Letters to Editor

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To Whom It May Concern:

I am writing to you to ask for your assistance in my effort to bring national awareness of a condition that I and so many suffer from.It's called Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (or PCOS). This letter is not just about telling my story but also making more people, not just women but men too, of all ages, aware of this condition and how it affects women that they know. It effects about 10% of women in this country but this could be an even higher rate and not all women with symptoms of PCOS realize that they have it. It could go let unchecked for many years until the woman has trouble failing pregnant and that’s when she finds out.

This letter is written so that men might have a better understanding of what the woman around them that suffers from this go through. To help them to have a better understanding so they can be more supportive of their partner, friends or relatives. It is also for women out there to know they are not alone and that there are support groups in place online that they can join. To have parents of teenage daughters that may be showing signs of the condition, to have them tested so that they can learn to deal with it at a younger age than I was (and maybe not miss so much of their education). It is also for the medical profession as so many doctors today still know very little about the condition themselves. There are very few doctors out there that have some understanding of the condition

My story begins when I was 12 years old and started to suffer from severe pelvic pain and repeatedly had me in and out of hospital for a week or more at a time. I was constantly having tests done with doctors never able to make their mind up on what was wrong with me. Some doctor would say it was just development, others cysts on the ovaries busting or even that there was nothing wrong with me and I was doing it for attention. I was also a slow starter. I didn’t get my first real period till I was almost 16 years old and again when a doctor was questioned about this their response was simply, “You’re a late bloomer.”

It was not until I married my 1st husband and we had been trying for 5 years that I saw a specialist who did a blood test and said, “You have PCOS.” When I asked what that was he told me a hormone imbalance and nothing more was told to me except my testosterone levels were high and to loose weight. I started to feel like I would never be able to have children

Over the next few years I knew nothing about the condition. I didn’t know its symptoms or how it was effecting me. Until I was introduced to the internet and over time I started surfing to learn as much as I could about it and in the beginning I mainly found American sites that were so technical I didn’t understand most of it and you only got the most common symptoms from the sites. There wasn’t really anywhere I could find support from.

By this time I was with my second husband and found a book called PCOS (a woman’s guide to dealing with polycystic ovary syndrome). I had finally found something that made sense to me and explained to me what my condition was, and that being over weight was part of it. That the condition was not just about hormones but was related to insulin resistance.

I had all the classic symptoms, weight gain (difficulty losing it and maintaining it) hair loss, oily hair, acne, irregular periods, extra facial hair, pelvic and breast pain, chronic fatigue, insulin resistance, terrible mood swings, dizziness, tendency to faint, miscarriage, as well as the classic infertility problems.

I now have a much better understanding of this condition and know that it is inherited through my family. I also look for signs of the long term effects such as cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, cancer, and diabetes. I now take care of myself as much as possible.

Most of the time when I see a new Dr and say I have PCOS they ask what’s that and I explain it to them which does not give you confidence when you know more than them.

I have since found a lovely support network of women through email groups where we all understand what each other is going though and help each other. They can be found at this website http://www.womenpowerwithpcos.com/

This site is set up by a woman who has PCOS and searched the net for as much information as she could find to educate her better in the condition she suffers from.

It is a very informative site with very useful links in it

Please help to educate more people in PCOS so that maybe they won't have to go through what I and so many have. Thank you for your time and I hope you consider helping me in my efforts



Bronwyn Goulding  

bronwyngoulding@yahoo.com.au

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