I often hear from women with PCOS who are frustrated and have lost all hope because the only advice their doctors offer is to lose weight, take a pill and live with their symptoms. For much of my life, I was one of these women. As early as age 14, I wrestled with a lot of the common PCOS symptoms. It seemed this was my fate. My mom dealt with this, my grandmother dealt with this. It was the genetic fate of women in my family.
One day in college, I found myself sitting in a cold exam room scared and confused, feeling lousy, not having had a period in months and months, and not understanding why. The doctor looked me in the eye and told me they would have to “jump through hoops” to get me pregnant one day. She renewed my prescription for the pill and sent me on my way. I felt helpless and hopeless. It was a dark moment.
Many years later, with the help of fertility drugs, I did have two sons. After the birth of my second son, I felt worse than ever. I had 2 beautiful children and a wonderful husband, but I was exhausted all the time, and my PCOS symptoms were at their worst. I wasn’t the wife or mother I wanted to be. After years of following mainstream advice from countless doctors, I realized that nothing was helping. The drugs they offered made me sicker and more miserable. I was way too young to feel so old and couldn’t go on living this way.
It was then I realized that I had to empower myself and take control of my health. No one else could do it for me. I couldn’t take advice at face value and continue to think and act like a victim.
I scoured the internet for information and read countless books. I went back to school to learn from experts. After hundreds of hours and tons of trial and error, I developed a protocol that allowed me to thrive. I changed my diet and lifestyle and most importantly, my mindset. I started taking care of myself. My husband noticed the shift and declared me a “Diva.” At first, I was offended, until I realized that in order to be my best and give my best to my family, I DID have to be a Diva.
When my doctor started seeing my success and sending women to me for help, I knew I was onto something. I realized that my Diva protocol could help others. There were millions of women just like me- struggling against our symptoms with medicine and advice that didn’t help. I could break what I learned into small, manageable steps that help women take control of their symptoms. Now I do just that. I am also the mother of an amazing daughter, my third child, and direct product of the lifestyle I forged. Despite what doctors warned all those years ago, I was able to conceive naturally. I just had to have the proper education, mindset and tools first. Essentially, I had to become a Diva.
Women need to know that they are not a victim. PCOS is not their fate. There is no magic pill, and they can thrive with PCOS when they embrace the power of knowledge, diet and lifestyle.