If you read the title of this post and said to yourself, ‘what the hell is PCOS?’, you’re in the right place. And you’re definitely not alone in being unfamiliar with the acronym, hence the purpose of this post.
PCOS, or Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, “is a hormonal disorder common among women of reproductive age. Women with PCOS may have infrequent or prolonged menstrual periods or excess male hormone (androgen) levels. The ovaries may develop numerous small collections of fluid (follicles) and fail to regularly release eggs,” says MayoClinic’s website.
Rather than giving you a female reproductive lesson, I’ll keep it short and sweet – PCOS is an extremely debilitating condition, and the lack of knowledge surrounding the topic is rather concerning.
Someone close to me has PCOS, and recently, she quite literally went to hell and back dealing with complications from it. This person was in and out of the hospital for a couple of weeks, underwent several procedures, had six blood transfusions, and had their gallbladder removed as a result of the stress the PCOS put on her body.
Considering the severity of this condition, you would be inclined to think that medical professionals are well-versed on the topic.
Wrong.
This person literally educated a handful of nurses she dealt with, as well as a few doctors, about her condition, after they informed her that they had never heard of it.
The exact of PCOS is unknown, making it quite difficult to treat. The condition wreaks havoc on the body in terms of weight gain (it’s also basically impossible to lose weight in a healthy manner with PCOS), hormonal imbalances, mood fluctuations, and fertility. It’s a huge bitch to deal with, if I’m being honest, and knowing that so many of us are unaware of what PCOS is demonstrates the need for advocacy and education.
PCOS affects every one in 10 women of childbearing age. Don’t you think that’s reason enough to start a conversation?
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