[22943]

I'm burning the midnight oil here trying to find something that fits my symptoms and maybe I've found something, PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome). When they did my colonoscopy yesterday, I was told that my bowel looked fairly decent, only some irritation to it in the two distinct spots that I've really been having pain. So, if the bowel looks ok, maybe it has to be the womanly organs (of which I've been trying to get rid of for the last oh, 15 years!)PCOS symptoms from what I've found, and from what people with it have posted on a message board at the PCOS support group include: violent mood swings (hmmmmmm, have those), fatigue (yup), abdominal pain, possible constipation and/or diarrhea, anxiety, headaches, bloating, weight gain (primarily around the waist), irregular periods, dark circles under eyes, iron deficiency, nail problems, hair growth on body parts and some other stuff. All of these things fit me!Has anyone else been diagnosed with this? Have experience? Had a doctor mention it before? (My doc did, but did not feel large cysts on my ovaries so I think basically dismissed it, but I'm finding out that you don't necessarily need huge cysts on your ovaries to have this). No one has ever tested my hormone levels, which I think is how you find this out.Oh, it's also a precursor to type 2 diabetes and something else, I can't remember. Am I totally insane? Should I just let this be and not bring it up and just accept that I have IBS? I don't know. I just want an explanation for my constant pain.

 

[Kathleen M.]

Well one thing to remember is having a colon that looks normal on colonoscopy is part of what every IBS person has.A finding of normal on the colonoscopy doesn't mean the GI tract is not the source of the GI symptoms. "Functional" by definition means that all the tests they do are basically normal. In IBS the problem is with what controls the colon (the nerves, etc.) and not the organ itself.Now if you really do fit the symptoms of PCOS it may be worth talking to your gynecologist about this, I'm not sure how often it is generally missed. Just be careful because sometimes it is really easy for people when searching for answers to make themselves fit the symptoms of various syndroms they find (and a lot of the things listed are found to some degree in many woman without PCOS, like with irregular periods, how irregular are you. Is it in the range of PCOS or part of the normal range of irregular, and stuff like that). K.

 

[percy]

Hi, I was just diagnosed with Pcos 3 months ago. Your doctor will not beable to tell by just feeling for cysts. Getting lab work done to check is just the start. If your doctor finds them abnormal he may send you for an US to check for pcos. Thats how I was diagnosed. I have had constipation problems for the last five years. Probably has to a little to do with Ibs and bit to do with Pcos. I have no periods and am 26 wanting to start a family. I have just started my treatment process and am crossing my fingers. But from what I read if your not wanting to start a family they just usually put you on birth control to help with menstrual stuff. I am totally convinced now that the bowels go hand in hand with your stupid hormone levels. It's not very often you here of guys with constipation problems. Good luck to you

 

[22943]

Thanks Percy for the info. Wow, I hope that now that you know what's going on, you will be able to start a family. All my life I've had this feeling that there is something wrong with my reproductive organs. They could just take them out and put me on hormones and I'd be happy as a clam. I've got no use for them.

 

[15909]

Hi,I know it's been a couple weeks since you've posted this, but I just came across your thread while doing some research of my own. A lot of doctors (including ob/gyns) don't pick up on PCOS very quickly because it hadn't been getting much recognition or attention until the past 10 years. I was fortunate that my ob/gyn picked up on it really quickly when I stopped taking birth control pills.If you haven't already talked again with your doctor, ask him/her to do a blood test to measure your FSH (follicle stimulating hormone) and LH (leutinizing hormone) levels on the third day of your period. (It has to be the third day since your hormone levels change throughout your cycle; if you don't get your period regularly, your doctor can prescribe something to induce it.)On the third day of your period, your FSH and LH levels should be about the same. If your LH is at least three times as high as your FSH, that's a classic sign of PCOS. Although sometimes the ratio won't be quite that high (for example, sometimes I have a 2 to 1 ratio), it can still be a sign of PCOS.Another thing that can help diagnose PCOS is a transvaginal ultrasound. PCOS women typically have several small cysts in their ovaries. HTH,Rebecca

 

[22943]

Thanks for the tips! Boy, when I get back from Kansas City, I'm going to look into that for sure and see what they have to say about it. I'm planning on going to see a different OB/GYN as well. Normally, I would never go see a female OB/GYN, but this time, I have to as she is the only one that is working with a new device to completely block the fallopian tubes, it's called the Essure coil.