A Breath of Fresh Air

I remember when I was pregnant how I would need to take a nap so that I had enough energy to go to bed. A pregnant woman's exhaustion makes perfect sense, as she's using the equivalent amount of energy as does a mountain climber even when she's sitting still. It's been more than ten years after the birth of my youngest child, and there are times when the act of lifting a toothbrush seems to be more than my body can manage. Could stress be the culprit of fatigue? Stress most likely contributed, but it seemed like an accessory to the underlining issue, not the culprit.

Until recently, I thought that my profound exhaustion was related to depression and anxiety. Now that I've been diagnosed with sleep apnea, my chronic fatigue makes perfect sense. Now that I believe to have found the source of my exhaustion, time to work on resolving it!

I picked up my CPAP machine, the cool one with the humidifier. I have the nose piece, so instead of looking like Mom Vader, I look like the Elephant Mom. Seriously! The tube attached to the nose piece can, with a bit of imagination, look like a trunk.

I was given instructions to wear it for the first week while sitting and reading or watching TV. My son helped me set up the machine and hook up the hoses, harness, and nose piece. We both laughed at both my daughter's expressions when they came out into the living room and caught a glimpse of me in my gear. There's nothing like the laughter of my kids to help me keep things in perspective. I soon figured out how to inhale and exhale without popping my ears or having air whoosh out of my mouth (keep it closed, duh). It didn't take long to get into a breathing rhythm. Speaking while connected to the unit, however, I haven't master. Yet another element to have fun with. My kids would ask me questions just to hear me try and talk. I am, after all, on this earth for their entertainment. Well, that and a walking ATM machine, but I digress.

The first night I don't think that I slept. At least, I didn't feel as if I had. Clearly, I must have caught a couple of winks as my husband noted that while I did sound like Darth Vader, I didn't snore. I'm thinking that's progress, or at least an improvement. However, I was unable to function the following day. So I didn't, I stayed home and took a long nap.

The second night I fell asleep promptly, despite the long nap I enjoyed earlier in the day. I did wake up a couple of times. The first time I awoke, I went promptly to sleep again. The second time I stayed in a state of not asleep and not awake. Fortunately, I felt more human than the day before. Does it just get better and better from here? How many more days before I get to the "life changing" benefits of using this contraption? I am truly ready to "feel like a new person."

The third night I wasn't obsessively focused on my breathing and I fell asleep fairly quickly. I woke up about three times, but I immediately returned to sleep. By George, I think I've got the hang of this thing! While I still have a morning headache, I don't feel as if I'm mired in a dense fog. 

Looks like all I need is a bit more time to cozy up to my new best [electronic] friend. Do you think my smart phone will be jealous? 

Previous topic in the Sleep Apnea series: Sleep Perchance to Rest

Related Links

• Sleep Data Infographic
• Stop the Snore: 5 Risk Factors That May Require You to Talk About Sleep Apnea With Your Doctor

Connecting the Dots

All cases of acne have their roots in hormone production. In a wry twist of cosmic humor, my teens and I have adopted similar skin care routines for similar reasons. I want to call it "testosterone poisoning" but that isn't completely accurate (albeit, funny). Only, unlike my teens, I get the painful acne cysts that last for weeks, and sometimes looks like someone took a wicked right-hook to my jaw wearing a knuckle ring. 

As I mentioned in the Bigfoot, Yetti, and Me post, testosterone does some pretty amazing things. In the binary way of opposites, up and down, left and right, benefits and challenges, lies the beauty and beast of testosterone. The beast in this instance is oil production, nuthin' like greasy hair and skin, eh? 

Fortunately, I found a few products that help with minimizing the crazy outbreaks. As I bought similar products for my teens, I'm no longer yelling down the hall "who took my zit zapper!" Hell hath no fury like a hormonal mom. Jus' sayin'.

Like other symptoms, some acne is indicative of an underlying hormonal condition that can cause far more than facial blemishes. Yes, acne is a heartless bitch; but so is all the other inconvenient, embarrassing, and uncomfortable symptoms that make up this lovely syndrome.

I'm probably sounding like a broken record about now. Yet, once again, I'm advocating for all patients to ask their medical professionals to go beyond treating symptoms individually and looking at their patients and their symptomatology as a collective whole.

Related Links

• Acne and PCOS
• PCOS and Acne
• When It's More Than Acne

From Soprano to Alto

Puberty is a remarkable time. Growth in body, maturity, and character are just a tip of the amazing ice berg that is happening in a teens body. I take particular delight in watching the signs that herald the change in my son from boy to man. From his platinum blonde mustache to his deepening voice, the transformation is nothing less than miraculous.

Of course I share and identify with the changes my daughters experience, but I never imagined that I would share in the changes of my son. Particularly in the deepening of my voice.

It now makes perfect sense why I can't reach those high notes that I once hit with alacrity. Yet, for the longest time, I wrote it off as simply a sign of aging, or perhaps not singing as much as I used to.

PCOS is a complicated disease that involves problems with the endocrine system and female reproductive system. It makes a strange kind of sense that the very same androgens responsible for the changes in my son are also the culprit for the changes in me. On the one hand, it's sort of funny, on the other hand, it's a trifle bit humiliating. Once I realized that there is a physiological reason for virilism, it did lessen my embarrassment.

Once again, it's a small symptom that can easily be dismissed. So I went from a high, girly voice to a sultry, sexy voice; is that really such a thing to get all worked up over? I mean, it's just a symptom of aging or peri-menopause, or so I told myself. Ah, but the trick is to take all the seemingly trivial changes and look at them as part of a whole. Which, when I think about it, isn't possible as I'd dismissed them and never thought to bring them up to a doctor.

Related Links

• Is my deep voice due to polycystic ovaries?
• Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome
• Vocal changes in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome.

Resistance Is Futile

Insulin resistance is when your body produces insulin, but the cells in your body have become resistant to that insulin and are unable to use it effectively. Insulin resistance may be part of the metabolic syndrome, has been associated with higher risk of developing heart disease, and precedes the development of type 2 diabetes. My symptoms include lethargy, hunger, and brain fog. These symptoms can easily be written off as a reaction to stress, which is pretty much what I did.  

Diseases or conditions associated with insulin resistance include:

• Obesity
• Type 2 diabetes
• High blood pressure
• Abnormal cholesterol levels
• Heart disease
• Polycystic ovary syndrome

Because insulin is one of the major hormones, it’s impossible for your body to balance its minor hormones (for example, estrogen, progesterone and testosterone) until your insulin metabolism is balanced first. 

Related Links

• Insulin Resistance and Diabetes
• National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse

Critical Mass

Try as hard as I might, I couldn't find a body positive  image that conveyed the message that I am looking for. I found this one, but it objectifies a woman's body, she is essentially a tree. It's kinda cool, but not what I am looking for. I found other images with the standard tropes of large, curvy ladies eating ice cream and slim, muscular ladies working out. Bleck! How can I talk about such a weighty issue without proper illustrations to inspire and guide me?

Okay, well here goes: today's topic is weight. Managing weight, loosing weight, being okay with the weight we are is only a teeny portion of the discussion.

Just for today, let's say that we've made peace with our bodies, and we're simply focused on understanding the role weight plays as a symptom of PCOS.

Yeah, I think I can work with that.

Yes, extra weight on your frame for your height and age can cause all sorts of problems. With PCOS, I experienced a sudden weight gain that settled mostly around my belly and I wasn't able to lose it. Here's the kicker, I was eating healthy at the time. Color me confused. I continued to eat healthy until a series of unfortunate events, and then I went on a see food diet. You can imagine what that did to my waistline. The pending PCOS diagnosis makes changing my eating habits a must.

I'm not following any particular fad diet, nor am I overly concerned about getting into my "skinny size 8" jeans (which I turned over to Goodwill decades ago, but I digress). Fortunately for me, I work with ladies whose eating habits I simply emulate. Easy peasy. One lady eats a banana dipped in a mixed nut butter practically every morning. So yummy! Another lady brings to work salads with interesting and flavorful ingredients. With a little planning and just 5 minutes in the morning, I carry with me to work a salad concocted of greens, whole grains, goat cheese, and whatever protein we ate last night. I toss in a couple of extra pieces of fruit, and viola! I'm ready for the day.

Yet another lady at work orders soy lattes. The barista at the cafe (I know, we're so spoiled where I work!) let me taste the soy milk they stock. Yummy. Between listening to my friend order espresso floating in soy bliss and tasting said bliss, I quickly became a soy convert. That said, I'm trying not to over do the soy, so I've added Almond milk to the mix, too.

The worst news about this PCOS gig is the havoc dairy wrecks on my body. Essentially, the cheese that I crave beyond reason is off limits. Oh, just great! Happily, I'm a big fan of goat cheese, so now I just stock the fridge with variations on a theme of goat cheese. The awesomely cool thing is that both my son and husband are fans of goat cheese, and that makes it even more enjoyable. 'cuz you know, I'm not the family freak who can't eat the same things my family eats.

So there it is, my diet secret. Lean protein, lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, topped off with whole grains. Oh, and I pretty much got rid of anything white: potatoes, rice, and flour. Once the weather cools, I'm going to experiment with baking using Quinoa and Buckwheat flours.

Related Links

• Don't Be a Dairy Queen
• Is your PCOS Diet Dairy Free? It Should Be!
• Should your PCOS Diet Be Dairy Free? – Everything You Need To Know
• Soy and PCOS: Safe or Harmful?

Tag, You're It

Skin tags are small growths on the skin that can grow up to a half inch long. They are usually the same color as your skin, or slightly darker. Skin tags are composed of blood

vessels and collagen fibers (a kind of protein) surrounded by skin. 

Skin tags are not big deal. In fact, according to the Mayo Clinic, they develop on those of us who have reached middle age, are pregnant, have diabetes, and (you've guessed it) have Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS).

There isn't much to say about them, except that I'm adding them to my ever-growing list of wacky PCOS-related symptoms.

I find PCOS confusing in that there are silos of illnesses that have individual treatments which are easily overlooked. It isn't until someone takes a few steps back that they begin to see the PCOS picture developing. It is so easy to write symptoms off as related to stress, age, pregnancy, menace, or menopause; when in fact a collection of small, seemingly unrelated symptoms can be markers for a broader concern. 

Related Links

• Healthy aging
• Moles, Freckles, and Skin Tags
• What are skin tags?

Sleep, Perchance to Rest

I can't think of many people who want to climb out of their cozy beds first thing in the morning. Getting out of bed after a sleepless night makes that climb even more arduous. I'm going to pass the explanation of what happens to your brain after a sleepless night to a couple of my favorite pseudo-scientists from The Big Bang Theory:

Bernadette: Okay, Sheldon. What happens to our neuroreceptors when we don't get enough REM sleep? 
Sheldon: They lose their sensitivity to serotonin and norepinephrine.
Bernadette: Which leads to...?
Sheldon: Impaired cognitive function. 

Now imagine both the Herculean effort it takes and what it does to cognitive function when those sleepless nights happen every night over the course of years, or even decades. Welcome to my world. 

The good news is, there's a label for this particular malady: Sleep Apnea. Better news is that it's treatable. Other news is that it's pretty common. Bad news is, it's challenging to diagnose.

There are lists out there in the interwebs that detail all of the symptoms and causes of sleep apnea. My sleep apnea symptoms include:

• Daytime fatigue
• Forgetfulness
• Lack of energy during the day
• Loud snoring (impressively loud!)
• Mood changes
• Morning headaches
• Sleepiness 
  
• Slower reaction time
• Restless sleep
• Recurrent awakenings 
• Insomnia
• Unexplained weight gain
• Vision problems
• Waking up with a very sore or dry throat
• Waking up with a choking or gasping sensation (this one scares the heck outta me)

Not getting enough sleep can lead to a boat load of problems. 

Next topic in the Sleep Apnea series: A Breath of Fresh Air

Related Links

• American Sleep Apnea Association
• American Thoracic Society
• National Institutes of Health

Bigfoot, Yetti, and Me

It's one thing to have a uni-brow, it's another thing completely to have Frodo feet. Did you catch the connection there? In case you missed it, I'm talking about unwanted hair. 

There's this thing about hormones, they do a lot of cool stuff. There's another thing about hormones, they can get whacked and do a lot of stuff that's not so cool. 

Take, for example, testosterone. Now there's a mighty hormone for ya! It does all sorts of stalwart things, from growth spurts to bone maturation and density, it's pretty awesome on the cool hormone spectrum. Except for when it isn't. 

Let me share with you when testosterone isn't on the cool side. When you're a female and either your ovaries or your adrenal glands go into overdrive. Did I just shock you? Didn't realize that women's bodies produce testosterone? Well, it's true. Here's a quickie biology lesson, ready? The menstrual cycle occurs in three phases: follicular, ovulatory, and luteal. There is a rise in testosterone during the third phase. 

What happens when your testosterone launches into orbit? I mean, it's one thing to be at the top of the normal range (15-70 for adult women), but when your lab results come back with levels in the hundreds, it's kinda scary. Mine labs came back with a 133 -- gave a whole new meaning to Mr. Mom for me. (My attempt at humor, is it working?) Hair, lots and lots of hair in places you'd rather not have hair.

What I once wrote off a genetics - hairy feet, navel, inner thighs and quite a patch of fur on the back of my thighs - I now see in a completely different light. Yes, I was born to a tribe of mostly short, round, hairy people, and I accepted depilatories, hot wax, and laser hair removal as just a part of my heritage. But, here's the thing: I wasn't happy about the goatee I began sporting in my 40s. I'm not talking a few hairs sprouting here and there. 

While laser treatments did remove a decent crop of facial hair, what the heck was going on with hair sprouting up in new locations?  Okay, okay, enough of my hairy rant. You get the picture. 

When seen as just a product of genetics, it's embarrassing. When seen as a by-product of a larger system malfunctioning, it's alarming. If anyone can jump at an alarm, it's me. Searching the interwebs for anything and everything I could find on high testosterone levels in women was the first place to which I jumped. 

Guess what I found? There's a label for unwanted hair cropping up all over my body: hirsutism.  Sadly, labeling the condition didn't make it magically disappear. Yet, it did connect me to other information and I began compiling a more comprehensive list of potentially related symptoms. Which is a good thing, right?

Related Links

• Hirsutism and Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS)
• Hirsutism Basics Genetics vs. Hormones
• Hirsutism Symptom Checker
• Testosterone Levels by Age and Sex
• Women in Balance Hormone 101

One Hot Mama

I began having hot flashes when I turned 32. That seems young, doesn't it? I thought so too, at first, until I realized that I began menstruating when I was nine. Young, I know, right? Anyway, I remember having a few night sweat episodes after the birth of my youngest, but nothing like the drenchings that began around 40. 

I thought that I was experiencing peri-menopause. You know, all those things that we once

heard word-of-mouth, doctors thought women were crazy and referred us to mental health specialists? Thanks to the magic of the interwebs, our collective voices are heard. Turns out, we're women and things like mood swings, headaches, night

sweats, and hot flashes are part an parcel of being female. I know, sucks, right? It's easy to collect these symptoms together and label them "the change of life," except, of course, when we just accept the easy collective reality we might miss the exceptions and individual symptoms that might belong to another, more challenging collective reality. 

So, here's the thing: excessive sweating, hot flashes, and night sweats can be peri-menopausal, or they can be something else entirely. If I knew then what I know now, I would have insisted on a complete hormonal panel blood test be ordered often and frequently. The whole kit-and-caboodle. 

In fact, when my daughters begin their first annual girly parts exams, I will insist that they get hormonal panels done, too. Period. 



Similar topics: 

• Reverse Symptomology
• System Flush

Related Links

• Excessive sweating: Symptom
• Hyperhidrosis
• Sweat

Name that Syndrome

I'm waiting for the result labs to confirm my suspicions. During my wait I've been reading up on everything Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) related. Yup, all signs point to that loveliest of all female, hormone-related disorders. 

In a word, it sucks.With a capital Uck.

There is much out there on the interwebs discussing all things PCOS. From symptoms, to lab work, to current medicine practices. I spent the last couple of weeks scouring the medical sites and various forums and blogs looking for information. I think that I really wanted to just find the thing that said "THIS!' Which I would do, and then all of my symptoms would miraculously disappear and I would be healthy. End of story. 

Try as hard as I did, I couldn't find anything that looked remotely like the THIS thing. What I did find is that there are a lot of women who have PCOS. Further, many of these ladies blog about their journeys, documenting their symptoms, doctors visits, test results, pain, and courage. Pages and pages filled with stories that are so different from my own, yet remarkably identical. That's the weird part. I, too, feel the need to share my story. I'm hoping that the more stories there are out there, the easier it will be to spot and aggregate the disparate symptoms for any women seeking relief from theirs. 

Honestly, the symptoms range from embarrassing to humiliating, to downright scary. Seen individually, each and every symptom can be swept under the "oh, it's just stress" carpet, except for the few that can be swept into the "it's genetics, just look at your mom" pile in the corner. When others dismiss your symptoms that makes it easier to dismiss them yourself. And I did, mostly, despite the tiny, nagging voice in the back of my head that insisted that something bigger was wrong. Frankly, I didn't want to be a hypochondriac. So, I silenced that nagging voice, pasted a smile on my face, and presented to the world the happy, positive facade that serves me well. 

Soren Kierkegaard said that "Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." In understanding PCOS and how it relates to me and my experiences, that quote is spot on. Let me show you what I mean, read on...