I was 18 about to go off to college when I went to the doctor and was told I have PCOS. I didn't know at the time that I'd be fighting my body at every turn. For those who don’t know what that is let me explain. PCOS is Polycystic Ovary syndrome; it’s a health problem that affects a woman’s hormone levels, periods, and things of that nature. The hormone imbalance causes cysts to grow on the ovary while the syndrome is common with around 200,000 cases in the US per year it is not something that is the easiest to deal with.
There’s no cure for it but treatment can help or at least that’s what doctors tell you. I was told I had to go on birth control which was fine with me until I was on it. I had the three-month cycle of the pill. It went great that is until I went off to college. At the time, I was going to BGSU. I was 2 and half hours away from home and any of the doctors I went to. Not only was I away but the pill stopped working and I became pretty sick. I would call my doctor and all they would tell me to do is take more and more of the pill. That's if they answered or returned
Ha like that was the only solution.
Turns out not only was being off the pill making me sick but doubling sometimes even tripling it was causing it to be worse. I physically couldn't move without being nauseous which caused classes to be the hardest. I simply could not focus.
After a month of being at BGSU, I ended up withdrawing from the classes and went home. It was partially due to the PCOS among other reasons. I got home thinking maybe I can get better. NOPE. I spent the rest of what was my freshman semester of college sitting at home unable to function. It was horrible.
Here I am today over 365 days and still never got a call from the doctor. I've hit a point where nothing makes me better but it's something making me stronger. I've learned to handle the little things that come with PCOS. But this last week it has developed into something that scares the possible future mother in me.
As of right now there is a fairly high chance I have cysts on my ovaries. And as much as I don't plan on having children, to possibly lose that option is terrifying. But with everything terrifying there's a bright side. Even if the bright side is sometimes hard to find. If I lose the ability to have biological children there's always adoption and that way I can help a kid who was like me.
