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Pregnancy

Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

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Original poster

Natural Pregnancy with pcos ? Possible

25 replies

missfitz23 · 06/02/2015 19:02

Hi everyone.
I was recently diagnosed with pcos based on blood work showing high testosterone levels . Anyway a week after finding this out I tested positive for pregnancy. I am now 5.5 weeks pregnant .
I'm overweight and was planning to loose weight to ttc . So I'm very shocked , good shocked though.
Anyway,, I'm kind of worried that my doctor said I don't need my progesterone checked . Everything I read says high testosterone leads to low progesterone and that many pcos pregnant women need supplements. My gp won't test me and said I'll be fine.
Nothing much I can do . Was looking for others who have pcos and had a successful pregnancy without any meds or progesterone supplements ?

OP posts:

ArabellaStrange · 06/02/2015 19:15

I have had pcos for around ten years but was only actually diagnosed with it last year, so I went through two pregnancies totally unaware that there was a potential for problems. I have a very healthy nine year old and six year old.
Good luck but I very much doubt that you will need it!

Original poster

missfitz23 · 06/02/2015 19:19

Thanks Hun. That's great to know . Sorry if is a rude q.. We're you over weight during those pregnancies or before ? I'm worried my weight might cause me to have low progesterone x

OP posts:

rugbychick · 06/02/2015 19:29

I'm quite overweight and diagnosed with PCOS in 2001 after years of issues and not even knowing what pcos was. I got pregnant after 4-5 months of trying with no assistance. The end result is an almost 3 year old dd snoring in bed. (I'll leave out the awful labour and 4 weeks afterwards, but that could happen to anyone)I have deliberately not chosen to have a second child for a variety of reasons, a big one was my age at having her. I was 40. Pregnancy wise I didn't have too many problems, no gestational diabetes etc. just pelvic pain and carpel tunnel syndrome. Both went after I had her. Again, this can happen to anyone, and not pcos related. Congratulations!

Naturegirl82 · 06/02/2015 22:05

PCOS sufferer here, not overweight though. One successful pregnancy and pregnant again now. Didn't take anything during either and stopped taking my metformin as well.

There used to be a feeling PCOS sufferers were at higher risk of miscarriage but I'm pretty sure that has been disproved. Good luck with your pregnancy and congratulations.

skyra13 · 06/02/2015 22:11

My friend has pcos 2 of them actually and one is currently trying but the other has had 4 perfectly fine pregnancy's so I would not worry to much both are over weight also but that should not be an issue :) good luck and just look after yourself x

Bondy83 · 07/02/2015 09:09

Pcos sufferer here had a starting bmi of 30 and was given a higher dosage of folic acid. For me the pregnancy has regulated my hormones and I've actually lost weight I'm 37wks now and currently 1.5 stone less than when I conceived I'm putting this down to less testosterone in my system because of the pregnancy. You shouldn't need any extra care due to your pcos.

OlineDatingGaff · 07/02/2015 09:18

I was diagnosed pcos a week before falling pregnant. Never had any treatment and no problems in pregnancy. Congratulations xx

fattycow · 07/02/2015 10:40

I know 3 girls with pcos that got naturally pregnant. None of them had any treatment.

Lulu3108 · 07/02/2015 13:43

I saw something interesting the other day about a link between PCOS and eating carbohydrates involving the insulin and sugars in them. When eradicating pasta etc from their diet the women found that their hormones were more balanced and their PCOS symptoms were low along with weight loss.

Interestingly positive results have happened when carbohydrates have been removed from a diet or decreased and alternative source of energy is eaten higher natural 'good' fats are replaced such as olive oils, full fat milk and butter...

It's called the ketogenic diet and it is normally given by doctors to children with epilepsy, to decrease symptoms. I have seen good results from auto immune sufferers like myself and borderline diabetics.

Please consult your GP if you are to try any new way of eating, but it is extremely interesting and makes me wonder if sugar, gluten and carbohydrates really should be in our diets...

Lulu3108 · 07/02/2015 13:46

(I am not saying PCOS is caused by carbohydrates, there was a research study I read on the internet that had linked the two together).

It's worth looking into if some ladies on here are finding their PCOS very bad and having problems conceiving. I have noticed my hormone inbalances (prolactin) and my auto immune improved by decreasing sugars, gluten (I am not intolorent), and heavy carbohydrates.

yetanotherchangename · 07/02/2015 13:54

Two natural pregnancies with pcos here. One thing I wish I'd known is that pcos can affect milk supply. It's worth discussing with a good and well informed breastfeeding counsellor if you want to breastfeed. Eg I was given a hard time in hospital as my milk came in very late which is normal with pcos.

boatrace30 · 07/02/2015 14:14

Also pregnant naturally (23weeks!) after suffering with PCOS since my periods started! Expected conceiving to take ages, but five months in the end (after 12 years on the Pill - so pretty good really!) Midwife didn't seem bothered by PCOS and have had no special attention.
Good to know about the milk supply issue though as I hadn't heard this. Thanks yetanothername

yetanotherchangename · 07/02/2015 14:37

Also to add I was successful in breastfeeding after my second pregnancy and had a great supply in the end, so pcos doesn't necessarily mean you can't breastfeed.

AlpacaMyBags · 07/02/2015 15:07

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Lulu3108 · 07/02/2015 23:58

Alpacamybags yeah totally agree with you on the clean eating. I am pregnant and trying my best to eat as natural and healthy things as possible. Before I was pregnant I had very high prolactin, irregular periods, breast milk and hair growth. I cut down on the carbs and ate as clean as I could, noticed a remarkable improvement and would agree definitely worth recommending it.

yetanotherchangename interesting you say about breast milk, that can be linked to another hormone called prolactin which I have had issues with. This hormone produces breast milk. I'd say make sure we eat a healthy diet whilst pregnant to avoid any hormone disruptions. I am taking pregnancy hormones and plenty of protein and calcium as I am very worried I will have problems due to having suffered from the prolactin hormone function x

Original poster

missfitz23 · 08/02/2015 20:40

Thanks guys I'm praying my testosterone didn't cause a bad egg

OP posts:

DeepTurquoise · 08/02/2015 23:39

yetanother great to hear that you successfully breastfed your second LO, I have PCOS and really struggled with low supply for my daughter. I did manage to breast feed until 14 months but had to supplement with formula the whole time! I tried everything to increase my supply but to no avail so wasn't feeling too optimistic about being able to breastfeed this time - just wondered if you did anything differently second time round or did your body seem to just produce more?

Naturegirl82 · 09/02/2015 09:34

Just to put people's mind at ease, prolactin is responsible for the initial production of breast milk. But after a while, milk production is no longer controlled by prolactin and it is the stimulation from the suckling baby that results in milk production.

I have a prolactin imbalance, and excess testosterone and had an oversupply problem when breastfeeding DD1. So a prolactin imbalance doesn't necessarily mean any issues breastfeeding. Best thing would be to relax about it as stress can inhibit breastmilk production.

I fed DD for a year before I decided to stop so please don't worry. And if you do encounter problems when starting to breastfeed (that may actually have nothing to do with PCOS at all), then there is plenty of support available through the nhs and charities.

Deep can I ask how did you know that you had a low supply? I've heard of a lot of people saying they have low supply so start supplementing but just wondered how you knew.

With regards to diet, I usually follow the harcombe diet and that works wonders for my PCOS, which sounds very similar to the other diets mentioned.

yetanotherchangename · 09/02/2015 10:25

DeepTurquoise - my first pregnancy was twins who were born 3 weeks early and had lots of problems latching on. One twin had a very poor sucking reflex. So supplemental feeding was recommended - well forced on me when my milk didn't come in. I think the supplemental feeding then undermined my supply, but it was a difficult cycle to break.

My DC3 (pg2) was much bigger and healthier at birth and much keener to bf. So I was much more confident and robust about refusing to supplement even though I think my milk took even longer to come in.

IME the issue is that if your milk doesn't come in quickly, you come under pressure to supplemental feed and that then undermines your supply

But I'm absolutely no expert, this is just my experience. Knowing that PCOS can delay your milk coming in can help with that early decision making about whether to supplement or not.

Original poster

missfitz23 · 10/02/2015 20:41

Thanks ladies I'm so worried about increased mc risk

OP posts:

trulyscrumptious33 · 10/02/2015 22:35

Another long term pcos sufferer with fairly severe symptoms...although BMI at the start of pregnancy was just slightly over 25 so weight has never been much of an issue for me.

Conceived a few weeks after taking out the contraceptive implant and am now 35 weeks with a low risk pregnancy. Have never had any problems or niggles throughout that were outside of the ordinary...

Wishing you all the best. TS

trulyscrumptious33 · 10/02/2015 22:36

Oh, and no meds!

Naturegirl82 · 10/02/2015 22:42

missfitz I'm pretty certain that there isn't thought to be an increased risk of miscarriage with pcos. It used to thought there was but there has been lot of research recently that shows otherwise. Verity (UK PCOS charity) says there is no increased risk so please try not to worry you are at any higher risk because of the pcos

DeepTurquoise · 16/02/2015 21:09

Nature my LO had a great latch and we were feeding round the clock! Never felt my milk really come in like they tell you to expect - I was producing milk but she just never seemed full and after two weeks of constant feeding (no more than an hour of sleep at a time) she had lost too much weight and we were sent back to hospital. First we were back on the maternity ward and the midwives were amazing and gave lots of support and advice but then we had to be moved to the children's ward where the nurses were horrible towards us, told me LO wasn't allowed in my bed and basically forced the bottle on us and I ended up agreeing to bottle feed just so that we were allowed to leave and go home!

PacificDogwood · 16/02/2015 21:11

Congratulations!

Most woman with PCOS will conceive naturally.

Best of luck with the rest of your pregnancy

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