My PCOS Story: How I conquered my PCOS
By: Cara, RN, BSN,
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I have been Diagnosed with PCOS
My PCOS symptoms:
Weight gain/excess weight, especially in the middle.
40-day menstrual cycles
Sugar highs and lows (probably due to insulin resistance, but was never checked for it).
High cholesterol
Infertility (anovulation)
Long, thick hairs on chin
SkinTags

Because of the following experience, I have come to the conclusion that PCOS is caused by an over growth of yeast/candida, and that anything that kills yeast/candida will help the body to overcome PCOS and the symptoms that are associated with it.  
Candida control is used to treat PCOS as a whole, NOT just for symptom management.  Because it is used to treat PCOS as a whole, it can be used by anyone with PCOS no matter which PCOS symptoms are presenting. 

Candida control can be used by women with PCOS who:
Want to regulate their cycles, or start having cycles again.
Want to lose weight.
Want to have a baby.
Want to manage or treat any other PCOS symptoms.

Click here for a list of things that are often used to control candida.


My PCOS story, the short version:
I had 40-day cycles.
After trying unsuccessfully for 2 years to become pregnant,
I took 1 Diflucan pill, the very next cycle was 28 days after the previous one. 
I had 3 28-day cycles and became pregnant with twins.
I didn’t take anything else, I didn’t realize that it was the diflucan that had helped me get pregnant, I didn’t realize that the yeast could come back, mess up my hormones and stop the pregnancy.
Pregnancy stopped at 9 weeks, bleeding started at 14 weeks, D&C after ultrasound confirmed no fetal heartbeats.
Click here to see ultrasound of twins. Twin A  Twin B

Was finally Dx'd with PCOS

After period started again, cycles were 35 days.
Took 1 Monostat one ovule.  Very next cycle was 28 days.
Started taking Herbal yeast fighters, and enzyme yeast fighters.
Had 3 28-day cycles and became pregnant with my second son.
Kept taking the herbal and enzyme yeast fighters until I found out that the herbal yeast fighters have a mild blood thinner, which is not recommended during pregnancy.  Continued taking the enzyme yeast fighters through pregnancy.
Started Metformin.
Took progesterone until week 13.
Carried pregnancy to term and gave birth to a baby boy.

After my baby was born, I stopped metformin and yeast fighters.
My cycle in Jan 2006 was 35 days after my previous cycle.
Started taking herbal and enzyme yeast fighters after that cycle.
Very next cycle was exactly 28 days.
I have continued to take yeast fighters until July 2006, then started Micro-current therapy with a zapper.
Have continued to have 27-29 day cycles to this day.

Click here for a list of things that are often used to keep candida under control.


My PCOS Story the long version:

I had no problems conceiving my first child.  After he was born, I didn’t have a cycle for a year.  When my cycle finally started again, they were 40 days apart.  After my son turned a year old, we stopped using any kind of birth control and were hoping to become pregnant.

Month after month, the normal 28 days would pass without a cycle, and at first, I was spending a lot of money on negative PG tests, only to be disappointed, and then on day 40, my cycle would start.  Then I finally realized that my body had changed, and I needed to wait the 40 days before thinking I might be pregnant.  I thought that I was just missing the ovulation date, since it is harder to predict with 40-day cycles.  I didn’t realize that anything was wrong, I didn’t realize that I wasn’t even ovulating.

My sister had mentioned to me that I might have a yeast imbalance.  I thought she was nuts, always talking about herbs, toxins and weird diets.  I am an RN, a scientist; I didn’t really buy into any of that herb stuff.  She gave me a list of herbs that I needed to take, but I never felt it was that important.  I couldn’t have a yeast imbalance; I never had any yeast infection.  I never had any symptoms of a yeast infection.

In addition to having 40-day cycles, I had a few other symptoms that I didn’t know were related to my problem.  I gained a lot of weight while I was pregnant, and was having a hard time losing the weight.  I was around 250 lbs.  I did have few thick long hairs growing on my chin that I would pluck every chance I got.  I often felt sugar highs and lows.  My cholesterol was also high.  My doctor wanted me to start taking lipitor, but since I was tyring to get pregnant, I refused.  Little did I know that these were all symptoms of PCOS.

April of 2002, I became sick with an abscess in the back of my throat, a peri-tonsiler abscess.  My throat was so sore and swollen, I couldn’t eat anything.  I lost a few pounds during that time.  After they finally confirmed that I had a step infection that had abscessed, my doctor drained the abscess, and put me on very strong antibiotics.  I recovered from the infection, but as a result of the antibiotics, I developed mild symptoms of a yeast infection, so I requested an Rx for diflucan, something I knew would kill the yeast.   (Still wasn’t too keen on that list of herbs).  During that time, I had a day that I did a lot of exercise, walking.  My cycle started the very next day, exactly 28 days after my previous cycle.  I thought it was because of the exercise, I didn’t realize that it was because of the diflucan killing the yeast in my body.  I had also started suspecting PCOS, and started to research PCOS.  Sure enough, I had all the symptoms, and since PCOS had an insulin resistant component, then it made sense that exercise would help.

After I took the diflucan, I had 3 28-day cycles and then got pregnant in Sept. 2002.  WOW, I was so happy.  When my sister mentioned herbs, I confidently told her that I didn’t need her herbs, that I was already pregnant.  I never took anything to keep the yeast under control.
I miscarried twins at 14 weeks gestation. The pregnancy had stopped at 9 weeks, but I didn’t have any bleeding until 14 weeks.  I had a D&C.  I bled for a long time after the D&C, it seems like a couple of weeks.  And then I went for a couple of months without a cycle.

I did a lot of thinking and researching, and recounted everything that I had done, and realized that there just might be merit to this yeast theory after all.  After my period finally started again, the second cycle that I had was 35 days after the first one.   So this time I took a Monostat 1 ovule.  My very next cycle was exactly 28 days after the last one.  I had 3 28-day cycles and then became pregnant again.  I calculated that I must have conceived on June 18, 2003, the original due date of the twins.  This time I wasn’t taking any chances.  I took herbal yeast fighters until I realized that they contain an herb that is a mild blood thinner, which is not recommended during pregnancy.  I took enzyme yeast fighters throughout the pregnancy.  I also started metformin, and took progesterone until week 13 just to make sure I didn’t lose this one.  When I started the metformin, I was already pregnant.  The metformin didn’t help me get pregnant at all, just gave me loose stools.

I was able to carry the pregnancy to term, (and beyond), and had my second son, in March of 2004

After I had my baby, since I really wasn’t trying to get pregnant again, I stopped metformin.  I didn’t take the yeast herbal yeast fighters, and only took the enzyme yeast fighters when I had heartburn (wow, it really helped with my heartburn).

Well, I still had the excess weight that I couldn’t seem to lose.  Still have the hairs on my chin.  My cycles started again a few months after my son was born.  Darn, I was hoping to not have to start dealing with that so soon.  They were around 30 day cycles, not to abnormal.  Then January of 2006, my cycle was 35 days.  OOPS, big wake up call.  I started the herbal yeast fighters, and the enzyme yeast fighters. And my Feb. cycle was exactly 28 days.  I have contined to take things to control the yeast since then, and my cycles have all been 27-29 days.  Since the last part of July, I have been using a micro current device called a zapper, that zaps the yeast/candida to keep it controlled.  I have not been using any yeast fighters since I started the zapper, and my cycles have continued to be 27-29 days.


Click here for a list of things that are often used to keep candida under control.

Update 8/28/07
I decided to start trying to conceive in March, 2007.  Because of the candida control, my PCOS was kept in remission, and we were successful that first month that we started trying, We found out that we are expecting a BOY.  The baby is due Nov. 29, 2007.  Below is the U/S image of the our baby boy.

Update 12/8/07
Our baby boy arrived.  Emilio Estevan was born weighing 8 lbs 2 oz.  Click here to see pics of our precious Emilio.