Going to the Gyno…

…is never a good time in my book.

I have posted about PCOS before but not specifically a gyno visit. So today we are going to talk about it because no one really does. It’s kind of a challenge. I called in December to make a well women appointment and couldn’t get in until February 3. That’s a long wait. My birth control pill would not be refilled until I had my appointment, so it was back to condoms for a month and half BUT that isn’t the bad part. Condoms are easy to use. My PCOS symptoms are creeping back -> weight is up around my gut due to higher testosterone and my acne is outta control. I am 35 and my skin is so freaking bad right now. Thank you PCOS and not getting my BC until I come in for an appointment that I have to wait over a month for. This is all before even going in.

So, I left home today with plenty of time not factoring in I love in SoCal and shoulda checked traffic on the 5. Heavy traffic was not only annoying but set me back. Then I parked in the wrong structure and got a good walk in to get to the office. This wouldn’t bother me except I was already behind. I hate being late, especially to things like doctors appointments. They have a schedule and everyone else with an appointment that day doesn’t wanna be there forever and I don’t want to be the reason they are running behind.

I finally make it to the office for them to stick a brush up my hooha for pap smear, smoosh my boobs around, and stick their fingers into me to check my ovaries. This is all necessary to keep up on my health and it’s really not that bad, it’s just not great. Dudes will never get it hahahaha

But seriously, keep up on your pap smears to be healthy and detect potential cervical cancer early. Someone that was close to me died of cervical cancer and it was horrible. What’s worse is it was likely preventable had she kept up on her pap smears. So take control and get in and get it done! The hassle is worth it.

Every Time I Try to Get Back on Track with…

…fitness something happens.

I love my RIPPED class. We’ve talked about it before so I wont reiterate that part. BUT back in September a series of unfortunate events lead me to only be able to attend sporadically. The first hurdle was financial. I simply couldn’t afford the membership at the time. Many people came together to ensure that I could continue on my fitness journey – but not till October. So I start attending again in October when I twist my ankle and suddenly I am out for another 2.5 weeks. I get back for two classes and I get 10 day viral plague which knocks me out of another two weeks of classes. I recover and head back to RIPPED and bam another foot injury. That heals about 3 weeks later and I am back at class once again. I think yeah…this is where I get back in the groove and 2 weeks later and PANDEMIC hits and shuts down all classes. I feel like I may never get back into my workout routine. I did the eliptical and tread mill and rowing machine which helped but not quite the same love or workout high as RIPPED. With gyms now shut down I am back to walking. I enjoy walking and feel better about doing something, anything but it isn’t the workout I want to be doing. This is not only for physical health (and feeling better about my appearance) but about my mental health. RIPPED is a release and helps me manage my anxiety. I don’t think I quite realized how much it helps until these past few months.

For now I suppose my walks will have to do. I hope we can get back to the little things that keep us sane soon.

ALSO – since writing this they are offering streaming classes a couple of times a day which is awesome for free. It helps a lot. Another way to be #alonetogether

Handling My Health…

…to set my own p(e)ace

Health Update! I had my second doctors appointment for the now four weeks of bleeding and finding the cause. We are adding a fun new symptom from the PCOS which is fybroids. But I am getting ahead of myself.

I have been dreading this appointment since I heard the words ‘internal ultrasound.’ I have had an internal ultrasound before so it wasn’t that I didn’t know what to expect…it’s that I did. Internal ultrasounds aren’t super painful but they are incredibly uncomfortable for many reason. 1) The obvious: a rod is going up you 2) I mean really up you 3) WTF is that in me?! Although one cool thing was that the ultrasound image was projected on a TV so I could see it. It was pretty cool. Did I have any idea what I was looking at? No, but it was still a nice distraction

The doctor came in and asked why we did the ultrasound again…okay she’s busy. She then fired off some information I didn’t understand and basically ran out the door before I could really even ask questions. I am thinking I need a new doctor – not due to lack of skill but you can’t ramble medical stuff at me and run out the room.

So no cysts on the ovaries! Yay! Unfortunately, I now have many fybroids on my uterus, but they are small which is good. I am trying a temporary new regimen of my birth control pill to control the symptoms (stop the bleeding). I am little frightened that upping my BC pill, even temporarily, might make me a bit nuts for a few days. Maybe I will just put myself on a time out to ensure that the only other person affected, if it happens, is me. If that doesn’t work I get an IUD

So my adventures with PCOS continue. I am sharing this saga with PCOS and myself for the same reason I share my journey in therapy – I am not ashamed because it’s a part of my life. I have to address it all to take care of me and set my own p(e)ace. Own what you’re dealt, taking care of, and be damn proud you’re handling your business! So cheers to all those handling their business. Cheers!