Living With PCOS

‘You’re up, you’re down. You’re here, you’re there. You’re like a freaking one-woman-circus”

And that my friends – is the single most accurate statement for those of us with PCOS.

Bills, work, hormonal acne….. they all suck!

The bills and work part are pretty much inevitable, however, the acne part..yeah..not so much.. at least not for everyone.

Every morning I wake up only to look in the mirror and tackle the task of hiding the scars that my acne left behind. Acne that was caused by yours truly, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. 
If you know someone who struggles with PCOS, give them a big hug and a bushel of broccoli, but no dairy, carbs, sugar, or processed foods… we stray away from all of those things.

 When I was 21 I had my official diagnosis of PCOS. I always knew I had it (Google never lets you down) but my Gynecologist wasn’t exactly super sold on the thought that I might be one of the 1 in 10 women who had it, which is understandable considering that all of my lab tests came back squeaky clean. Thyroid, testosterone, insulin, the whole nine yards  – all normal. So I was sent home with Tri-Sprintec to control my break outs and regulate Aunt Flo, but I just wasn’t content with that.

I went FIFTEEN MONTHS without a period, FIFTEEN.

 And that was totally normal for me, by the way.

So per my request, my doc ordered an ultrasound, and there it was..there they were.. the cysts that “strung” my ovaries. Such a gross term.

“Hah! I KNEW IT!” was my immediate thought.

Since then I have done NON-STOP research on my new lifelong friend. And let me tell you, a lot of things began to make sense.
My overly sensitive breakdowns when my husband didn’t tell me that my outfit was cute or that my hair looked good, or how about the fact that I can go from performing a Brittany Spears solo one minute to crying my eyes out the next?
We can’t leave out the long dark locks that sprout from my chin or the mornings that I get up and see Mt. Everest on my cheek

Speaking of the long locks, it may or may not be time to rid them off my face again.

IT. ALL. MADE. SENSE. 
PCOS affects your hormones, which means it affects pretty much EVERYTHING. 
I go from feeling like I can conquer the world to not finding the motivation to get out of bed all day, and this is a frequent occurrence. 
Some days I feel beautiful and feminine, and then when I am plucking my chin hairs – it’s safe to say that I feel anything but feminine. 

And then there’s WEIGHT GAIN!!!!!!!!!!! CAN WE TALK ABOUT THE WEIGHT GAIN?!? I gained nearly 50lbs in less than a year – that can’t be healthy.
So, I think by now we have established that PCOS can REALLY bring you down and make you feel less beautiful than you really are.

However, though you may feel less like a woman, or less attractive – I am here to tell you one thing, and that one thing is THAT IS A BIG FAT LIE.

As a matter of fact, you are the complete opposite of that. You are so beautiful and you are SO strong. Just trust me on this, okay?
I love how you wake up every morning and conquer the day – and I love you even more on the days you don’t feel like loving yourself.

Living with PCOS took a large number on my day to day life.

Not anymore, though.

Every morning when I am getting ready for work, I tell myself I am beautiful. No, seriously. I really do.

I also watch what I eat, because fact of the matter is that we gain weight easier and struggle a little more to lose it. So everyday i consume roughly 1300 calories and drink tons of water.
Lesson #1 – Water is your new soulmate.

I also make sure that I get plenty of sleep. I kinda have this routine where i try to go to bed around the same time every night and get a full 8 hours. This allows me to wake up early before everyone else and start my day with a healthy mindset. I take a few hours to myself to drink my water and read my favorite book (currently being “Girl, Wash Your Face” by Rachel Hollis). I also love watching motivational videos online while I enjoy my breakfast.
I really encourage you to try this.

I think working out or finding a good group to join is a major key. I love “working out the issues”. I like to go to the gym and just release my energy for a good hour – and that hour is spent pushing myself mentally and physically as far as I can. I really want to find a spin class, or maybe try CrossFit because I think that surrounding yourself with people who share the same goals is so healthy for your motivational mindset.

Last but certainly not least – I RELAX.

I genuinely take time to myself. Whether that be going to the nail salon or taking a long bath with some essential oils diffusing. Maybe those aren’t exactly your thing, and that’s okay. I just really want you to find yours and take the time to do it more often.

These are just a few of my tips for all my cysters.
I just want to let you all know that you are NOT alone, you ARE enough, you CAN lose the weight, you CAN get it under control. 
YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL and I LOVE YOU.

Love always,
                        Tayler.