A Personal Log of how I got rid of my PCOS (Polycystic ovarian syndrome) symptoms within 7 months using Natural Remedies: A Personal Success Story

Here are some updates of the things I’m doing to kick PCOS in the butt!

 I had a BodyTalk session with Kristin Pierce Jan, 2013. She mentioned my body was giving messages of an irregularity on my left ovary.  Within a few weeks I went to my family doctor who gave me a requisition to get an ultrasound.

In the meantime I went to my homeopath, Dr. Hoe Mark in March 2013.

• The symptoms I gave were me being irritable, having irregular periods, several months of continual pain on the right side of my leg, an imbalance in the way my armpits smelled, and bloated and belching frequently.  He suggested I had a metabolic imbalance and possibly a cyst on my ovary. He gave me a list of 3 homeopathics; streptococcinum CM, lachesis CM, and lycopodium CM to take. They were 9$ each.  
•  I had experienced greater stomach pains about a week or so after taking the homeopathics. I called Dr. Hoe (free of charge) and he said to increase the amount I’m taking at a time. After researching more about homeopathy, if your symptoms get better, they are working. If they get worse they are also working, but you need to increase the dosage.  If nothing happens, then there are other symptoms to take into consideration and a different remedy to match those symptoms.
• Within 2 days of increasing my dose my leg pain was completely GONE, the smells in my armpits had begun to balance, and I became much less irritable and not quite my regular cheerful morning self, but much more pleasant.

Diagnosed with PCOS, ultrasound confirmed it April 2013

I went to Dr. Fleury, a Naturopath 

• She listened to all the changes I’ve experienced and all the things I’ve done about them.  She weighed me and then suggested I changed my diet to include more proteins and fats, especially first thing in the morning.
• I have been drinking her coconut late recipe first thing in the morning for about a month.
  Coconut Late Recipe
  • Add in a small blender (I use a magic bullet) 2 tbsps. coconut oil, 1 tbsps. of honey, and enough boiling water to cover wait until melts
  • Add 2 eggs (I use the free run ones) and some cinnamon
  • Add more boiling water (should be about 1 large cup in total) and blend
  • Poor in a cup and sprinkle on more cinnamon  (cinnamon also curbs your sweet tooth)

• A couple of hours after I drink the late I eat a snack that contains whole foods.  I’ve been eating an orange and almonds.  I am also taking a probiotic and a tsp of Essential Fatty Acids (high potency, good quality fish oils) at this time.  For lunch I try to make sure I have proteins included. I’ve decreased the pastas and foods containing white flour (and try to avoid products that contain enriched flour) and have increased my proteins substantially. I have still been eating pasta, but just at a decreased amount and add more gluten free varieties when I do.
• I am still drinking lots of water with lemon to aid in alkalizing my diet, remembering to drink a cup of water before I eat and 1 after to increase in digestion.
• Within a couple weeks of changing my diet I was no longer bloated and belching as much in the evening. I also feel a lot stronger and more energy.

Went to my family doctor to check results or tests/ May 2013

• Thyroid normal, blood normal, everything else normal. He suggested I could go on the pill to regulate my cycle.  I definitely DECLINED! He is very open to other natural therapies and is aware of the benefits I receive. He suggested I stick with the homeopathic's and naturopath's plan given my current changes.  He said I should focus on staying on the new diet and losing weight and continuing to go to the gym would greatly help.

I went back to my homeopath, Dr. Hoe Mark (he told me to check back with my results in month)/May 2013

• I told him the diagnosis and he said it is becoming much more common. He gave me 2 more homeopathics to take that will increase the speed of the healing, zincum metallicum 4C and thyroidinum 30C.  He said that I will be taking these together for quite a while (maybe a year) but it should go away all together. I ordered a 250ml bottle (the largest size they carry) from Herbs and Health. They will combine all 5 in one bottle. (Apx $50)

Future goals:

• I’m planning on doing some cleanses from Grail Springs Holistic Detox for Body, Mind, and Spirit, by Marentette, Madeline.
• After my cleanse I plan on shocking my body and going 10 days without grains or dairy.
• I’m continuing to go to the gym at least 3 times/week and focus on weight lifting at a SLOW speed, with higher repetitions. I only do 20 mins of cardio when I’m there.  I do intervals with my cardio so my body doesn’t get used to what I’m doing.  Whenever I’m at the gym I try to be in the moment, focusing on my body healing as I smile with my whole body.
• On the days I don’t go to the gym I try to go for a 30 min+walk.  On average I do exercise about 3-4 days/week.

UPDATE NOV 20/2013

• I am still taking the 5 homeopathic mixture.  I definitely notice a difference in my moods, my B.O. smell and energy level when I don’t take them.  Dr. Hoe said I won’t need to take them forever, but for longer than regular homeopathics.  I’m also taking homeopathic magnesium in the morning and evening to make sure I get a good sleep ($9 for a large bottle of dissolvable tablets).
• I am drinking the coconut lattes every morning, with the exception of a couple weeks during and after a family holiday.  
• I was taking a probiotic and EFA fish oils in the morning, but have ran out.  I have noticed a decrease in my energy level since I have stopped taking them and I’ve been more bloated.
• I usually eat an orange and almonds pretty much every day about 2 hours after my latte.  On days I don’t drink it I eat 2 eggs and toast , sometimes oatmeal, or flax cereal with yogurt, blueberries and chia seeds, but only on weekends
• I haven’t done any cleanses as per the naturopath's suggestion. I haven’t been back, but plan on going again sometime in January.  
• I have been going to the gym at least twice a week and did a 6 week body/mind movement (Anat Baniel Method) class 1/week with Dan Ouellette. At the gym I do 25 mins cardio (on leg exercise days I go on the treadmill, arm focused days I go on the bike) still at intervals of pace and intensity.  When I lift weights I do very slow, mindful lifts to build endurance based on a book I read and some advice I was given.  I try to do more reps at a lower weight than less reps at a higher weight. I also do exercises on the mat that strengthen my core. I’m typically at the gym for an hour-hour ½, taking my time and making sure I’m enjoying myself without rushing. I also listen to The Power which is awesome motivational stuff! I definitely noticed my strength coming back, toning in my body and I lost 5-7 pounds.  I stopped going to the gym since mid Oct, but plan on going again right away. My husband and I have been doing a yoga video I used to do almost every night for the past week or so. I’ve already noticed significant changes in my flexibility.
• On a side note, I don't have leg pain, but I still have chronic pain in my knee and neck and lay on tennis balls from when I was in a car accident a year ago. I also do stretches and exercises to strengthen and help keep my pelvis aligned. I’m still seeing a chiropractor and myofascial massage therapist and also plan on booking a physio appointment, Bodytalk and possibly doing some spine decompression from a Groupon I got.

UPDATE /April 2014

• I’m now 22 weeks pregnant! Wow that was fast!
• I had lost close to 10 pounds before I became pregnant, but that won’t last for long! I’m still going to the gym when I can, which seems to be twice a week these days.
• I continue to have a coconut latte first thing in the morning. About an hour later I have the EFAs and the HMF intensive probiotic from the Naturopath with an orange and some almonds and now my prenatal vitamins. This no longer lasts me until lunch however and I have a little snack before then. I’m no longer taking the homeopathics. All is going well! 

UPDATE /Aug 2015

• My son is now a year old, wow time flies! I am at the same weight I was before I have him.  I do not have any of the symptoms I had before (odor, irritability etc.)  
• I haven’t been going to the gym as regularly, about 1-2 times/month. I do plan on getting back to the 3 times/week in the fall. However, we go for family bike rides, walks, and I meditate 2-3 times/month, and do yoga.
• I continue to have the late for breakfast during the week and 2 eggs and toast on the weekends.  When I want an afternoon snack I include protein like a turkey bite sausage. I continue to keep my pastas/bread consumption low, and include the gluten and non-gmo varieties.
• I no longer take any homeopathics. I do take continue to take the HMF intensive probiotics (especially after researching about how the immune system is related to our gut health and how that also helps my son through breastfeeding)and the EFA fish oils.
• For the last four months I have also been taking Asea. It has helped me with getting a great night’s sleep, giving me even more energy, and repairing my body in general.
• I haven’t felt this great since before I became pregnant with my daughter 5 years ago!! I also feel much more balanced than I have felt in years. I can’t wait to go back to the gym in the fall!!

In Like a Lion; Sam's Birth Story

I had been unable to walk the last couple months of my pregnancy without having low abdominal pressure or having to go to the bathroom right away.  When I walked at Fringe Festival for over 2 and half hours I should have known Sam was coming sooner than later.  That night I awoke a couple times needing to go to the end of the bed to rest on all fours leaning on a pillow. At 6:45 am I had my first contraction.  The next one at 7am woke up Marc.  We knew we would be meeting our new baby boy very soon!  We called the midwife right away knowing that Soleil’s birth was only 5 hours and subsequent births could be half as long.  

At 7:10am I was downstairs eating some breakfast while I breathed through a couple of contractions.  By 7:30am the contractions were very intense so I went back upstairs to try to relax and breathe through them. I found it extremely difficult to focus on relaxing with all the commotion going on in our small townhouse condo.  I breathed through 2 more, and ended up screaming in my pillow for the rest of them.  Marc woke up his mom and dad who were visiting for the weekend. His dad began working on the last bit of pumping that was needed for the birthing pool. Marc was busy waking up Soleil, our inquisitive 3 year old daughter.  She was a little nervous about the loud noises coming from her mama and wondered why she couldn’t see me. Marc was also getting Gabie, his 11 year old daughter ready for her 9:30am flight home to B.C.   He was making sure she had everything packed and called my sister who we listed as the emergency backup to take Gabie who was listed as a minor.   While Marc was busily getting everyone ready and keeping them at a distance from me he was also trying to be supportive through my extremely painful contractions. Needless to say there was a lot going on and even though everyone was trying to be sensitive of the situation, I just needed a peaceful space! 

Marc continued to balance his time between supporting me through my contractions, which were coming intensely every 4 minutes, and getting everyone out the door.  I tried going into the bathtub because that helped so much with Soleil’s homebirth, but no matter what I did I couldn’t get comfortable and was unable to get into any kind of deep relaxation/meditative state.  I knew there was no way I was going to make it to the birthing pool.  

My sisters left with the grandparents, Gabie and Soleil to the airport around 8:15am.  The midwife showed up a couple minutes before they left.  She realized how far along I was and frantically called out to the second midwife to get her bag.  Marc was trying to help me breathe/relax, but he was still in a rushed state.  While in our bathroom upstairs I turned to him between contractions and told him I needed him to relax.  I then turned to the midwife and calmly asked her to relax because it was making it extremely difficult for me to relax.  They both took a deep breath and then were able to help guide things and slow down the remainder of the birth.   

On Aug 3, 2014, at 8:22am I caught my little leo, Samuel Grayson Lepage. He weighed 8 pounds 7oz and was 20in long.  He was crying a little but was he was easily soothed.   It was just as incredible as when I had birthed Soleil. Holding your child for the first time, meeting this incredible human being who has been growing inside of you for 9 long months is nothing short of miraculous. I held him on my chest for almost half an hour.  What an amazing, precious bonding experience.  

We waited about 45 minutes trying a few times to birth the placenta.  The standard time is 30 minutes and Soleil’s took 45 mins with a 5 hour birth.  The midwives were getting nervous that the placenta wasn’t coming. Marc was enjoying his bonding experience as he holding Sam shirtless. I was still very alert but lost some blood and was nowhere near ready to birth the placenta.  After an hour had gone by we agreed with the midwife to call an ambulance to go to the hospital. Marc and I decided our goal was to home birth Sam and we had already done that.  And the midwives were strongly suggesting we go just as a precaution.   

The midwives and ambulance guys had a few disagreements about some protocol concerns. After a short while we were on our way.  I was still very alert at this time.  I asked if someone was getting my water bottle and everyone kept telling me yes, that someone else would get it.  But I knew that the person that they said was to get it wasn’t going to (they typically don’t like delivering mothers to drink water in case surgery is needed). As I was on the stretcher, about to get put on to the ambulance, I asked them how Marc and Sam were coming. The midwife and ambulance guys said that he was going to follow in our vehicle. I told them my sister took our vehicle with Soleil. They called to Marc and he got the car seat ready and Sam went for his first ride sitting beside Marc in the ambulance.  Sam was so content and slept most of the way.  

In the delivery room everyone was so nice. But I didn’t expect the placenta to be just as painful, if not more, than birthing Sam. I remember letting out a really loud scream and the doctor told me that it wouldn’t help.  I didn’t really pay any attention.  It helped me and that’s all that mattered at that point. They ended up giving me 3 doses of Fentanyl, which wears off fast and doesn’t affect breast milk. It was some pretty great medicine! I remember closing my eyes and thinking of all the things I was thankful for.  I told the staff, “I know it might be the drugs, but thank you for your help.” Marc, Sam, and I hung out in the room for a few hours until I was able to go into a wheel chair to go to my room 
 
At first, the nurse said we only had to be there until 10am the next day. But when the test results came back the next day they said my hemoglobin was so low I needed to stay another day. If it wasn’t going to increase I was going to need a blood transfusion.  We also found out Sammy had cephalohematoma (2 raised bumps on either side of his head from being delivered so quickly).  His head looked like the shape of a heart.  Everyone wanted to make sure everything was going to be okay, just as a precaution. I knew everything would be fine and was pretty calm considering, but I still asked my friend, Joanne Mueller to do a distant reiki treatment on both Sam and I. It was pretty cool because I could tell she was working on Sam and me by our breathing. He also slept so deep and peaceful following the treatment.  

The first day at the hospital wasn’t so bad.  It felt like a stay at a low end hotel. It was nice to do nothing but snuggle with my new baby boy. We had a visit from my sisters and Marc’s parents.  I had tears in my extremely puffy eyes when I saw how excited Soleil was and how much love she had for her new baby brother.  Soleil was curious as to what happened during his birth, why she couldn’t see me, why I was screaming, and why I was in the hospital.  I had a lot of answers to share with her. Although I tried to prepare her as best I could before I had Sam she still needed a lot more reassurance for her inquisitive mind.  

By day two at the hospital I was more than ready to go home.  Because my hemoglobin was low I needed to increase my iron. The menu was not conducive to an iron rich diet. In fact, some meals it was quite the opposite.  I made sure to ask Marc to bring me an iron filled burger from the cafeteria along with some orange juice to help with the absorption of iron! I was shocked that the maternity floor, with plenty of nursing mothers also didn't even have decaffeinated tea or even decaffeinated coffee. 
We were getting visits every 4 hours from the nurses to test blood pressure, temperature, and head measurements.  There was also the cleaning staff, laundry, meal delivery, beverage, and random checks.  It was a lot of interruptions when we just needed rest. There was this one nice lady who came in to clean the floors with a mop. I had a friendly conversation with her while I pretended she had a sanitary mop that never entered anyone else’s germ filled room and the cleaner in the bucket magically killed 100% of all the germs.  However, when she coughed without covering her mouth I wished I had two ruby red slippers that could take me home instantly.   A lady came by to do a routine ear test for Sam. She did one ear and said it was negative, but that they typically come back that way. Why on earth are they doing tests that are typically negative anyway?! She said I could go to this place and retest his ears.  Yeah, like I was going to do that.  If he has issues hearing I will be able to tell soon enough and I will contact the necessary people at that point.  Then I had a routine check by the nurse.  She asked if two male students could stay.  I agreed. I mean it was just the same old check, right?  Wrong! She checked everything in front of them.  She hadn’t checked everything since the first check. If I would have known I sure wouldn’t have agreed. I’m not a shy person, but I felt I was just a body to be studied and my privacy was invaded. I know I could have said no, but I had already said yes. There was no way I was going to stay another day in this place whether they wanted me to or not.  I thought, why in the world would anyone WANT to go out of their way to have a baby here?!  It is so unrelaxing, invasive (even to me who isn’t a private person), and full of unhealthy, unknowledgeable people.  I needed to heal and the best way I know how is with a healthy diet cooked with the love of chef Marc and plenty of rest in my own bed.

On check out day I couldn’t have been happier!  Sam was so alert and content while we got him dressed to go home.  All the way home he was quiet and alert as he was looking around.  It was so surreal to take him home. It was much more peaceful, quiet and snuggly spending time with my new baby boy in the comfort of my home.  When the aunties brought Soleil from her fun filled day she was so excited to see her new baby brother at home. Thank you to aunties!!  What would we ever do without them?

Six months later and Sam is still an amazing baby.  He is so happy and content.  There were no breastfeeding issues, minimal postpartum issues, and most of all I feel as though his birth has reset my body in so many positive ways.  I had PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome) and was matter-of-factly told I couldn't have any more children, but it was good cause I already had one. Seven months, a few simple, natural life style changes and I was surprised to be pregnant without trying.  I may not have planned to have another baby quite yet, but I'm so very lucky that Sammy choose me to be his mama. He may have come in like a lion, but our Sammy is snuggly and calm as a lamb!