My Self, My Friend

My Self, My Friend

When too many tasks and thoughts form a heavy cloak over my shoulders, my mind often wanders to how best to accomplish everything without losing my marbles so to speak. In the past, I would never stop to think about scheduling time for myself, nor would I take time out in a situation to assess how I could prevent a stressful meltdown. Instead, I would power through without pause. The result? My nerves would be fried and I would barely be capable of making the simplest of decisions.

These days, the term “self-care” frequently comes to mind when a busy streak sets in. Despite the fact that I have thought about what practices help me feel grounded in times of tumult, I can’t honestly say that I always follow through with them. I have learned that habits can be really hard to break. It’s a work in progress.

While it is often helpful for me to pause and leave what I am doing to make myself a cup of tea or to go outside for a walk, I have been contemplating a shift in how I think about “self-care.” For some reason, it has been easier for me to think about treating my “self” as my friend. If one of my closest buddies was out of sorts, I wouldn’t hesitate to try my best to make them feel better, or to encourage them to take time out for themselves. Why wouldn’t I want that for myself?

This encourages kindness in a time when my inner critic is bound to come to the surface. I’m able to slow down and take a step back. While we all face pressure to complete our to-do lists, I find that this strategy also helps me in times when I feel overwhelmed about managing my PCOS or thinking about the future.

While being moved to act in a way that promotes self-care can certainly produce amazing results, I have found that this small shift in thinking has helped me.


What works for you? How do you take care of yourself in trying times?

Written by: Natalie, Power Up for PCOS Volunteer
http://www.powerupforpcos.com
*Please note that I am not a medical professional. I am not qualified to give out any medical advice. I am a woman with PCOS who is sharing my personal experiences in this blog and I advise you to consult a professional.*

Power Up for PCOS - emPowering Women to Manage PCOS

Power Up for PCOS provides support to women with PCOS and their families through educational Power Up Groups, building connections with other PCOS women, calendar of upcoming PCOS events, professional referrals and reviews, PCOS store, and other specialized events to raise awareness for PCOS.

It's the Power Up for PCOS Walking Awareness Challenge!

It's the Power Up for PCOS Walking Awareness Challenge!

Every year, we do some big challenge. The first year, it was a walk-a-thon. The second, it was a 5K. Now, we have decided to have a month long event to really pack as much awareness in as we can during PCOS awareness month.

Are you excited yet? I am! 

Here's the details:

Registration is necessary for all those planning to participate.  Please register using the form here.

During the month of September, we will be holding a Power Up Walking Awareness Challenge, which is a challenge to see how many miles you can rack up before the end of the month. On top of that event, we will be having other challenges to go along with it like make your own PCOS bling to wear, decorate your own PCOS t-shirts (or you can pick one up from our CafePress store), PCOS picture challenges, local walking groups and so on. To see if there is a group walking near you, please visit our facebook page, and join your local group listed under the about section.

We will be tracking everyone's standings and 3 people will receive a gift basket filled with PCOS bling. One will go to the person with the most miles and the other two are randomly chosen. That really sounds awesome, doesn't it?

How to Join In:

Step 1: Register for FREE by completing the short form here  We need only the basic information. Set a personal goal that you would like to reach for the month too.

Step 2: Start planning some of the places you will walk and how you will track your miles. You can use different apps to track miles or you can go to websites and map it out like mapmywalk.com. Make sure to be safe and walk with a buddy or in well lit public areas. Bonus: plan on people walking with you to support you.

Step 3: Determine if you would like to raise money for an organization listed on our Where To Give page. This is a list of places we believe to be doing something awesome to affect and improve PCOS or related symptoms/diseases. When you visit that page, you will be able to click on each place and give directly to them. We do encourage you to raise some money for these organizations so there can be advances in the treatment of PCOS and it's related symptoms. If there is an organization you would like to see listed there, please suggest it to us by using the contact form or emailing info@powerupforpcos.com. You can also help support our website by giving a small gift using the Support Our Cause page.

Step 4: Every Monday, visit our Submit Your Miles page and complete the quick form. You can bookmark that page to make it easier to find too.

Step 5: Check the standings to see where you rank. Remember, 3 people get a gift basket filled with PCOS bling. To check the standings, visit here.
 
We look forward to all our participants having a great time! For questions or concerns, please e-mail info@powerupforpcos.com or call 810-545-PCOS.

PCOS Survey - Major Impact Planning

Power Up for PCOS has created a PCOS survey!

Please consider completing our PCOS survey so that we can better serve the PCOS community. We are planning some projects that would have a huge impact on the PCOS community and need the information from this survey in order to have the most impact. We value your time and support and we tried to keep the questions to only what was necessary. 

Click here to go to our survey.

Don't Judge Me: Natalie's Story

An older man, bearing white whiskers, white hair and tortoise-shell rimmed glasses, enters the physical therapy gym, delicately balancing on two crutches. He casts a puzzled look in my direction, watching my every move as I continue completing a set of “clamshells, ” the most intense hip-strengthening exercise I have encountered while at physical therapy.

As I get up to get a drink of water, he glances in my direction and asks “Why… are you here for rehabilitation of some sort?” The question is familiar, though it still feels like a subtle slap on the face. “No I just come here to work out” I want to say, but instead I smile and respond, “Yes, I actually hurt my knee” in my most polite tone. He responds “Ah. Well it sure doesn’t look like you need to be here.”

I smile and nod, and return to my purple mat, where a set of planks awaits me. My physical therapist casts a knowing glance in my direction, having witnessed similar interactions in the past.

This comment still lingers in my thoughts, like the unpleasant residue remaining after a band-aid has been pulled off.  My encounter at the physical therapy clinic reminds me of the many doctors that I have dealt with through various points of my life. It is still astounding to me that so many medical professionals have stated that “a slim, youthful woman of your age” should not be having a myriad of peculiar health symptoms. As if they had suddenly forgotten all six years of their medical school education, or more aptly, attributed my complaints to a state of anxiety that clearly plagues all young female millennials.

As a woman with PCOS, I also find that my youth and slim physique often make me feel like an “atypical” case. I often remind myself that PCOS is a syndrome, but the disbelief of certain doctors has made me feel self-conscious about being a woman with PCOS. Similarly, since PCOS is so intimately linked to fertility health, and since so many women obtain a diagnosis when they are trying to conceive, I sometimes feel alienated by my present situation. Not quite in the “TTC” camp, not quite in the “trying to lose weight camp,” perhaps in a larger camp of working on being as healthy as possible? Does that sound less appealing? I do want to have children some day. This is definitely a motivating factor for me when it comes to taking care of myself and living my life as a “wellness warrior,” but it is not the only one.

These experiences have taught me a lot about the grace with which I interact with others. Despite my outwardly appearance, there is a lot going on with my body. There are days when I feel uncomfortable and overwhelmed. Days where I do not feel like cooking for myself, days where I wish I did not have food sensitivities, and moments where I do not want to get out of bed. I try my best to move forward and to keep improving.

As a Power Up for PCOS representative, I worried about being judged for my age, for my physique, or for the fact that I am not trying to conceive. I sometimes feel that my symptoms are not as “bad” as what other women are going through. I wondered if maybe I shouldn't be as open in sharing my experiences. I worried that my focus on the larger health picture would not appeal to other women. Ultimately, through a conversation with Beth and Katrina, I realized that so many women with PCOS feel this way. Women with children who feel guilty for trying to have another child, women with hair loss who feel guilty that they don’t have excess hair growth, women with thyroid problems who feel guilty for not having endometriosis…etc.

But ultimately, we are all women with PCOS. We all have unique struggles, we all wonder at why our body does what it does and we all strive for wellness. We are different but also similar. So I call on you, to stand together, to let go of the guilt and to work together towards a healthy and fulfilling life.

Have you felt judged during your PCOS journey? Please comment below.


Written by: Natalie, Power Up for PCOS Volunteer
http://www.powerupforpcos.com
*Please note that I am not a medical professional. I am not qualified to give out any medical advice. I am a woman with PCOS who is sharing my personal experiences in this blog and I advise you to consult a professional.*

Power Up for PCOS - emPowering Women to Manage PCOS

Power Up for PCOS provides support to women with PCOS and their families through educational Power Up Groups, building connections with other PCOS women, calendar of upcoming PCOS events, professional referrals and reviews, PCOS store, and other specialized events to raise awareness for PCOS.

TTC Thursdays

It worked!!!  I'm Pregnant!!!!!!!  I'm so excited and happy!!!  It is very early still in the pregnancy, I will be 6 weeks along on Friday.  Although most people say you should wait 3 months, we learned after our son was stillborn at 7 months that you are never safe, therefore we are sharing this news and enjoying every minute of this pregnancy!  I am considered high risk for this pregnancy since my son was stillborn, but it means they will watch me very closely this time, which is a good thing.  We already have done 3 blood tests to ensure my numbers were doubling and we had our 1st ultrasound on Monday and the baby was right where it should be for how far along we were.  We are going to be followed by a regular doctor as well as a high risk doctor.  So after 8 years and 7 months of trying and our only pregnancy resulting in our son being stillborn, we are now pregnant with our 2nd child!  I love Pregnitude!!!  I would be the spokesperson for them if they wanted.  We were actually getting to the point of starting to give up hope, the first 2 months I didn't ovulate and we were getting nervous that we were wasting time.  Then on my 3rd month, I ovulated, which was a miracle and then we got pregnant, a double miracle!!!  I just can't believe it. I have never ovulated on anything besides Clomid before. I am considered anovulatory and I ovulated and got pregnant on Pregnitude.  It is a miracle supplement.  I think everyone with PCOS who is trying to conceive should consider giving it a chance, just check with your doctor first to make sure it is safe for you to be on it, it does interact with some medications and things.  If it could work for me after 8 years and 7 months, my hope is it would work for you too.  So my message is never give up hope, we almost did. There is always hope, keep trying, take Pregnitude, eat healthy, exercise, track your ovulation (we use ovulation predictor kits), and time your TTC.  I am wishing you all lots of luck in your TTC and hoping to hear about many more Pregnitude babies.  This could be a miracle supplement for women with PCOS.


Disclaimer: Please note that Pregnitude is an official sponsor of Power Up for PCOS 5K. However, the individual listed below is not affiliated with Pregnitude or a volunteer for Power Up for PCOS. Power Up for PCOS posted a request for someone starting Pregnitude to blog their personal experiences for the Power Up for PCOS blog. This should not be construed as medical advice. Please see your doctor for further information.*

Written by: Lauren Williams

Power Up for PCOS which provides support to women with PCOS and their families through educational Power Up Groups, building connections with other PCOS women, calendar of upcoming PCOS events, professional referrals and reviews, PCOS store, and other specialized events to raise money for PCOS research. She can be reached by visiting http://www.powerupforpcos.com, emailing Beth@powerupforpcos.com or by calling 810-545-PCOS (7267)

Power Up for PCOS - emPowering Women to Manage PCOS

*Please note that I am not a medical professional. I am not qualified to give out any medical advice. I am a woman with PCOS who is sharing my personal experiences in this blog and I advise you to consult a professional.*

Wellness Wednesdays: Toxic Beauty

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On my journey to living a healthier life I have tackled many of the basics.  I started with nutrition – eating healthier and learning more about the sources of foods, pesticides, organics, GMOs, and how it can all disrupt your body.  Next, I tackled the cleaning products arena.  I made my own laundry detergent and cleaning products that are safer to use.   

My next battle is what I put on my skin each day- makeup, as well as lotions and cleansers.  Your skin absorbs much of what is put on it, including any nasty chemicals.  I have put this off for quite a while as it is expensive to just trash your nasty products and replace them with better choices, but also to learn what is in my favorite beauty products was a scary thought.  BUT, the time has come and I am going through them now.  ::nervous sigh:: 

Here's a good video to help explain why you should be cautious with your makeup and other beauty product choices.

First I wanted to set some guidelines for myself so I knew what I was willing to put on my skin for the rest of my life, therefore making it evident what I was trashing and what to replace it with.   Here are my guidelines:

      I.         Does not contain any of the “dirty dozen” ingredients:

1. BHA and BHT
2. Coal tar dyes
3. DEA
4. Dibutyl phthalate
5. Formaldehyde-releasing preservatives
6. Parabens
7. Parfum (a.k.a. fragrance)
8. PEG compounds
9. Petrolatum
10. Siloxanes
11. Sodium laureth sulfate
12. Triclosan

             This ingredient list was created by a David Suzuki, a Canadian geneticist and founder of the David Suzuki foundation.  This list contains many ingredients that cause cancer, reproductive and non-reproductive organ toxicity, and other health risks.  Here is a link to his organization’s guide to the dirty dozen list.   You can read more about each of these ingredients in more detail by following that link.

 II.          Toss any products that may interfere with my hormones.  Since I have a hormone imbalance already (PCOS), I have to be extra-conscious of any ingredient that can make it into my body mimicking my natural hormones and causing things to get even more off track. These are called Endocrine Disrupters. 

  III.         Rates a 3 or less on EWG’s Skin Deep cosmetics database.  This database contains almost 10,000 personal care product ingredients and shares them on their website, along with ratings and concerns for each product.  Most of my products were listed.

Here are my products I use regularly and how they rated against my guidelines:

• Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion = 2
  Largest concerns were allergens.
  Verdict: KEEP IT!

• Epionce Milky Lotion Cleanser = 2
  Largest concerns were allergens.
  Verdict: KEEP IT!

• Mary Kay Ultimate Mascara = 3
  Largest concern – contains parabens (endocrine disruption)
  Verdict: TRASH IT!

•  Jane Iredale Amazing Base (mineral foundation from dermatologist) = 7
  Largest concerns – Cancer, organ toxicity (titanium dioxide, zinc oxide, dimethicone, etc)
  Verdict: TRASH IT!

•  Clinique Colour Surge Eye Shadow = 4
  Largest concerns = Cancer
  Verdict: TRASH IT!

•  Neutrogena SkinClearing Blemish Treatment Foundation = 5?
  This score is questionable as the old formulation was listed.  Not sure if there is a difference to the current formulation.
  
  Largest concerns = Biochemical/cellular level changes, endocrine disruption, cancer, organ toxicity (contains Retinyl Palmitate, Parabens)
  Verdict: TRASH IT!

•  Clinique Long Last Lipstick = 5
  Largest concerns – cancer, organ system toxicity, developmental/reproductive toxology (Glyceryl Rosinate, BHT)
  Verdict: TRASH IT!

•  Clinique Line Smoothing Concealer = ?
  This product was not in the database.  Upon further investigation it has been found that this product contains nanoparticles.  I was not able to obtain a complete list of ingredients and Clinique does not allow you to request a full list of ingredients anyways. You can only ask them about up to 4 ingredients per product.  A little sketchy if you ask me.  This is my FAVORITE product as I always have bags and dark circles under my eyes, as well as blemishes and it has never failed me.  I hope I can find a good replacement.
  Verdict: TRASH IT! 

•  Clinique Quickliner = 4
  Largest concerns – Neurotoxicity, cancer, organ system toxicity, possible endocrine disruption. (Aluminum Powder, BHT, CYCLOPENTASILOXANE)
  
  This has always been my favorite eyeliner as well.  Goes on SO smooth and easy to apply.  I’ll be sad to see this one go.
  Verdict: TRASH IT!

• Burt’s Bees Replenishing Lip Balm = 2
  Not a lot to worry about with this one except perhaps Castor Oil (can cause developmental/reproductive toxicity).
  Verdict: KEEP IT! (or trash it, I’m not too attached to it)

• Herbal Essences Hello Hydration Moisturizing Shampoo = 4
  Largest concerns = Fragrance – organ system toxicity, neurotoxicity, cancer
  Verdict: TRASH IT!

That's a lot of things to trash!  It's a little scary too, knowing that I've been putting this junk on my body since around the age of 16.  

Next week I'll talk about some options for replacing all of these things I've trashed.  I've compiled a LOOONG list of possible companies, but still need to sort it out and read reviews, ingredient lists, etc.  STAY TUNED!!

Written by: Crystal Warren, Representative for Power Up for PCOS which provides support to women with PCOS through educational Power Up Groups, building connections with other PCOS women, calendar of upcoming PCOS events, professional referrals and reviews, PCOS store, and other specialized events to raise money for PCOS research.  To find our more, visit http://www.powerupforpcos.com, email info@powerupforpcos.com or by calling 810-545-PCOS (7267)

Power Up for PCOS - emPowering Women to Manage PCOS

*Please note that I am not a medical professional. I am not qualified to give out any medical advice. I am a woman with PCOS who is sharing my personal experiences in this blog and I advise you to consult a professional.*

Wellness Wednesdays: 90-Day Challenge

I hope you had a wonderful holiday surrounded by family and friends.  With the holidays comes lots of temptation for all the bad things that are horrible for our diets.  I know I got a little off-track (I was also traveling for almost 3 weeks, so that didn't help at all) and am anxious to start off the year getting back into clean eating and an exercise routine again.  Here's my plan for the first part of the year:

STEP 1-

Take the 90-day challenge - Blogilates.com is a free fitness/health website. Cassie is an energetic and wonderful coach who creates fun and unique workouts.  I love it because of the variety of workouts (no getting bored!) and she has a monthly workout calendar to help you stay on track.  Last January she started a 90-day challenge that included a food plan and workout plan.  I'm normally skeptical of such "challenges", but I have already seen how Cassie has helped so many others and this plan is based on a clean eating diet and has a good amount of exercise - 1 hour 5-6 times a week.  

Here's a link to the 90-day challenge.

I will begin this challenge on Monday, 1/7.  I already know that I struggle doing these types of things on my own, I need the extra motivation from friends to keep me going, so I asked my Facebook friends to join me.  So far I have two friends that have come on board.  Accountability is SO IMPORTANT and I'm excited (and nervous) to get started!  I have already printed out the meal plans and put them on my fridge.  Nothing weird or gross in it, and there's a vegetarian and vegan option as well.  I put up a motivational wall in my craft room/office/workout room to also help keep me motivated.  90 days is a LONG TIME so I need all the help I can get.  :)  

Here's what my motivational wall looks like right now:

(ignore the ugly tape, my OCD tendencies will probably take over soon to hide it all)

STEP 2- 

Besides the 90-day challenge, I am also interested in starting my journey into the Paleo diet.  I have read SO many good things about other ladies with PCOS or other hormonal imbalances who switched to eating Paleo and no longer have many of their symptoms, or they have decreased.  Another perk to Paleo is that my meat-loving husband should still be happy.  I already eat pretty clean, which is a huge part of Paleo, so going the next step should be pretty easy.  I'm planning on starting this after my 90-day challenge which ends in April.  I will write more about Paleo in a future post as I learn more and continue on that journey.  

These two beginning steps should help to continue my PCOS-friendly eating habits, hopefully reduce my nasty PCOS symptoms, introduce a HABIT of exercising that will continue throughout the year and make my body feel good and more fertile. 

What are your health goals for this year and how will you achieve them?  Have you written down an action plan?

Written by: Crystal Warren, Representative for Power Up for PCOS which provides support to women with PCOS through educational Power Up Groups, building connections with other PCOS women, calendar of upcoming PCOS events, professional referrals and reviews, PCOS store, and other specialized events to raise money for PCOS research.  To find our more, visit http://www.powerupforpcos.com, email info@powerupforpcos.com or by calling 810-545-PCOS (7267)

Power Up for PCOS - emPowering Women to Manage PCOS

*Please note that I am not a medical professional. I am not qualified to give out any medical advice. I am a woman with PCOS who is sharing my personal experiences in this blog and I advise you to consult a professional.*

TTC Thursdays

I am now 3 months into the Pregnitude, getting ready to start my 4th box and I have some very exciting news to share.  I ovulated for the first time on Pregnitude and it's also my first time ovulating without the help of Clomid!  This was so exciting for me, I never thought I would be able to ovulate without the help of fertility drugs and now the Pregnitude has helped me to ovulate! It is definitely working and on my 3rd month, I was so excited!  Getting the positive ovulation test was almost as exciting as if it had been a positive pregnancy test.

So here's what happened, I started  testing with OPK's on Day 9.  On Day 14 my OPK gave a positive digital result but when I looked at the two lines they were not the same darkness, plus my cervical mucus was not indicating ovulation, so I had the feeling it was a false positive.  But we still TTC'd every day for the next 3 days in case it was a real positive.  In the meantime, I kept testing with the OPK to see if we would get another positive.  Then on Day 19, I got another positive and when I checked the lines, they were of equal darkness indicating ovulation plus my cervical mucus was indicating ovulation, so I knew this was the real ovulation and the other one was a false positive.  Since the OPKs indicate you will ovulate in the next 24-36 hours, we TTC'd for another 3 days in a row.  We are now on Day 26 and we are hoping for a miracle!  We are going to take a pregnancy test in 8 days if I don't get my period by then, so keep your fingers crossed that this cycle will be the miracle we have been waiting for over 8.5 years.  I feel hopeful but don't want to get too excited either.

So I hope my message can be of hope to you.  Keep the faith, keep trying, never give up hope and Pregnitude can work and hopefully make you ovulate too!  Wishing you all the luck of ovulation as well!

Disclaimer: Please note that Pregnitude is an official sponsor of Power Up for PCOS 5K. However, the individual listed below is not affiliated with Pregnitude or a volunteer for Power Up for PCOS. Power Up for PCOS posted a request for someone starting Pregnitude to blog their personal experiences for the Power Up for PCOS blog. This should not be construed as medical advice. Please see your doctor for further information.*

Written by: Lauren Williams

Power Up for PCOS which provides support to women with PCOS and their families through educational Power Up Groups, building connections with other PCOS women, calendar of upcoming PCOS events, professional referrals and reviews, PCOS store, and other specialized events to raise money for PCOS research. She can be reached by visiting http://www.powerupforpcos.com, emailing Beth@powerupforpcos.com or by calling 810-545-PCOS (7267)

Power Up for PCOS - emPowering Women to Manage PCOS

*Please note that I am not a medical professional. I am not qualified to give out any medical advice. I am a woman with PCOS who is sharing my personal experiences in this blog and I advise you to consult a professional.*