Update on PCOS, Metformin….just on me period..

Well it has been quite a while since I have posted a personal update…I wasn’t getting any comments and sometimes it seems to be easier to just not talk about things, but here I go.

June 21, 2006

I went to the doctor for my annual “woman” check-up. Unfortunately, because of my disfunctional ovaries it was the wrong time of the month for me to have this check-up.  I called that morning and talked to one of the nurses to let her know, but she said to come on in because I needed to discuss how my liver was still functioning fine and I could start taking metformin. While I was sitting in the waiting room, one of the secretaries told me that the doctor really wanted me to do an exam today and asked me how “heavy” it was.  I was like….um…no…that is why I called this morning.  So, she said ok…then ANOTHER secretary asked me the same thing…I told her exactly the same thing- no, that is not being done today.  Then, when the nurse was taking my wait, etc…she was asking about it also.  I get in the room and the doc comes in and sure enough..she asks too…I said “I don’t think you would want to do that today”..and she said “Oh, it doesn’t bother me at all, but the samples may not come back readable if it is too heavy.” So, needless to say, we re-scheduled.  I am sitting there thinking…why is everyone so insistent on looking in my snatch today?  I mean…women…have you ever experienced that??

Anyways, on a brighter note (I guess) I told the doctor my liver was functioning ok and she said I had two options [for the PCOS]- birth control or metformin.  She said if I wanted to prevent pregnancy, we would go with the birth control..but if I didn’t the metformin.  So, I chose the metformin.  She also prescribed me some prenatal vitamins and took a measles test (she said she needed to take a thyroid and something else- but I told her I had already had that done in my two-thousand other tests).  I asked her before I left about diet and the worst part of the day arrived:  She said I needed to be on a diabetics diet.  Little carbs and little sugar.  *Groan*

June 22

I started the metformin.  The first day was…to put it nicely…not fun. Plenty of trips to the bathroom with nothing but runs (sorry if TMI)..I ate no carbs (or virtually none) and I think the low blood-sugar got to me because I almost passed out several times during the day and almost didn’t make it through work that night.

June 23rd- Today (July 5th)

Slowly throughout the next two weeks my stomach started to adjust.  I have to make sure that I don’t eat too much sugar/carbs and that I eat frequently.  For me, those have been the main things that have got me through. One day I made the mistake of eating a powdered donut…..big no-no…Last Wed. I was puking my guts out and couldn’t figure out why until today I had a revelation that the drinks that I thought were sugar-free… weren’t.  Otherwise, I have been feeling a lot better.  Tommorrow, I go up to a double dose (850mg 2xday) and hope that I will be ok.  Some people seem to be fine raising the dose and other’s don’t..Wish me luck!

Food recommendations:

For anyone just starting metformin, some good foods (in my personal opinion and what other diabetics have told me) are: peaches, grapes, & plums (low-glycemic index), bread (even though u will probably be told not to eat much- some is ok)- wonder bread only has 13 grams of carbs per slice which is much less than some of the other white breads and isn’t much more than that low-carb bread that tastes like cardboard.. Low-sugar pudding is pretty good…low-carb icecream isn’t bad…eat meat, meat, and more meat (including seafood)…celery, broccoli, lettuce, a little bit of carrots (they aren’t the lowest carb food, but they will work).  Make sure to stay away from deserts full of sugar and carbs (including COKES!).. And potatoes & rice…Potatoes are almost straight carbs..What else…hmmm…cheese is always good…eggs are ok…if anyone comments I will try to think of what else…