PCOS blood tests

[PhoebeTheBride]

i suspect I have PCOS (I tick almost every box) so my GP told me to make an appt for a blood test on day 21 of my cycle. I assume this is the progesterone test to see if I’ve ovulated.

I had my testosterone levels checked about 6 months ago which were normal but I’ve developed more symptoms since then including my periods becoming much shorter and lighter than they’ve ever been.

Should I have also had a test at the start of my cycle? I’ve seen people mention a ‘day 1-5’ test alongside the day 21 test.

Is there anything else they should be checking blood wise? My GP is understandably very busy and I feel that she sort of grumpily agreed to arrange this test to get me out the door. She doesn’t seem bothered about finding out what’s causing my symptoms so I wonder if I need to say directly ‘look, I have this this and this, can you please check x y & z’

bump

another hopeful bump!

It’s not just blood tests. They might check to see if you have elevated testosterone levels before the next stage. To be honest my acne, weight and facial hair made my GP refer me straight to a specialist who gave me an internal ultrasound and that’s how I was diagnosed - the blood tests just backed that up.

Don’t be fobbed off. My first GP said “yeah, sounds like you have it but we can’t do anything about it”. It wasn’t until I moved cities and enrolled at a new surgery that I found an understanding GP. Not all of them know much about PCOS, and sometimes it’s the younger female doctors that are more clues up. The older ones sometimes think that unless you are trying to conceive, there’s nothing to worry about. But it’s pretty serious - my blood pressure and blood sugars are now monitored regularly by my practice because the condition can have repercussions all through a woman’s life, not just fertility. Grit your teeth and raise your worries about hypertension, diabetes, fertility, stroke and heart disease to them. Ask for another opinion, ask to see another doctor, or a specialist.

Thank you for your detailed reply. My GP did indeed say basically even if you do have PCOS we can’t cure it so 🤷🏿‍♀️. Did you start any treatment to manage it?

Not incredibly helpful as I can't remember exactly what was being tested but I had to have two blood tests at different times in my cycle plus an ultrasound.
I didn't really have symptoms just insulin resistance and secondary infertility so as soon as I sorted my diet and got pregnant the PCOS was irrelevant to GP.

Ah that’s what I was wondering- I’ve seen women online saying they had 2 tests in 1 cycle. She said she’d see what the bloods say and then think about referring me for a scan but only because I said ‘is it not the case that you can have normal bloods but still have cysts seen on scan?’. So who knows. Are you on any treatment? Thanks for your reply

It can't be cured but there are things you can do to help manage it, and keep you healthy, which is the most important thing. My diagnosis was probably 17, 18 years ago now so things may have changed. I was put on Metformin, a diabetes drug, to see if that helped - it didn't. It could help with fertility I think, but I ended up not having kids (I'm now 50 and didn't meet anyone to have them with in time) so fertility help wasn't needed. I was referred to a dietician which really helped - low or slow release carbs are best, plenty of veg, easy on the fruit. I was put on a special contraceptive pill that really helped with my acne, which had been horrific. And I got discounted laser hair removal for the facial hair which I'd found the most distressing bit of it. That's kind of come back but now I go to an electrolysis practitioner. As I hit perimenopause my blood pressure got pretty high and I went on meds for that for a bit but kept forgetting to take them. I did discover that if I changed my exercise habits it kept it low - I moved from daily 5 mile walks to longer cycles to work and long hikes (10-12 miles) several times a week because for some reason it kept my blood pressure low. That's about it - things may have changed since then.

The GP has it on my notes but other than that no treatment and wasn't referred on to anyone else.
What helped me was eating a low carb diet and plenty of exercise. That sorted out fertility and any symptoms like extreme tiredness, blood sugar crashes, headaches.

Thank you both!

@PauliesWalnuts do you remember what pill you were on? Did it only help with acne, or any other symptoms?

@PhoebeTheBride it was called Dianette, although this was a while ago and may have been replaced by something newer. Acne went almost overnight, periods were a lot lighter and easier to deal with.

ah I have a feeling it might have been withdrawn due to blood clot risk (but I also might be thinking of something else), that’s good to know thank you. My acne is annoying