Can anyone help? Hormones/anxiety/peri/PCOS?

[user098765432]

I have posted elsewhere but never had a reply.

I am 38, have a lot of peri symptoms. Recently had bloods done on day 3 which showed my oestrogen was the low side of normal, my testosterone was high out of range and my SHBG was low out of range. Initial feedback was probably PCOS.

I do have regular periods, but did struggle to conceive my second child years ago. I do have some PCOS symptoms such as facial hair, cyclical cystic acne, always find weight loss quite tricky etc.

My BMI is 33, it was higher but I've lost 15lb since May - mostly due to my anxiety but my eating habits have changed too e.g I've cut out bread and chocolate bars, and some other junk foods!

I have an appt next week with my GP to discuss all of this.

My family is complete and dh has had a vasectomy so I don't need contraception but I am considering asking for the combination pill - apparently this is helpful with the hormone imbalance related to PCOS.

But I still have the peri symptoms which are pretty much worse around when I ovulate - I guess the pill could help that too?

Or do I need HRT?

I'm just so confused by it all and don't want to be fobbed off or given the wrong info by a GP - no idea who the GP is, they're usually locums at my surgery.

All my other bloods were ok, though progesterone was not tested.

Any help or advice would be really appreciated!

What do you mean by peri symptoms? Same as PMS?
With regular periods and your age your GP is not likely to think you are menopausal and give you HRT, especially if your FSH is normal.
Risk of deep vein thrombosis with your BMI and combined pill

Progestogen only pill would stop your cycle and could be worth a try.
Also Mirena IUS if bleeding is heavy and it has 25% chance of stopping ovulation.

Weight loss would be the main thing recommended to help improve PCOS and hormones, also cardiovascular health benefits especially in PCOS

Progesterone irrelevant as you are not trying to get pregnant

No, much different to PMS.

I'm having huge issues with anxiety/panic, palpitations, hot spells, low mood, body tingles, headaches, loss of libido, generally feeling out of sync, fatigue, feeling nervous a lot plus more.

This is why I'm conflicted with the risks from the pill, unlikely to agree I'm peri - I just don't know what the answer is.

Hopeful bump

Hi can anyone recommend anything to help with PCOS hormones? They make me feel really down and anxious at least 2 weeks each month. Considering the pill but I don’t want to make things worse.