Introduction

Hello blogosphere. I can't say I came to blogging because I love to write or journal. But in my journey back to health I have found good resources and clear information hard to find on the net. Soooo welcome to my blog about how I have recovered from migraines, excessive weight gain, generally feeling like crap and am currently working on dealing with my PCOS naturally.

A little information about me. Ten years ago I was very fit and trim and even going to a dietitian weekly to loose that last bit of body fat so my abs could look even better. I felt pretty good most days but had migraines sometimes, issues with menstruation and was often depressed with serious anxiety.

After a couple injuries I got a serious flu, which then turned into what doctors said was seasonal allergies. My migraines started getting worse and I often had brain fog, I called those my cobweb days. Suddenly even though my workouts were getting harder and longer and diet had gotten more strict I started gaining weight. First 10 pounds, then 20 and then I was suddenly 30 pounds over weight. That year it kept going until I was 50 pounds overweight.

Doctors had no answers that changed anything and neither did my dietitian. It seemed like everyone I saw thought I was binge eating in secret and trying to find a magic pill from the doctors to make the fat go away. If they really knew me they would know this wasn't the case.

After 2 years of worsening migraines, that were now almost daily and truly affecting my quality of life and ability to be independent, I was still gaining weight. I was over 100 pounds overweight and miserable.

For 10 years I went to doctor after doctor. I started researching each one carefully and also going to specialists. No one had any answers. Finally 4 years ago a break through, I was diagnosed with PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome)
http://www.womenshealth.gov/faq/polycystic-ovary-syndrome.cfm
http://www.pcosupport.org/
http://www.soulcysters.com/

Even the PCOS doctors pushed drugs like birth control on me, treated my symptoms separately and kept telling me the weight would be very hard to loose. Under their care it certainly was. No matter how well I ate or worked out I lost no weight and I still felt awful and was in pain daily. Life was hard and the medication really didn't change anything except to regulate my periods. With those functioning my ovarian cysts started looking better with every ultrasound.

Finally after turning 30 I started to feel hopeless. I felt I would be sick, miserable and terribly overweight for the rest of my life. I cried as I watched the life I thought I would live disappear.

I began to feverishly research. I had been researching all along but this time I was on a real mission. I came upon the glycemic load diet. I had nothing to loose so I tried it, no cheating. Suddenly I started loosing weight and feeling a little better. Why had the doctors prescribed diets that did not follow the glycemic load? Why had they pushed meds and even complex carbs like whole wheat bread rather than simply showing me the glycemic load? The glycemic load deals with people with insulin resistance. Almost every PCOS woman with weight gain can benefit from eating based on the glycemic load because most of these women, regardless of what their blood tests say, are insulin resistant. Blood tests for insulin resistance, and I had many, are often inacruate. Mine always said I did not have it, but I certainly did.

Here is a useful links about insulin resistance: http://www.ovarian-cysts-pcos.com/insulin-resistance.html

Here is some info about the glycemic load:
http://www.ovarian-cysts-pcos.com/glycemic-index.html

So after following the glycemic load diet I was still having migraines, acne and generally still felt bad, although I felt better than before. Loosing some weight was giving me hope. I had lost about 10 pounds at this point. One day I decided to make some glycemic load friendly bran muffins. After eating one I got a painful migraine, I hadn't had one that bad in months. A light buld turned on. I looked up wheat and migraines online. Finally I got my answer. I could be gluten intolerant or even a Celiac. I called my doctor and she told me to try to gluten free diet. I did and a month later no migraines, my thinking and head were clear and I was still loosing weight, except now I also felt wonderful. I wish I had taken the blood tests but the treatment for gluten intolernace or celiac is the same, no wheat. Turns out it is genetic and my mother, aunt and cousin have also benefited from a gluten free diet.

Some info about gluten:
http://www.healthnowmedical.com/info/gluten.html
http://www.foodintol.com/celiac.asp
http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=63412
http://www.celiac.com/

After going gluten free all kinds of information opened up. I began taking supplements from Puritan Pride, a reputable supplement company, to help replace nutrients that had been lost due to the gluten intolerance andor Celiac. My health improved even more and my hair and skin started looking great. My hair stopped thinning and my acne was improving.

After 8 months of being gluten free and researching night and day I decided to try life without Yasmin birth control and Metformin. This lead me to the Insulite system http://pcos.insulitelabs.com/

This blog will be a journal of treating my PCOS naturally and living a gluten free life. It will also serve as a journal about my success or failure using Insulite.