Tara: Enjoying Life While Managing PCOS
Tara was an energetic, happy child throughout elementary school, and full of life. But by the time puberty hit around sixth grade, her sunny demeanor began to shift and she became much more subdued. Other girls her age journeyed through puberty with relative ease, while she seemed to really struggle with the changes happening within her body.
As her physical and mental health began to decline, Tara wasn’t sure if puberty was the cause of her health struggles, or if her body was fighting a serious disease. It would take almost 25 years of physical and psychological symptoms for Tara to be diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
What is PCOS?
PCOS is a hormonal imbalance that causes cysts to develop in a woman’s ovaries. One in 10 women of childbearing age are affected by PCOS. As Tara started puberty, she experienced increasingly traumatic menstrual cycles every month. She felt confused as to why she felt so physically sick all the time, even between cycles. Her symptoms worsened through puberty, while her peers, aside from the occasional discomfort of cramps and PMS, were seemingly fine.
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Over time, Tara’s symptoms did not improve but instead increased in severity. But, being a fighter, Tara learned how to put on a big smile and soldier through the challenges she was experiencing physically, mentally, and emotionally.
PCOS diagnosis
Tara knew she was sick, and at age 21, she started seeking medical advice to find answers to what might be ailing her. But her visits to the doctor resulted in standard blood test orders with the same conclusions: Her blood levels were normal across the board.
Slowly, Tara began to accept that this was just how her body was and that she would have to live with it. As her physical pain worsened, her mental state continued to deteriorate as well: Tara came to believe she wouldn’t live beyond her 45th birthday. Convinced that her body would continue to deteriorate, and without telling her husband, Tara started to write a living will.
Then, in the fall of 2019, Tara sought the help of a new family medicine doctor specializing in hormone health, who ordered a different set of blood tests that turned up new results: Tara had PCOS. She was relieved to finally have a diagnosis for the health struggles she had endured for over two decades.
PCOS symptoms
Tara worked tirelessly with her specialist to understand the PCOS symptoms that had been affecting her for years, such as:
Hair loss
Pain
Sensitivities to food and her environment
A depressed mood
A feeling of discomfort in her own body
She was also able to associate some of the challenges she faced during her pregnancies with PCOS. Like many women with PCOS, she was able to get pregnant, but she experienced complications and went into labor early for her three children. (PCOS can also cause infertility for some women, but there are several treatment options available, like metformin, the popular diabetes drug.)
PCOS treatments
Tara’s specialist used the results of her blood test to identify hormonal imbalances, such as high levels of testosterone. To regulate her hormones, the specialist prescribed medications including spironolactone and progesterone.
Tara also began to research other PCOS treatment options that could help her. Depending on the severity of symptoms, women with PCOS may try other approaches like weight loss, hair removal, and surgery.
Tara now takes several PCOS supplements on top of her prescription medications to help with her symptoms. Since she does not have insurance, GoodRx has helped her save around 70% on both her medications and supplements. Here’s what she pays with GoodRx discounts:
Spironolactone: Her 90-day supply previously cost $70 but is now $20.
Vitamin B-12 injections: Tara was getting weekly injections given by her doctor for $140 a month, but she realized she could purchase the vitamin B-12 vials for $11. Each vial lasts her one week and she administers them herself at home now.
Outside of treating her physical symptoms, Tara has also prioritized mental health and is an enthusiastic proponent of talk therapy. She had spent many years of her life believing she had to accept her body as being inherently flawed, and she felt deflated with feelings of low self-worth. Therapy helped remind her that her worth is not earned but a birthright. “Women’s bodies should not be a guessing game: We should be prioritized,” she says. “Our bodies go through so much, with puberty and childbirth and postpartum recovery. Women’s hormones and mental health take a hit in those stages of life!”
Though there is no cure for PCOS and the hormonal imbalance does not go away with age and menopause, the symptoms can be managed effectively. So, while Tara recognizes she is not completely healed, she is grateful to have taken the time to focus on herself and get the help needed to feel better. Tara is no longer “just surviving — [she is] finally living!”
It’s been 9 months since Tara found a team of doctors who have supported her journey to lead a healthier life, and she is thankful for that every day. “I see every struggle as something beautiful. And I’m grateful I said to myself, ‘I deserve to be taken care of, to be invested in.’”
