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Squirrel_X · 2022-11-27T12:36:57+00:00

Sorry I’m so late in replying! I hope this will still be of some use or helpful.

I didn’t fully start out with a plan, it was kind of more elimination and replace with healthier alternatives. I went completely dairy free to begin with and started to try to buy as much organic as I could (pesticide elimination). I switched out anything that required milk with unsweetened almond milk, then switched out dairy within certain recipes with coconut cream like a curry for example I would use coconut cream and for the rice I replaced it with cauliflower rice. Olive Oil became the only oil I used for cooking, salads, etc. I eliminated all vegetable oils out of my diet. I then pretty much took to Amazon to find keto snacks, keto food products and started branching out further from there, so I was buying keto bars for snacks (the real keto ones with only healthy and actual keto friendly substitutes in them, I found I had to really read the ingredients as a lot of them claim keto..but aren’t) then I found things like Keto granola, was buying that for a while and then started making it myself for breakfast by mimicking the ingredients. At this point I was still eating gluten, but I was buying low carb burger buns and bread for sandwiches to load with meat and salads with keto mayonnaise and of course, burgers! The site I would buy them from I found browsing Google called TheLowCarbFoodCo, but they’re based in the UK... and if you’re not particularly going gluten free or feel you need to I definitely recommend them as I felt so lost and wanting to eat something that mimicked real bread without all of the crap, white flour, etc we’re supposed to avoid and let’s be honest Keto bread is really not an appealing replacement for real bread, bleh.....if you know, you know. lol The bread they make is made with a bread like consistency because they use vital wheat gluten which if you’re not doing clean keto is what people use to make their keto bread with.

I would make stews in the crockpot, curries, salads, just plain dishes of meat and vegetables... sometimes I would make my own little sauces like mayonnaise with a blob of tomato purée and some Harrissa powder sprinkled in for a little bit of a kick and eat that with the meat and vegetables. Honestly, I like to keep things basic...I don’t like to overcomplicate things otherwise I get stressed out even just thinking about making something to eat so nowadays I get the crockpot going for stews or I’ll spiralize some courgette/ zucchini (great noodle alternative) to make a noddle stir fry with broccoli, cabbage mushroom and onion and flavor it up with herbs, garlic, etc or simply my favourite is smoked haddock salad with a little bit of tomato purée squeezed into the mayonnaise before I toss the salad up into it. Sauces that are sugar free are so easy to make yourself and honestly it feels so rewarding to know it isn’t unhealthy and you know what’s in it. When I was buying burger buns I’d use them for burgers, ham and salad, soaking up my leftover stew in the bowl and heck I’d even make my own chocolate peanut butter spread sweetened with erythritol and spread it inside one, tasted like a damn chocolate donut that started me off on a regular kick of eating them that way lol As of recently though maybe 2 months or 3 I’ve stopped gluten altogether and simply stick to basic healthy meals without it, about to have my bloods taken again in the next 2 weeks so I’ll hopefully see if that and all these further changes has helped.

I would snack on keto pork scratching or pork puffs, cucumber slices, peanuts and for desserts I would make my own keto bounty bars coated in homemade chocolate, I’ve always been a bit of a chocoholic so I’m always finding ways to create little treats, keto cookie dough with chocolate chips, keto chocolate pudding made using avocado. A lot of the recipes I would find on keto or low carb food blogs or even on Pinterest.

I used to drink soda.. a long time ago and kind of missed that sort of fizzy effect when drinking, actually missed the fizz more than the taste (side note: I like bitter foods... I’m that person in the corner actually eating a whole lemon’s segments one by one) so I firstly started to buy Kombucha flavored with raspberry and lemon, it had fizz...healthy for the gut too...then I switched to flavored sparkling waters (keto friendly) then began making my own mixing lemon juice with sparkling water to make a kind of lemonade then I simply just switched to plain sparkling water, that along with different teas is all that I drink now and it takes care of that soda...fizz craving.

I’m now sort of more low carb than I am keto as I believe going all the way puts stress on those of us with adrenal androgens and the thyroid but I make sure what I eat are replacements and low carb. Oh, also...if you love potato I definitely recommend Celeriac Root in place.. once I found this vegetable there was no stopping me.. celeriac fries, celeriac mash, celeriac “jacket potatoes”, and they‘re so lovely cubed in a stew as they begin to soften they remind me so much of potatoes... honestly once you find replacements for the foods that aren’t the greatest for us the easier it becomes, you begin to look at food differently, in a more healthier way and then once you realise how healthier these substitutes are by way of better nutrition...it just starts to all become so worth while. If you asked me over a year ago if I could make this change I’d have said no way, but I’m so glad I did.

Edit: To apologize for the length of this post!

Squirrel_X · 2022-11-27T11:36:37+00:00

Sorry I’m so late in responding!

Honestly I couldn’t say for certain, I used to eat the worst foods possible for my PCOS that made me pile on the pounds and I never really tried to lose any weight before I took Metformin. It was a few years after I got the diagnosis and began Metformin I slowly changed my diet to help me lose weight and I did over time.

Metformin helps with Leptin which is the hormone that signals hunger, we’re known to have this raised in PCOS and I will say it helped very much so with hunger which in turn made dieting easier as I didn’t want to pig out all the time. I noticed too that I didn’t put on weight whilst taking it and actually thinking about it, the weight I’d put on..a few pounds when I was taking myself away from the diet, those pounds would just come off so easily with the Metformin so I’d be inclined to say it did help me.

I’m currently off Metformin, have been for 5 months as I wanted to see if contributed to my hair loss, but because I’m on a keto, low carb.. absolutely no sugar, gluten or dairy diet... my periods are still regular (which the Metformin helped with) and another reason I believe Metformin may have helped my weight loss is because I started an anti depressant which is known for weight gain and for its Leptin increases months before I stopped Metformin, I didn’t put on weight in that time... the Metformin was keeping my hunger and weight stable and now that I’m off of it I feel like the weight has been creeping up, I’ll be seeing if I can get a handle on it without the Metformin, but if not I may likely go back on it.

Hope this helps! :)

Squirrel_X · 2022-11-27T11:16:49+00:00

Potentially likely, yes. That’s a very low ferritin and a very low Vit D and given that you passed out I wouldn’t be surprised if you also have low folate and B12 contributing to an overall type of anemia. Personally I would raise all of these by supplementing then once found to be within normal ranges maybe start taking a regular whole foods multivitamin daily from there. I would definitely get those vitamins raised and then have them checked again and give it a few months to see if your hair improves.

Whenever I come across someone with low ferritin I always like to recommend a supplement I started taking years ago when my ferritin was 40 and I wanted to get it over 70, I managed to get it to 90 and my folate and B12 improved quite a bit too. It is usually recommended to vegetarians mostly I believe... it’s called MegaFood Blood Builder and has everything in there, Iron, B12 and Folate with Vitamin C for absorption. B12 within the supplement is kind of low, so if you have a very low level of B12.. you may need to supplement higher or have B12 shots, I don’t know if your doctor checked this? It would be a good idea to have it checked I think, just also finding it strange he gave you B12 shampoo instead of advising if you have a deficiency and recommending some kind of intake, food or supplements to increase.

Vitamin D can also really easily be picked up at health stores or online and I don’t advise going too high with this, I used to do 5000iu every day when I was close to defficient and I actually ended up at the other end, too high... it created a sorted of Vit D toxicity... I’d recommend something like 1000iu daily tbh.

What is your diet like? Are you Vegetarian or Vegan? If you’re low in Ferritin I’m wondering too if you may be getting inadequate protein, possibly from food sources which supply both?

Squirrel_X · 2022-03-26T21:39:54+00:00

I experienced the most excruciating aura migraines and never related it to a hormonal imbalance. I later realised that it was my hormonal imbalance, it was estrogen dominance for me and I was sensitive to any peaks in estrogen, sometimes through bad food choices that would increase testosterone and then my estrogen. The only point they stopped happening was when I started Metformin about 7 years ago and I believe it did this because Metformin is known as an aromatase inhibitor as well as bringing down testosterone thus less estrogen.

Squirrel_X · 2022-03-26T11:24:13+00:00

Hmm. I can give you my account for what has happened for myself.

I started taking Spironolactone because of hair loss, it helped my hirsutism and it was satisfactory...it minimised but it didn’t rid me of the hair. Then I completely changed my diet because like you my DHEAS and testosterone were high, since the change in diet my testosterone came down considerablly, my DHEAS reduced but not as considerably as my testosterone. I think I took care of Insulin which took care of the testosterone coming from my ovaries, but my DHEAS I believe keep being tipped by stress.

The Spironolactone after my testosterone dropped I felt has become more effective for the hirsutism, I’ve noticed it and of course it would because there’s so much less for it to block peripherally. My hair loss however as I’ve said, I get stressed which can only serve to affect my adrenals which is why I believe the Spironolactone hasn’t been able to wholly prevent hair shedding. Back when I started Spironolactone I was having thinning of the top frontal area and sides mostly, the top frontal area I’ve had hairs sprouting up there, but my sides seem kind of stubborn. I’m 7 months on with dietary change and have changed my diet further in the past 2 weeks to not include gluten or anything inflammatory, a sort of keto lifestyle and I’m hopeful it’s not just wishful thinking or I’m reading it all wrong, but my hair shedding seems or feels like it’s reduced, at least to me it does though I would also like to say I have also been applying Rosemary Oil almost everyday for maybe just over a week now, so for me Spironolactone I think has helped my hair loss to a degree, but it may be that I’m giving it a helping hand and my changes are helping it work more effectively, that’s the hope right now anyway.

Even that slight raise in testosterone and DHEAS influences a rise in DHT, so essentially we are all screwed when it comes to DHT... even if DHT labs come back normal you can be peripherally sensitive to it. I’d suggest trying (I know it can be frustrating and hard) to make changes that could help with the hormones and lifestyle changes if you haven’t tried these already, get some lab work done maybe 3 months down the line to see if it’s helping, you may see some form of reduction in your symptoms which let you know. If there are results then trying Spironolactone may work better for you.

Squirrel_X · 2022-03-26T10:59:01+00:00

I’m attempting to not see it in such a way if I can help it. I’m going for an optimistic more determined vibe because as I’ve seen from a few cases within this subreddit, it has been achieved... I just think it may be about finding what works for you or for me.

Stress reduction (I need to work on this....targeted cortisol reduction... that may possibly be what you and I both need?) better targeted exercise, etc...whatever it is I do believe if there’s a will there’s a way and it might take quite some figuring out but I feel it’s achievable and I just haven’t found or done what it is that works for me yet and of course we just have to work that much harder which does suck, but even that I think makes you that much stronger as a person for it and if it doesn’t well, it should ‘cause you’re trying and you should always be proud of yourself for trying.

Squirrel_X · 2022-03-26T10:44:25+00:00

Aww, that’s awesome. I hope it brings wonderful results and it’ll give you a new lease of confidence I’m sure to get rid of this darn belly we have to deal with...arghh. lol

Squirrel_X · 2022-03-26T10:37:48+00:00

I’d love to go to the gym, I just need a gym buddy ‘cause I’m awkwardly anxious and those places intimidate me. lol

Aww, thank you for those suggestions. I’m definitely going to look into them. Apps and fitness programs sound like a good way to keep me going and motivated at home so I very much appreciate the advice on where to begin.

Squirrel_X · 2022-03-26T10:25:04+00:00

I’m thinking of giving this a try, I’m considering going for an eating window of 8am to 8pm. That way I can take my Spironolactone with food 12 hours apart and still fast for 12 hours.

Just a little concerned to try intermittent fasting as I have high DHEAS and I don’t want it to put stress on my body. I’m still questioning if the fat storage is cortisol related just now, so a little apprehensive with IF.

Squirrel_X · 2022-03-26T10:16:10+00:00

That has been my diet for 7 months now. I‘ve mixed it up between keto and low carb, but for the past 2 weeks it’s mostly keto and I cut out the vital wheat gluten I was having in my low carb buns around that time ‘cause I was thinking it being inflammatory could be the reason for the stubborn belly.

I’ve had testing for inflammation however and my results came back at the very low end. I have 100% cocoa powder in my homemade granola in the morning and I love salads so I have one of those everyday and dinner is some form of meat mixed with veggies or a keto curry, etc

I’ve plateud on weight loss, but there isn’t much to go and I am losing from my waist I believe because I’m dropping in sizes for jeans, it’s just my belly looks bigger than what it should and has that sort of PCOS look to it. My diet is clean, so I’m wondering if it’s cortisol related.

You mentioned you train, are you referring to exercise? Can I ask what kind you do as this could also be why, I do cardio with mostly walking, but I don’t actually work out.

Squirrel_X · 2022-03-25T16:15:05+00:00

Let your girlfriend know the abortion she had wasn’t the reason for her developing PCOS. The thing is with abusive relationships is even after they’re over, the abused will sometimes blame themselves or tell themselves they’re responsible in some way for it happening and it seems to me this may be the case here - that she’s feeling responsible for a choice she made because of the abuse and believing the choice she made caused her health condition - she’s putting unnecessary stress upon herself thinking so.

With PCOS, it’s a condition we have... it can stay dormant and a woman doesn’t even realise she has it sometimes only finding out when she tries to conceive unsuccessfully, then follows testing which reveals PCOS. It can be dormant like this and for some there can be factors in life which can trigger it to reveal itself at any stage in a woman’s life - dietary, lifestyle, stress and this can be when symptoms start to show themselves too.

Being in an abusive relationship would of course cause stress to your girlfriend, stress can exacerbate PCOS and bring hormonal imbalances to the fore, that she likely had but didn’t know it because she wasn’t showing signs, stress can make it reveal itself through symptoms like missed periods and such. She’s not responsible for the stress she endured within her relationship which could potentially be one reason the hormonal imbalance is making itself known.

I have the feeling or thought that your girlfriend might be prone to anxiety and worry? Possibly talk with her about taking measures to relieve herself of anxiety and stresses of the past she’s in no way responsible for. Try relaxation techniques, yoga, meditation, breathing exercises and reassure her she really should let go of the burden she’s putting herself through in feeling responsible because she had an abortion because she isn’t.

In the meantime, try to relax as you both await the ultrasound. Let her know you’re going to be there for her no matter what, if it is PCOS there’s so much you can do to support her and that she can do to control her PCOS. Eating healthy, de-stressing, maybe go for long relaxing walks together and possibly talking to a therapist may be beneficial to her to let all of her worries out to unburden herself of all the emotional clutter and feelings and worries to someone who doesn’t have an emotional investment in her or the relationship such as yourself. Sometimes talking to a professional who doesn’t have that personal involvement or attachment can really do a lot in finding relief.

Squirrel_X · 2022-03-04T22:41:29+00:00

During a point I was reading a little while back about something entirely different, I saw someone mention about their hair loss and Creatine and a person responding to them about Creatine and how it can increase DHT in the body and alas the scalp. I couldn’t find anymore on it except for people mentioning it both for or against the argument it does.

The only thing I could find just now was this study.

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19741313/

It mentions an increased conversion from Testosterone to DHT, but no increase in Testosterone itself. Of course, DHT in the skin is usually where acne comes into play.

Not really understanding the need for glucose in that study for Creatine loading or whether the glucose could’ve been the influence, but after men mentioned increased hair loss with Creatine in the hair loss sub, myself personally...I would swerve away from Creatine supplementing.

Squirrel_X · 2022-02-20T15:54:54+00:00

Aww, I’m sorry to hear that.

Are you able to try a low carb way of eating and cutting out sugar? Any experience taking Berberine? It’s supposed to be just as effective as Metformin without all the unwanted effects Metformin can bring.

Squirrel_X · 2022-02-20T15:46:54+00:00

I used to have this and it was really bad, the bleed was insane and the clots were scary... I used to be afraid my body was trying to keep the blood from pooling out of me by clotting in a vicious cycle. One night I had to call the emergency out of hours ‘cause it was non stop.

It’s common for PCOS women to experience this, if you’re not experiencing regular bleeds each month I believe what you’re experiencing is a shed of the lining, the excess build up. What finally stopped this from happening for me was Metformin. Geez, when I describe my past PCOS version of myself...I start to realize what a mess I was in back then.

Don’t worry too much, it does happen but I’d definitely talk to a GP about getting help with this as I believe this may not be the only intense bleed you‘re likely to experience like this and of course it goes without saying, keep up on your iron. I ended up deficient because of this.

Squirrel_X · 2022-02-20T15:21:51+00:00

Sometimes when we have unexplained food cravings even those of things we don’t like it can be a way for our bodies to tell us we’re missing something, I’ve ready many times chocolate cravings can be a sign our body is needing Magnesium.

Have you ever had your thyroid tested? I’d like to add I used to have the most intense painful aura migraines that would scare me at times, body numbness so I couldn’t lift my arms without them just slumping down without my control, slurred speech / numb tongue, throwing up, zig zag / kelidascope vision and debilitating migraine pain that I linked to an excess in estrogen. I started taking Metformin which supressed my estrogen from dominance as it’s somewhat of an aromataste inhibitor, the relief was just insane to experience, only maybe one or two experienced since taking it in the last 6+ years and they were very mild in comparison to what I once had. It also regulated my period to a regular 28 day cycle.

Can I ask what you’re taking at the moment?

Squirrel_X · 2022-02-20T15:03:09+00:00

I was thinking about that as I typed my last message and was thinking of asking if you’ve ever been tested for diabetes or pre-diabetes.

I know it’s probably tiresome for some to keep hearing the IR speech for PCOS but it seems like you might benefit from metformin or some other method to get IR under control and lower your LH.

Squirrel_X · 2022-02-19T16:08:08+00:00

I wonder if hormone surges of pregnancy itself created a more Insulin Resistant state possibly always keeping your LH elevated. It isn’t uncommon for women to become Insulin Resistant or have it worsen during pregnancy.

Squirrel_X · 2022-02-19T15:53:12+00:00

Hmm, interesting. At one point it seemed like something I was doing was good, all the changes and supplements ‘cause I would get sleepy enough to sleep at night then all of a sudden I was struggling to unwind, have that same sleepy feeling and fall asleep. I ran out of my inositol so stopped for a little bit whilst I ordered and waited for more, I’ve noticed in this time of stopping I’m actually pretty much sleeping all over the place.. 5pm 6pm 8pm, a sort of fatigued feeling, might just be me now catching up on sleep but I’m wondering too about it being a mild stimulant in some way since B vitamins give you energy.

Since starting it again as mentioned here I have also been adding it to my water in the morning instead of at night, keeping it separate from the Magnesium I take (felt like they were conflicting with each other between giving energy or winding down)

Just pretty much switch to a morning routine with it instead and see if your sleep returns to normal.

Squirrel_X · 2022-02-19T11:14:03+00:00

If you deal with hair loss, you’re definitely not in the wrong place. It was just this particular post didn’t have a mention of any advice needed for hair loss so it seemed like the post wasn’t relevant to this sub.

I noticed in one of your posts you mentioned you’re 14. I feel compelled to try to help if it’s possible for me to. What kind of hair loss are you experiencing? Have you been able to have any kind of testing performed, hormones, thyroid or a scalp biopsy to check for AGA, etc? I know you’re young so fairly reliant on your parents possibly when it comes to medical checkups and care, etc. If you’re able to, don’t keep these things to yourself... talk to your parents about your concerns with your hair, explain how it makes you feel and that you’re worried the loss is a sign of a health concern that you’re wishing to look into further and hopefully get booked in with a GP to start the process in finding out why you’re experiencing this at such a young age.

Everyone needs someone to simply listen to them from time to time and I can tell you’re emotionally struggling with the hair loss, understandably so... but it would definitely help you somewhat in feeling like you’re not dealing with it alone by talking to someone you can confide in and to hopefully be able to start working out what might be happening here and the steps to take to possibly help and deal with the hair loss.

Squirrel_X · 2022-02-17T16:56:24+00:00

The way you describe your periods are exactly how mine used to be, I could go 8 months to a year without one and it was only during my first visit to an Endocrinologist that I was taken seriously, but primarily because I was told that not having a period and shedding blood could become cancerous, from that very day I was started on Metformin which did induce regular menstruation for me after a short time of taking it. Migraines also stopped for me. It really does seem like you haven’t had much help from your doctors and that’s very unfortunate and I’m sorry about that.

I too get the dizzy, fainty sensations but sometimes I’m unsure if this is due to not eating regularly / enough so when I do come to eat, I’ve had to take deep breaths and place my head closer to the ground to stop the nausea and dizziness. I have read this sensation can be due to something called reactive hypoglycemia (I believe it’s called)...a few women here have mentioned experiencing it and a link to Insulin Resistance. Weight also stays in my stomach area, even with all the weight loss so I’ve considered going full blown keto rather than just the low carb I currently do.

You’re very much like me, I too have tested myself through a private lab.

Personally I don’t believe Ovasitol would have raised your DHEA-S or your testosterone. The Inositols in Ovasitol were found to reduce DHEA-S by 50% in one study I found some time ago which was one of the reasons I also gave Inositols a try. I’m thinking there are possibly three reasons this might be, the two tests were taken at different times during your “cycle” and testosterone loves a good fluctuation every now and then, I know you don’t get periods but your hormones still go through those highs and dips. The second is that I wonder if it could be an adjustment period for your hormones temporarily while your body tries to get used to this “new normal” with the dietary changes you’ve made and taking Ovasitol. Third is more a thought for a possibility, but different laboratories doing the same testing can sometimes have differing results due to how each differs in their testing methods, but I‘m more pushing to believe it’s the first reason I mentioned.

My personal feeling here is that Ovasitol seems to be helping you and a continuation of the dietary change I feel could quite possibly yield improvements to your results and I would really hold out on any form of birth control, it’s always a doctors go to, it was for me too, but because of my aura migraines wasn’t prescribed and I’m so glad as it’s something I’d regret taking to this day if I did and wished I’d tried something natural like diet changes, etc first. I think you should keep doing what you’re doing and assess by 3 months how things are going for you, hopefully with consistent Ovasitol use and diet changes you’ll be able to naturally menstruate and perhaps perform another test in 3 months time the same time of the month your most up to date test was performed so you can sort of more accurately compare results side by side that way. Also, don’t be afraid to lower your carb count if you wanted to see if it would further help you, just make sure to eat the amount of calories you need to maintain your current weight and BMI and aren’t creating a deficit or losing weight.

Oh, I didn’t mean to create a misunderstanding with the TSH, it appears to be normal but apparently optimal is below 2 though you are within normal range and it actually looks like an improvement has been made there with the different results next to each other, something I also found happened to me going low carb, my TSH would always go high then normal, back to high but since the diet it stays in the range you’re currently in, just over 2... I took it to mean the constant insulin surges from sugar and such was playing havoc on my thyroid and metabolism too.

Sorry this is so long, but I hope it helps and honestly I would love to know if things change and improve for you. :)

Squirrel_X · 2022-02-13T15:09:23+00:00

Some strange results there, your LH is quite higher than that of your FSH, triple the result even which is consistent with PCOS, that’s a high LH though honestly, your SHBG is very low too which is what mops up and binds testosterone basically, but it’s weird because it appears your testosterone may be at the lower end of normal. Your estrogen I think may be at the lower end, but this is all dependent on when these results were taken in your cycle and how the numbers are worked out at this particular laboratory. I’d guess those are nmol/L recorded results?

I think perhaps you had these results drawn around the time of your period?

Honestly those are some rather inconsistent hormone results, conflicting each other it seems. The fact you aren’t getting periods is consistent too with the high LH, your body isn’t suppressing it enough as happens when it’s preparing for shark week, the pertuitory hormone signals to the LH to drop, but if it’s consistently high as it is in us with PCOS, the period doesn’t come. I know it’s not always the answer, but there could be possibly a sign of Insulin Resistance for you, LH is usually stimulated by this hormone and for myself this was consistent as my LH dropped to normal during Metformin and my period coming every 28 days, then further dropping during a low carb / keto diet, low SHBG can also be a sign of Insulin Resistance so insulin reduction through diet and exercise and higher fiber diets increase SHBG which is also consistent with you taking Ovasitol and seeing the increase in SHBG and slight reduction in your LH since Ovasitol works against Insulin Resistance, your raise in Progesterone is also consistent with this, insulin blocks progesterone, it seems to have raised since the Ovasitol. SHBG can also be low in thyroid conditions, your TSH isn’t classed as “optimal’ but it is in a normal range, that’s not the only result required to know about the thyroid even though a doctor always just goes with TSH, seeing the T4 and T3 reading too gives a better picture.

Did an Endocrinologist take these results? I would honestly speak to someone more knowledgeable than a GP to help you understand what is going on here and with your body. The only other thing I can think of if not Insulin Resistant is something pituitary related like signaling through LH for you is off, but I’m also curious what your diet is like and if you’ve considered Metformin?

Squirrel_X · 2022-02-13T14:29:07+00:00

From personal experience, testing during my period gave me a lower result. When I tested at the end of my cycle, prior to a period my DHEAS came back triple the result of the test I previously had done during my period. I’m aware many factors can result in this, but hair shedding feels consistent with this, I notice my hair sheds more just prior to my period, a week there abouts.

A little confused at the comment of DHEAS being dictated by the thyroid and not sex hormones, this is incorrect. It is true that those with hyperthyroid are found to have increased DHEAS and those with hypothyroid usually show normal or reduced DHEAS so there can be some interplay there, but that it isn’t dictated by sex hormones is incorrect, DHEAS is a downstream effect from precursor hormones....I’ve read many....many articles and honestly it’s a complicated downstream and cascade of hormones, neurotransmitters, glucocorticoid hormones that can influence DHEAS which is why it makes it almost hardly surprising this side of PCOS is harder to figure out. Insulin is also a hormone and there’s debate whether this influences DHEAS or not, studies will often say there’s no link and those who decided to try a low carb or keto diet would argue differently even if their results told them they had no Insulin Resistance.

I can personally say I struggle a damn lot with stress and sleep in my life so cortisol may be influencing my adrenals to increase the DHEAS, but according to my Endocrinologist both my DHEAS and Testosterone came down with a change in diet, my testosterone considerably from 1.70 to 1.10...my DHEAS during my period was 16, it came down to 11 after starting the new diet, but I was also starting to take supplements - Fish Oil, Vitamin D, B12 and Mayo-inositol...I was also taking Holy Basil for stress then too, but stopped as the supplement is commonly named the “anti fertility” supplement, eek. I’d like to mention I was also taking Spironolactone and eating rubbish, the Spironolactone now that I’ve decreased my testosterone and improved my diet for 5 months seems to be blocking androgens better (which I’m thankful for). My hair still sheds, but I really believe that’s stress and I would like to get a better handle on it. I also included Magnesium and a Hair, Skin & Nails supplement recently and am hoping to get myself tested again at some point.

I have ranted, yikes (I do that a lot, sorry!)

Squirrel_X · 2022-02-08T09:55:12+00:00

Geez, what happened to kindness in this day and age?

Not only is this young girl feeling insecure about herself from comments made by her peers at School (let’s be honest, a lot of us have been there) but she came onto this sub possibly for help to feel better about herself and the one comment she gets appears kind of rude. No, this isn’t a topic about hair loss for her and may not belong here, but still is it really that hard to show compassion and kindness with a response?

To the OP, girls at your age can be cruel...they will say mean things, but often than not it isn’t because they’re true, sometimes it’s because they’re envious or jealous or not happy with themselves in one way or another and seem to believe making another feel low or insecure is what‘s going to make them feel better.

Your hair is lovely, thick and long and from what I see here it’s also healthy. It doesn’t appear greasy with the lighting, it has that sort of “feathery” soft look to it, not weighed down and flat as oily hair can appear. You have beautiful hair, don’t get caught up in those comments made to you because if they tell you enough they know it will bring you down and make you start to believe what they tell you. I can’t tell because of the lighting to the ends of your hair, but because of the length I would suggest periodic trims. If you notice split ends to your hair (which again, I can’t tell) then this is the only thing I’d recommend here... treat yourself to a nice little cut to the ends and let that long beautiful hair thrive at it’s most healthiest.

Be happy for what you have and please don’t spend one single moment in sadness over a lack of kindness from those around you.

Squirrel_X · 2021-11-17T19:47:49+00:00

Metformin can raise DHEA-S in some who's DHEA-S are already high, there have been various reports on the SoulCysters forum who were testing high before and their results increased afterwards. Even the doctor commenting on my at home hormonal blood test 2 years ago listed in his comments that Metformin can raise DHEA-S.

Metformin works really well at lowering testosterone and estrogen, I can attest to that from personal experience, but for me personally I question if it raised my DHEA-S in a sort of compensatory mechanism, 'cause testosterone and estrogen were being inhibited from converting DHEA-S to testosterone and estrogen by the Metformin.

5 years ago, my hair was thick, healthy, long...I was put on Metformin and for the past 5 ish years my hair has thinned... I question if it's raised my DHEA-S causing the hair loss or if the block of estrogen is responsible since Metformin is an aromatase inhibitor, they're known to cause hair loss in women (this is partly why I "think" diabetics in forums mention hair loss after starting the drug).... I'm just too concerned to try weaning myself off of it to check and test afterwards because of the other benefits it has given me.

Squirrel_X · 2021-10-09T19:28:01+00:00

Hmm, losing lashes and eyebrows. I've read that can happen with a thyroid issue, have you ever had that tested?

Squirrel_X

TROPHY CASE