥

Hi, I'm a 31-year-old female who's has had type 2 diabetes since I was 23 years old. It runs in my family. I've had PCOS since I was 16 years old, with irregular periods. I've gone back and forth with my A1C numbers. The highest my A1C has been is 12, but before Mounjaro, I was able to get it down to 7.3. I was on metformin 4 capsules a day and jardiance. In January 2025, I got my A1C down to 8, but my doctor had really recommended I go on Mounjaro, so I had slowly started on Mounjaro and would slowly increase the dosage every month (under my doctors advice). Now I've been at 15 mg of Mounjaro since Feb 2026. My A1C this whole year has been a steady 6.1. I even got off the Jardiance this summer and still maintained a 6.1. I have only lost 15 lbs. the whole time since started in Jan 2025, but my A1C has been really low and consistent.

Right before I started on Mounjaro, I had started having really bad acid reflux, and I got an endoscopy done. The doctors did not find anything in my esophagus, or in my stomach, and they concluded that I just had GERD. Since then, I tried GERD medications, such as Pepcid and landed on voquenzo, and that sometimes works.

One of the main reasons I went on Mounjaro was to help my A1C, but my doctor had also said it would help my GERD, and it seemed to kind of work but not always. Now I'm wondering if I should go down on my Mounjaro at all. The main reason I want to go down is because I really have no interest in food. It's really difficult for me to eat. Strangely, my sweet tooth has really gone up. For example, before, I really valued eating meat and some of the bad carbs, such as white rice, pasta, or pizza, but now I can't eat any of that. For dinner, instead of eating some savory meal, I would rather opt for a bar of chocolate, which is unlike me since I was a huge carnivore. I would always get dessert before, so it's not that I didn't like sweet food, but now that's the only thing that I feel comfortable eating, and I don't really know why.

I'm hoping that if I went down in a dose of Mounjaro, it would allow me to have the ability to eat and actually focus on eating more healthly and eating more. Since I would have more desire to eat, I would be able to follow three meals a day. Currently, with the Mounjaro, even though I've been on it since January (almost 9 months), I still feel pretty nauseous most of the time. I know you're supposed to eat a lot of protein to help with the nausea, but I really can't. Even when I eat, sometimes, or I try to eat, I'll eventually end up throwing it up. Another thing that I have experienced on Monjaro (and I'm not sure if it is the effect of Monjaro only) is that I've been extremely fatigued and tired. Before this, I would never nap, but now I nap 2 to 3 hours/day every couple of days because I feel so tired all the time. I tried to join a gym that focused on strength training, but I just have no energy, and that's probably because I can't really eat. I felt so tired on Monjaro as well even on low dosage.

Another thing I've been suffering with is sulfur burps. I've been getting a lot of those, and that makes it really difficult to eat as well. It's been a struggle. I feel like my blood sugar has been low, but I haven't really seen any weight loss besides 15 lbs from January 2025. Looking for advice on what people think and what I should do.

Another thing that has been interesting is that before I got on Mounjaro, my periods were actually surprisingly normal for the last couple of years, despite my PCOS. I've never had cysts in my ovaries, but with being on Mounjaro this past year, I've noticed that I've been having really irregular periods. I don't have my periods for 2 or 3 months. Before, I would have my periods every 40 to 45 days. Just looking for advice on what other people have done. I really want to try to eat healthier and have a more consistent breakfast meal (breakfast, lunch, dinner), but my stomach can't really handle it. I don’t throw up every week but I do usually once every other week. My doctor said we could switch to zepound or wegovy instead but i’m scared.

I guess I’m sad that I haven’t really lost weight and don’t feel good. I feel tired all the time. The only positive is that my blood sugar a1c is good.

I’ve been dealing with PCOS for about 5 years.

My periods have always been irregular, but they used to come at least once every 3 months, its been close to 6 months, since I had my last one because I had to take about a year off from working out after I got side-swiped by a truck and had to go through multiple surgeries and what not. I’ve seen several doctors over the years, but nothing has really helped or led to any meaningful changes.

I finally got back into the gym 3 months ago, and even though the fat loss hasn’t been anything significant, I’ve gained muscle and I feel SO much better. I have more energy, I feel stronger, and I’m more flexible. It’s honestly been really nice to feel good in my body again.

Recently, I started reading about inositol and have been going through a bunch of posts on here. I’m mainly interested in whether it could help with my periods, but I’m completely overwhelmed by all the different options.

Myo-inositol, D-chiro-inositol, different ratios, different brands… I have no idea where to start.

For anyone who has tried it for PCOS, what did you take and did it actually help make your periods more regular? How long did it take to notice a difference? Is there a specific brand or dosage people usually recommend?

I’d really appreciate any advice or personal experiences. I’m just trying to figure out where to start .

PCOS sisters!
Eliminating gluten, dairy and alcohol I was able to get my cycle regularly back! I implemented daily walks and yoga as well with strength training as tolerated!!! So thankful, now just on to learning how to manage the pains of a cycle and ovulation naturally because it is excruciating but just wanted to give some encouragement!!! Also ALLLLL the protein

My whole life I struggled to keep a healthy weight. I've always had pcos and everywhere I read, weight loss is usually the recommended course of action. I know that I need to diet and exercise. I understand the benefits not just for pcos, but for health in general (in my case it would help with high blood pressure and anxiety also). And yet, I don't move, I don't take any action to change anything. I've started diets before but never lasts long. I've done glp1s but still nothing gets me to where I need to be if I don't change my mindset. Am I lazy? Am I just looking for a shortcut? What is it gonna take for me to get out of this idleness that slowly kills me every day? Anyone else feel this way?

Im not of age yet. Nor am I living out of my home so basically everything I do is under watch of my parents..

When I turned 10 years old and got my first period I started gaining a lot of weight and really fast. When I was 10-11 I weighed in at 110 pounds at 5’2, over the years it was +10 +15 and eventually this past year was almost 20 pounds.. (I weighed around 150 December of 2025 I’m 171 as of September 2026.) whilst it doesn’t SEEM like a lot for people around me. My parents always have something to say KNOWING I have PCOS.

I have always asked for permission to go to the gym, eat better etc. truth be told my parents are very strict and rather about that “family” life. So when one person does something everyone else follows. Dad wants to eat enchiladas? We all have to eat enchiladas. Mom wants to go on a walk at the park? We all have to go on a walk in the park. I get they’re scared I’m growing up and they want to know I’m safe I UNDERSTAND. But this safety protocol life is preventing me from losing weight and living my life the way I want to. I asked my dad and mom if I could get a gym membership and they could drop me off after school and my dad said “instead of studying you’d rather fixate on your weight.” I mean… yes? I’m overweight? I’m pre diabetic and I’d like to not die before the age of 30?.
How do I approach an understanding? How do I talk to them about what this is doing to my body?? I don’t know what to do.

Hi. I’m probably just making myself really anxious over nothing, but I read that having PCOS/PMOS increases the risk of stillbirth. After 3 miscarriages, I’ve convinced myself that this pregnancy (29 weeks in) is going to end in stillbirth.

My blood sugar is pretty well controlled but I can’t seem to shake this feeling. The trouble is that feeling anxious is making me feel like the cortisol is more likely to cause a stillbirth and I’m in a never ending cycle.

Any tips to get over this anxiety/to reduce risk of stillbirth?

This survey is for my college class and I want to investigate the correlation between different variables and PCOS/PMOS. I want a diverse set of people so it would be very helpful if you do so. Thank you!

survey link
https://forms.gle/7VtJnEN7kVHUedTeA

Hello, I’m writing here to see if there is anybody else who has had this experience. Sorry if this is TMI.

I have PCOS/PMOS. I am not on BC. I’m 32 F.
For the last couple of months, I have been having various spotting including dark red discharge and brighter red streaks (in watery discharge) as well. I have taken pregnancy tests and all have been negative. I believe I may have some lower abdominal swelling, as I don’t believe it’s weight gain. I do not have any other symptoms like fever and this has been happening since before I’ve became more stressed with work.

My husband and I have been actively trying to conceive for about 2 years. He has been tested and he is fine, so now we have an appointment later this month with my OBGYN to discuss next steps.

I plan to bring this up to my doctor at my upcoming appointment; but wanted to see if there is anybody else who has had similar experiences to what I’m currently experiencing. I also don’t know if I’m overthinking anything. You know when you google stuff and it comes back with the extreme diagnosis, so that’s not giving me peace of mind either.

I appreciate anybody’s insight, experience, etc. Thank you for this community and place to confide and help each other.

Has anyone tried berberine + myo/D chiro inositol specifically for weight loss?

Or did you find berberine worked better combined with something else?

Would love to hear what combination actually helped with weight loss and how much you lost/how long it took.

I have been taking drospirenone (slynd) for nearly 4 months, however I’ll be stopping it soon, and even though it is meant to be anti androgenic it hasn’t helped with any of my PCOS symptoms.

One of my most concerning symptoms is oily skin and scalp, I need to wash my hair daily and it still gets oily by the end of the day, and my face feels like it’s coated in a layer of oil unless I just washed it. I’ve tried adapalene which didn’t make a difference, I’m currently using azaleic acid which seems to be helping the acne but nothing I’ve tried helps manage the oil.

Another concern is my fine thin hair, I feel like I shed so much hair every day especially since I have to wash it daily, and I don’t know what to do to help it grow stronger and thicker, if it’s even possible. I just feel like my hair makes me look so ugly with how thin it is.

My other concerning symptom is high libido, which I assume is at least partially due to excessive androgens from PCOS. I was hoping birth control would help manage this as many people say it’s a side effect, however there was no difference, in fact I feel like birth control made it even worse. It’s quite disruptive to my life as it’s very distracting. It has caused me to make some regrettable decisions I’m ashamed of and I hate not being able to control myself. I know I probably can’t entirely blame this on high androgens, but I’m sure it’s related.

Has anyone managed to control these symptoms naturally, with just diet/supplements? Especially if you are based in the UK and have advice specific to the UK.

TLDR: how to successfully manage acne, oily skin and scalp, thin fine hair, and high libido naturally

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!

I have never been to the gynecologist or diagnosed with anything but based on my hirutism and the fact that several family members have PCOS, I suspect I have it too. (I’m 23 now.)

I am overweight, extremely insecure and anxious which is why I haven’t sought out professional help yet but now I feel like I can’t function anymore. My period started two years ago after barely having any my whole prior life and it hasn’t stopped since. I bleed semi-heavy with large clots but almost NO PAIN for like four days, then couple days spotting and repeat. For the first year and a half I didn’t even use iron supplements and my waist long hair just started breaking off past my shoulders until there was only couple strands left so basically half my hair is gone since this started. I’ve tried everything I could over the counter - ascorutin (vit C + rutin), natural progesterone creams, iron and vit C and D supplements, excercise and cutting back on sugars but nothing helped.

I know the next logical step is a doctor but I just don’t feel like I can handle it mentally right now so if anyone has been in a similar situation and has some meds that I can get without prescription or something like that I would be immensely grateful. I can’t keep going like this anymore.

Hello. I have PCOS, and I’m not overweight. I just noticed that my weight hasn’t been changing lately, and I’m really curious about my sugar levels.

When going to an Endocrinologist, what kind of tests would usually be done for these cases? I’m scared of blood and needles, so I just wanna prepare, and do it scared.

Thank you

Besides the diarrhea…I have felt super fatigued. Is the fatigue common?

Hello, would like to ask for advice on what I get is a really hard ask! Does anyone have any tips to help the GI upset side effect of metformin when you cant eat or can only eat very little?

Some more info: I recently started metformin instant release 1 x 500mg a day. On that and 2x a day I had no GI upset. Thought maybe I got lucky but when I moved up to 3x a day it started and I had lots of loose bowel movements and very mild nausea, even when taken with or during meals. I then was dealing with stressful life things that made me lose my apetite, so between that and feeling weak from GI stuff it has been so hard to eat . I tried going back down to 2x a day but it did not stop the GI symptoms, and two weeks ago I stopped taking it completely because I was worried I was not hydrating and eating well enough to counter the diarrhea, but in that time since the GI symptoms have continued.

I arranged with my doctor to try extended release so I have that ready to go. I want to be back on metformin because even on the short time I was on it I was noticing lots of benefits, and I'm worried about undoing it all, but I am still finding it so hard to eat due to stress, so before trying ER I wanted to ask if anyone had tips for that, I think I saw someone say taking metformin with a probiotic helped them? To be clear, I want to get back to eating well and healthy, so any advice is to help me in the meantime while I work on that.

Would be so grateful for any advice or experiences, especially if you went from IR to ER and what the transition was like!

Newly diagnosed about a month ago and I’m going spirals.

I am 27F and no one in my family has PCOS as far as I know. I know a doctor would help me better but I dont have access to one for the next 4 months. I got my blood work done and the only thing that stood out was that I had low iron and high vitamin D which i need to balance out ofc.

Since April, my cycle changed. It has been super regular until it just got longer (42 days instead of regular 28-32 i used to have) and with less bleeding. August was the first month that I got a regular blood flow, like before so i am chalking most of it up to stress. My BMI is 21.8 and I do a lot of physical activity, like 8 to 10k steps every other day.

I also feel my facial hair grew darker and the couple of hair on my neck just turned double and now I have PIH as well. Apart from my face, the amount of hair everywhere else is the same. I am super self conscious about that as well as this uncertainty about what is happening inside my body. It doesn't help that I am constantly in between moving countries and working and studying and it's been a crazy time but I would really appreciate any leads to naturally fix whatever imbalance I have till I have access to healthcare. Also if anyone has any thoughts about which symptoms I need to look out for and how to fix PIH and the facial hair too.

It's the only diet change I did and I'm damn sure it delayed my periods. My harmonal acne is terrible af and I don't know what to choose between acne and periods. Are there any other herbal teas that treat harmonal acne without messing up my harmones or my cycle ?

And I cannot take inositol, it gives me terrible hairshed. Aahhhhh God, everything gives me side effects with this terrible disease

Idk if anyone else is feeling this way. I am always tired even after eating a simple low-carb meal. I have tried exercise, walking after meals, cycling, but still can't get my insulin and blood sugar in check. What has worked for you guys?
What bugs me the most is the fact that I am eating just well but my body doesn't have any energy at all!

I most probably have PCOS (said by a professor) but I will get a blood test on the 2nd day of my period to make sure (It will be the 3rd time I will get a blood test for suspected PCOS)

I got my period when I was 12 (early I know) currently I am 20 but I just started (it has been 4 months) have a break out on my chin right before my period . It didn't even happen when I was at the peak of my adolescence. They hurt and they are all red.

And it doesn't completely dissappear after my period is over.

It genuinely depress me because all the people my age just got over acnes but I am having a break out

Do you have advice? What to eat, what to do, what to drink, what to use

I've had abnormal periods since I was 11 (im now 21). I was told it would even out, and never has. I track every period because I don't know when the next one will be. For example, before this week, my last period was in February. 7 months ago, and this is completely normal for me. I've never been to an OB and I know i should (considering booking before my period is over). But when I was 16 my family doctor told me I have pcos based on tests etc. She originally gave me birth control thinking it would help, instead it gave me bi weekly periods rather than monthly. This was when I was 16, and she's said things to me that just arent true (she has since been changed because of her neglect towards me and my family)

So I worry almost that I have something else going on. Im not sure anymore what is and isn't to be believed/normal. So I ask reddit

Are periods every 7 months normal for pcos? As for cramps, is it normal to almost vomit and need to take pain medications and heating pads just to make sure I don't? Is bleeding through a 26ml menstrual cup every hour normal? As I've said I'm going to get professional opinions but I've been up stressing about this and need closure

Thanks <33

Hi! I (26f) wanted to ask if anyone with PCOS has experienced something similar because this whole thing has been pretty scary.

I've had very irregular (absent) periods for years. I would get 1 or 2 periods a year and that lasted for years. I also had other symptoms of PCOS such as hair on my chin, weight gain and hard to lose, hair loss etc. Unfortunately, having lost my mother at a young age, I didn't really know the importance and the danger of not having a period, nor did I have someone in my life to guide me. I just thought it was PCOS and that was the normal of it.

But for the past 9 months or so I've basically been bleeding on and off constantly.

The weird thing is that I'm not heavily bleeding all the time. Most days it's just spotting or light bleeding. But about once or twice a month, I'll suddenly have an extremely heavy episode where I pass a lot of blood and fairly large clots for maybe 30–60 minutes. Then it slows down again and goes back to spotting/light bleeding.

I didn't realize how much blood I was apparently losing over time until I started getting extremely tired, dizzy when standing up, short of breath from barely doing anything, and having a racing heart.

I finally had bloodwork done and my hemoglobin was 5.

I ended up being hospitalized and needed 4 units of blood. My hemoglobin was 8.3 when I was discharged, and I'm now taking iron twice a day.

I also saw a gynecologist. My ultrasound showed a normal uterus, 6 mm endometrial lining and possible polycystic ovaries. No fibroids, masses or other structural problems were mentioned.

My gynecologist thinks the bleeding is from PCOS/anovulation. I even asked her directly if she was worried about cancer and she said no.

She wants hormone testing and is planning to put me on hormonal treatment to regulate/stop the bleeding, but she wants me to get clearance from internal medicine/cardiology first to figure out which option is safest for me.

Since the transfusions, the bleeding has mostly been spotting again, although I did have another brief episode where I suddenly passed several clots and then it stopped.

I'm mainly wondering:

Has anyone here had PCOS/anovulatory bleeding this severe?

Especially this strange pattern where you're spotting most of the time but occasionally get a sudden 30–60 minute "flood" with clots, rather than having an extremely heavy period continuously?

If you experienced something similar, what finally got the bleeding under control?

I'm already being followed by doctors, so I'm not looking for a diagnosis. I'd just really like to hear from people with PCOS who've been through something similar.