I am 26 and have PCOS?

Question

I was wondering if anyone can tell me exactly what PCOS is cause iam not real sure thank you

Answer 1

Hey me too. Have you been diagnosed? Your doctor should have covered this with you if you have received a diagnosis. If you're like I was for a while and waiting on a confirmed diagnosis and only have a guess, make sure you have a list of questions to ask when you go back in.
I found WebMD pretty helpful, some on Yahoo! Health, and they have a ton of books at Amazon.com, just do a search for PCOS and you'll get tons of results.
The basic outline of it is that you're not ovulating and the unreleased egg forms a cyst in your ovary. When this goes on repeatedly, you get a build-up of cysts, hence the name Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. This of course causes problems with conceiving. PCOS is also characterized by a hormone imbalance (they detected this in me and that's what led them to check my ovaries), you'll carry a higher amount of androgens, or male hormones.
Other common symptoms include excess facial/body hair, acne, and male pattern balding. Many women with PCOS are overweight. One of the main health factors they've linked to this is insulin resistance, when your body doesn't process glucose properly. When this is the case, the weight tends to be carried around the mid-section. Due to the insulin resistence and the tendency to be overweight, Type 2 Diabetes and heart disease are some of the more major side effects of a case of PCOS left untreated for a significant amount of time.
There is treatment for all this, however, and how advanced you are and whether or not you're TTC will determine how your doctor handles your case.

Answer 2

Is also known as Stein-Leventhal Syndrome or Polycystic Ovary Disease (PCOD).
Affects an estimated 6-10% of all women and most don't even know they have it.
Is treatable, but not curable, by medications, changes in diet and exercise.
Is one of the leading causes of infertility in women.
Has been identified for 75 years and they still aren't sure what causes it.
Affects far more than just reproduction.

Can include the following symptoms:
Irregular or absent menses
Numerous cysts on the ovaries in many, but not all, cases
High blood pressure
Acne
Elevated insulin levels, Insulin Resistance, or Diabetes
Infertility
Excess hair on the face and body
Thinning of the scalp hair (alopecia)
Weight Problems or obesity that is centered around your mid section

go to http://www.pcosupport.org/ for support and info. I hope this helps.

Answer 3

PCOS = PolyCystic Ovary Syndrome

It means simply that you have cysts on your ovaries, or that you have the symptoms that mean it likely you have cysts on your ovaries & the hormone imbalance that causes it.

There is a great many symptoms,
~irregular periods,
~excess hair in places such as your chin, bum etc.
~The hair on your head may be thinning
~Overweight, especially around the tummy
~Acne
~Elevated level of testosterone
~Insulin problems
~fertility issues
~cysts on ovaries
~depression

You most probably wont have all of these problems, but maybe some?

The most worrying for many women is infertility & often the fact that they dont feel very 'feminine' due to the excess hair & weight gain around the tum etc...

Here is a site that talks about what PCOS is:
http://www.pcosupport.org/medical/whatis.php

Here is a support group for sufferers:
http://verity-pcos.org.uk/board/
[I am joined to this myself]

I hope this helps.