Is Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) Reversible?

Ask Monica is a Q&A video series hosted by Nurse Practitioner Monica Moore.

Monica Moore:

Hi everyone, Monica Moore, nurse practitioner here.

On this edition of Ask Monica, we're going to be answering a very, very, very common question, one that I feel like I need to address also because this ends up being a question that I see incorrect answers to online, on social media, on podcasts, etc.

Is PCOS reversible? The short answer is no.

The long answer is that it can certainly be managed. PCOS, like any other chronic condition, is something that you will have (I personally have it) for the rest of your life. It also means that you are at risk for certain conditions that other people your age may not be at risk for.

That being said, you absolutely can manage your symptoms so that you can live a regular, happy life and maintain a healthy body weight. Don't lose hope!

PCOS & Fertility

People with PCOS can and do get pregnant, but may not ovulate regularly (due to PCOS and the insulin resistance that often accompanies it).

If needed, we [your healthcare providers] can give you medications or offer other strategies to help you ovulate. This typically helps you achieve a pregnancy, but it's good to know that you may need medications, whereas somebody else that ovulates regularly would not.

I actually feel that with PCOS, there's a reason to be optimistic, and that is once you find a way to manage this condition, once you eat and move and have coping strategies that help manage the insulin resistance, it becomes a lifestyle change - as opposed to a diet.

Then, once you do become pregnant, you will already have this lifestyle instilled in you!

PCOS & Pregnancy

You are unlikely to be somebody who gains an excessive amount of weight in the first trimester (or the second or third trimester), which can be associated with detrimental maternal and obstetrical outcomes.

Note: If you gain too little or too much, you may put yourself or your pregnancy at risk.

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Finding the Silver Linings of PCOS

By learning how to live and to manage this condition of PCOS, what I find is that people really do change their lives for the better.

Realizing that this is chronic, realizing that this isn't something that you can ignore, but using it to pivot and make lifestyle changes ends up being for the better - no matter what stage of life you are in.

That's what ended up happening to me!

After I started to get over the initial disappointment and frustration of being diagnosed with PCOS, I found that once I saw it as this is the way that I'm going to live in terms of my lifestyle changes, it ended up generating a better outcome for me prior to embarking on pregnancy.

PCOS Support Is Available

I hope this was helpful. We have lots of information, including a PCOS workbook that we created, that is available to you for free. Please continue, as always, to ask us any questions.

Know that Illume Fertility also has a dedicated PCOS team that includes health coaches, nutritionists, physicians, physician assistants, and nurses, and we're happy to help you navigate this condition and give you even more strategies than those I addressed here.

Thanks so much for watching - and good luck on your fertility journey!

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