What I’ve learned about fertility while having PCOS and Amenorrhea:
Being diagnosed with PCOS and Amenorrhea in my early twenties really rocked my world. I had so much information served to me but still felt so lost. The uncertainty about becoming a Mother - when I would, if I could - was so much for me; however, I did learn some helpful things along the way! Something worth noting is that 4-8% of women will be diagnosed with PCOS - you’re not alone. I hope these three takeaways can bring you something too!
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1. Fertility Impacts Caused by PCOS are Different for Every Woman: Do what’s best for YOU!
Polycystic Ovary Syndrome is essentially a hormonal imbalance commonly occurring in women. I was led to my diagnosis when I was 22 years old. The most significant indicator that pushed me to inquire further about PCOS with a medical professional was that I hadn’t had a menstrual cycle in over 6 months. I was also concerned about some body and mood changes that I was experiencing for a few years before being officially diagnosed. For example, increased hair growth on my arms and legs, caused by higher than normal testosterone levels, and quite intense mood changes - caused by an array of hormonal imbalances.
I quickly learned after some blood work and ultrasounds that I had many little cysts covering both of my ovaries and that all of my hormones that are involved in fertility (Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), Estradiol, Luteinizing hormone (LH), Progesterone, and Thyroid hormones), were completely off. Hence the lack of a menstrual cycle for over half a year (and still lack of cycle 5 years later).
It was at this time I was told it would be “very challenging for me to fall pregnant naturally, if at all”. The news shattered me in ways I couldn’t have thought. My whole life all I wanted to do was experience every part of Motherhood. My Fiance and I had our time processing this news and we actually began an adoption application in case natural conception and fertility treatments wouldn't be possible for us.
Trying to understand what was going on with me felt like a nightmare. Although there is an abundance of research out there about PCOS and the impact it has on fertility - none of it seemed to directly help / relate to me since the impact is so varied woman to woman. After nearly two years of trying to understand it, and worrying about how to expand our family, I realized the best way to build a fertility journey that made sense to me was to pick pieces out from Doctors visits, testing, and my own experiences. I took everything that related specifically to me and built our fertility journey from there.
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2. PCOS Doesn’t Always = No Ovulation or Anovulation.
Although common PCOS effects like irregular menstrual cycles and hormonal imbalances can impact whether you ovulate or not, I learned that having PCOS doesn't always mean anovulation for every woman. In some cases, women will still ovulate or ovulate irregularly.
In my case, I learned that I, unfortunately, do not ovulate at all. Using OVRY Ovulation Test Strips actually helped me find this out. I was drawn to OVRY Ovulation Strips because they are Canadian made and 99% accurate. The strips are small so I could easily have one with me without it seeming obvious and almost all of the packaging is recyclable. As if that’s not reason to love them enough, they also donate a portion of every sale to charities that support women!
I do want to note that when combined with amenorrhea- anovulation does commonly occur meaning that ovulation did not occur. Other ways to tell that ovulation did not occur would be seeing a negative ovulation strip result (like me) or a steady basal body temperature. Typically your body temp drops just before your ovary releases an egg and then raises during ovulation.
3. Spontaneous Ovulation is Possible!
Spontaneous ovulation is exactly as it sounds - your body has a spontaneous ovulation that cannot be tracked or planned for. As you can imagine, the odds of conception with a spontaneous ovulation are pretty slim. Thankfully, by some miracle, I was blessed to conceive both of my babies from spontaneous ovulation! With our second babe we tried to conceive for over 9 months using the OVRY Pregnancy Test Strips and the occasional OVRY Ovulation Test Strip just hoping somehow I would see a positive ovulation. When neither showed, I grew worried. We were actually set to begin Metformin and Letrozole the week we found out we were pregnant with our little Drey from another spontaneous ovulation!
The world works in wondrous ways.
*If you are someone in the TTC community, I truly recommend OVRY fertility products - they have fertility tests for males as well! Their Pregnancy Prep Bundle, which includes ovulation strips, pregnancy strips, and male fertility tests, is currently on sale for $89.60!
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