Poly Cistic Ovarian Syndrome.
P.C.O.S. Testimonies.
Peritonitis is an infection of the periton (péritoine in French), which is the inner skin of the whole belly, containing all organs. This skin has an important function, mechanical and protective, but also delivers substances needed by this inner room that is the belly. When it is infected we are at risk of septicémie (? in English), which is a general infection of the blood and all inner liquids, and leads direct and quickly to death. This is a true emergency. As I have no spleen my reactions to infections are not usual ones and the exams didn’t show the infection, so they waited quite a long time until they decided the surgery, without knowing what they were operating me for...
The origin of the peritonitis was an undiagnosed appendicitis, despite lab exams, ultra-sounds, X-rays etc... , which is sometimes very difficult to diagnose. (it could have been kidney or genital pbs, as well as digestive) I don’t know what was the origin of my appendicitis.
At the hospital I learnt that France and GB had had different medical politics on this topic, which I found very interesting for how difficult it is to make such decision at the level of a whole country :
France would do surgery under the official name of appendicitis, in many cases of belly uncomfort and not pure appendicitis... so a very high rate of preventive surgery with all the following side effects, and chronical complications (inflammation of colom etc...). (At a time, you could barrely find somebody that hadn’t had been operated for “appendicitis” in France).
GB would do surgery with true apendicitis diagnosis only, which led to far less surgeries and more deaths (since appendicitis is difficult to diagnose and leads quite quickly to peritonitis which leads very quickly to death). So, survivaled Britishs have less digestive pbs due to less surgery !
I don’t know now what politics both country has...
V.
Hi A,
Glad it may be useful, and thank you for your kind words.
Some more for clarification :
It’s been a nightmare to manage for 8 years from the trauma that made me be totally unbalanced and disturbed, whithout being at first aware of this “premenopause” condition.
A peritonitis led me to the emergency room at the hospital, where I got surgery and massive antibiotic treatments. I was very close to death, and wasn’t in good shape for months afterwards. That period of my life deeply disturbed my hormonal, immune and digestive systems. What really got my attention though was a drastic change in my cycles (3 weeks instead of 4 to 5), and ups and (deep) downs with repetitive bouts of mood swings and low energy. I sometimes had digestive (liver) problems, nausea and headaches. Once I was doing so badly, I couldn’t do anything with my day, a girlfriend of mine told me “it looks like your hormones are changing”. I was surprised because I was only 40 and not thinking of menopause yet... but a little later I met women who were menopaused or going through the change, and I studied it more closely. I understand that I actually was in some kind of premenopause. Later on, my Ob told me it was a post-trauma premenopause. It is actuallay quite obvious, but you know how it is... when you’re in it, you just don’t see anything, let alone give yourself a diagnosis.
I was aware of something going on in the hormone department but still didn’t know it was a consequence of the trauma, and it was hard to deal with until I met that doctor who put a name to it “posttraumatic premenopause” What a relief ! It matched my own subconscious feelings and made sense! He prescribed the herb extracts I take.
So, for a few years now, I’ve been doing quite well and am balanced, thanks to that little treatment. (As long as I don’t forget to take it !) I did forget once as I was abroad, coudn’t get the tinctures on time, found and tried Vitex in berries and it didn’t work : that alone wasn’t enough for me. I need both sides of the treatment for it to have an effect on me.
The reimbursment isn’t 100%, but better than nothing. This treatment isn’t expensive anyway. (something like 8€/month) Its a lot less expensive than “conventional” treatments prescribed !
My other point of view is that all this story’s been part of my own personal journey as a woman. Its made me search in and out, and meet outstanding women, dive deeper into our female condition, which I feel very thankful for.
Now I’m approaching menopause for real, which, considering my age, makes sense. I feel much more prepared to welcome it, thanks to my post trauma premenaupause journey. I probably needed it to open my eyes. But again, this is very personal : I do not mean that every woman should have such a journey !
I do agree with you, these treatments must be accurately adjusted to each individual. On the other hand, it is our responsability to research what is possible to do, as women reclaim the right to decide what happens to their bodies, and anyway only handful of conventional doctors are aware of these parallel treatments. I think “naturopathes” or “phytotherapeutes” can help in this situation, and maybe any practice that works on balancing the whole system like osteopathy, acupuncture but I haven’t researched those treatments as practiced here : (I was spoiled by a very high quality of health practice in the US !). As well as homeopathy, which can be very helpful too, when prescribed according to the individual.
As Alyssa says, Vitex is known for balancing towards equilibrium... rather than being specific for progesterone shortage.
Have a good WE!
V.
Hi V and A and all,
I've been following this conversation as I have PCOS too and have wanted to join in... now I'm finally managing.
I too am so sorry you had to go through what you did, V - I admire your positive attitude and also feel that at times in life our paths take us through difficult terrain to learn and grow and in a way this becomes a gift rather than a burden.
I wanted to echo V's experience with herbs - I was told before we conceived my first baby that I would never be able to conceive naturally due to my PCOS. A few months before she was conceived, I started to use Agnus Castus regularly only to regulate my hormones/periods - this happened very quickly - I used to have maybe 3 periods a year and suddenly was having one a month - and I also felt better than ever. And even though we weren't really trying or planning a pregnancy at the time, I realized soon after that I was pregnant, to our great joy and surprise!
Now, in this second pregnancy (and again, our baby girl came to us when she was ready and despite two doctors saying that I was not ovulating at all and probably never would again), I am certain that I am only as healthy as I am - despite the complications diagnosed (pre-eclampsia, GD) because I have been drinking a wonderful, nourishing herbal tea mixture aimed at strengthening my body and helping it deal with my tendency (even non-pregnant) toward high blood pressure since pre-pregnancy. I mentioned my herbs to my OB at Debre - not wanting them to interfere with any eventual medications - and to my astonishment and delight she supports me taking them and even said she prefers this to having to medicate for anxiety etc. (some of the herbs are very calming).
I have also been using homeopathy (through the centre Hahneman), both for my blood pressure and constitutionally.
I hope you will find a way to alleviate your PCOS symptoms very soon, A. Something else worth mentioning is that my PCOS seemed much better while I was breastfeeding and since - I breastfed my first child for over three years (despite a hard start which I now understand may also have been due to PCOS) and in fact when she weaned I went through a time when my hormones felt much more burdensome - I'm not looking forward to going through that again (but luckily that's far in the future for now ).
I know it is always best to see naturalist, but in fact I have had the most success with mixtures made by the Cape Cod herb farm I mentioned (http://www.greatcape.com/). I've also enjoyed reading about herbal remedies (Rosemary Gladstone is one of my favorite authors for women and herbs) and selecting plants based on herbalists recommendations together with my own intuition - obviously in a safe way and always double-checking any of my own ideas with the herb farm before ordering.
There is something about plant healing that feels so deeply essential, so close to our mother earth and what our bodies are made of. Whenever I drink a strong cup of herbal tea I feel that I am doing something good for myself - anyway, I could go on for ages, as you can see - especially now I am very grateful for this natural blessing.
Oh, and have a lovely vacation/break from internet, V!!!
S.P.
In French when you go shopping some yam for diner, you ask for sweet potatoe (patate douce), but when you ask for a remedy, you ask for “Yam”. In this case it was “wild yam”, that is “yam sauvage” which is Dioscorea villosa in Latin. I understood the “villosa” variety was important.
Vitex is another name for Chasterberry, that is “gatillier” in French and Agnus Castus in Latin.
V.
More info here: http://www.mobimotherhood.org/MM/portal-lowmilksupply.aspx
The origin of the peritonitis was an undiagnosed appendicitis, despite lab exams, ultra-sounds, X-rays etc... , which is sometimes very difficult to diagnose. (it could have been kidney or genital pbs, as well as digestive) I don’t know what was the origin of my appendicitis.
At the hospital I learnt that France and GB had had different medical politics on this topic, which I found very interesting for how difficult it is to make such decision at the level of a whole country :
France would do surgery under the official name of appendicitis, in many cases of belly uncomfort and not pure appendicitis... so a very high rate of preventive surgery with all the following side effects, and chronical complications (inflammation of colom etc...). (At a time, you could barrely find somebody that hadn’t had been operated for “appendicitis” in France).
GB would do surgery with true apendicitis diagnosis only, which led to far less surgeries and more deaths (since appendicitis is difficult to diagnose and leads quite quickly to peritonitis which leads very quickly to death). So, survivaled Britishs have less digestive pbs due to less surgery !
I don’t know now what politics both country has...
V.
Hi A,
Glad it may be useful, and thank you for your kind words.
Some more for clarification :
It’s been a nightmare to manage for 8 years from the trauma that made me be totally unbalanced and disturbed, whithout being at first aware of this “premenopause” condition.
A peritonitis led me to the emergency room at the hospital, where I got surgery and massive antibiotic treatments. I was very close to death, and wasn’t in good shape for months afterwards. That period of my life deeply disturbed my hormonal, immune and digestive systems. What really got my attention though was a drastic change in my cycles (3 weeks instead of 4 to 5), and ups and (deep) downs with repetitive bouts of mood swings and low energy. I sometimes had digestive (liver) problems, nausea and headaches. Once I was doing so badly, I couldn’t do anything with my day, a girlfriend of mine told me “it looks like your hormones are changing”. I was surprised because I was only 40 and not thinking of menopause yet... but a little later I met women who were menopaused or going through the change, and I studied it more closely. I understand that I actually was in some kind of premenopause. Later on, my Ob told me it was a post-trauma premenopause. It is actuallay quite obvious, but you know how it is... when you’re in it, you just don’t see anything, let alone give yourself a diagnosis.
I was aware of something going on in the hormone department but still didn’t know it was a consequence of the trauma, and it was hard to deal with until I met that doctor who put a name to it “posttraumatic premenopause” What a relief ! It matched my own subconscious feelings and made sense! He prescribed the herb extracts I take.
So, for a few years now, I’ve been doing quite well and am balanced, thanks to that little treatment. (As long as I don’t forget to take it !) I did forget once as I was abroad, coudn’t get the tinctures on time, found and tried Vitex in berries and it didn’t work : that alone wasn’t enough for me. I need both sides of the treatment for it to have an effect on me.
The reimbursment isn’t 100%, but better than nothing. This treatment isn’t expensive anyway. (something like 8€/month) Its a lot less expensive than “conventional” treatments prescribed !
My other point of view is that all this story’s been part of my own personal journey as a woman. Its made me search in and out, and meet outstanding women, dive deeper into our female condition, which I feel very thankful for.
Now I’m approaching menopause for real, which, considering my age, makes sense. I feel much more prepared to welcome it, thanks to my post trauma premenaupause journey. I probably needed it to open my eyes. But again, this is very personal : I do not mean that every woman should have such a journey !
I do agree with you, these treatments must be accurately adjusted to each individual. On the other hand, it is our responsability to research what is possible to do, as women reclaim the right to decide what happens to their bodies, and anyway only handful of conventional doctors are aware of these parallel treatments. I think “naturopathes” or “phytotherapeutes” can help in this situation, and maybe any practice that works on balancing the whole system like osteopathy, acupuncture but I haven’t researched those treatments as practiced here : (I was spoiled by a very high quality of health practice in the US !). As well as homeopathy, which can be very helpful too, when prescribed according to the individual.
As Alyssa says, Vitex is known for balancing towards equilibrium... rather than being specific for progesterone shortage.
Have a good WE!
V.
Hi V and A and all,
I've been following this conversation as I have PCOS too and have wanted to join in... now I'm finally managing.
I too am so sorry you had to go through what you did, V - I admire your positive attitude and also feel that at times in life our paths take us through difficult terrain to learn and grow and in a way this becomes a gift rather than a burden.
I wanted to echo V's experience with herbs - I was told before we conceived my first baby that I would never be able to conceive naturally due to my PCOS. A few months before she was conceived, I started to use Agnus Castus regularly only to regulate my hormones/periods - this happened very quickly - I used to have maybe 3 periods a year and suddenly was having one a month - and I also felt better than ever. And even though we weren't really trying or planning a pregnancy at the time, I realized soon after that I was pregnant, to our great joy and surprise!
Now, in this second pregnancy (and again, our baby girl came to us when she was ready and despite two doctors saying that I was not ovulating at all and probably never would again), I am certain that I am only as healthy as I am - despite the complications diagnosed (pre-eclampsia, GD) because I have been drinking a wonderful, nourishing herbal tea mixture aimed at strengthening my body and helping it deal with my tendency (even non-pregnant) toward high blood pressure since pre-pregnancy. I mentioned my herbs to my OB at Debre - not wanting them to interfere with any eventual medications - and to my astonishment and delight she supports me taking them and even said she prefers this to having to medicate for anxiety etc. (some of the herbs are very calming).
I have also been using homeopathy (through the centre Hahneman), both for my blood pressure and constitutionally.
I hope you will find a way to alleviate your PCOS symptoms very soon, A. Something else worth mentioning is that my PCOS seemed much better while I was breastfeeding and since - I breastfed my first child for over three years (despite a hard start which I now understand may also have been due to PCOS) and in fact when she weaned I went through a time when my hormones felt much more burdensome - I'm not looking forward to going through that again (but luckily that's far in the future for now ).
I know it is always best to see naturalist, but in fact I have had the most success with mixtures made by the Cape Cod herb farm I mentioned (http://www.greatcape.com/). I've also enjoyed reading about herbal remedies (Rosemary Gladstone is one of my favorite authors for women and herbs) and selecting plants based on herbalists recommendations together with my own intuition - obviously in a safe way and always double-checking any of my own ideas with the herb farm before ordering.
There is something about plant healing that feels so deeply essential, so close to our mother earth and what our bodies are made of. Whenever I drink a strong cup of herbal tea I feel that I am doing something good for myself - anyway, I could go on for ages, as you can see - especially now I am very grateful for this natural blessing.
Oh, and have a lovely vacation/break from internet, V!!!
S.P.
In French when you go shopping some yam for diner, you ask for sweet potatoe (patate douce), but when you ask for a remedy, you ask for “Yam”. In this case it was “wild yam”, that is “yam sauvage” which is Dioscorea villosa in Latin. I understood the “villosa” variety was important.
Vitex is another name for Chasterberry, that is “gatillier” in French and Agnus Castus in Latin.
V.
More info here: http://www.mobimotherhood.org/MM/portal-lowmilksupply.aspx