Inside our Body

16 May Inside our Body

This is a slightly longer post, but I’ve tried to put everything together in one go.

I had PCOD since I was 17 or 18 .. and initially I had absolutely no clue what this was, what I was going through, whether or not this was normal, if not whether it could be treated and how. I took it as painful periods, very painful periods.

Few months later then, I started to get thick facial hair and I still had no clue this wasn’t natural and there was a hormonal disturbance inside my body. It was only when I missed my periods for 3 months in a row that I actually got worried. That was when I spoke about it to a few people only to get an answer that this was hereditary and I shouldn’t be worried about it. Well, it wouldn’t blame them for they themselves had very little knowledge about all this. I got my cycle back soon thereafter and thought everything was fine and normal, not knowing that the storm had just begun.

I was in a book store one day and came across a book on the same. Those days, we never googled for everything..I’m talking about 2005-2006. The book changed my life, the word PCOD/PCOS came into being. I followed almost everything written in that book, was off Dairy for about 2 years (had shifted to Soya) and made some itsy bitsy changes in my diet. It did work, but I couldn’t be consistent with it.

I then consulted a gynaec, which was a blunder. So when you’re 21 and ask someone about a good gynaec, you’re immediately judged. And then while sitting in the waiting area, you are again judged. Believe me when I say this, I’ve been through this and when you have no one to discuss all this with, it’s horrifying. 11 years back I was scared to see a gynaec. I was absolutely unaware of the fact that PCOD is a lifestyle disorder and not a disease that requires medicine. I had no clue that contraceptives would regulate my cycle almost unnaturally..and I was on them for about 2 years. Thereafter I took Homeopathy as well, with no improvement. The moment I would stop the medicine, my cycle would disrupt, forget about the high irritation levels and stubborn weight gain. I decided to leave everything for sometime..but PCOD didn’t leave me. I was stuck with it for quite sometime.

And then, after numerous doc visits, who convinced me that I wouldn’t be able to conceive naturally and that I would either have to get ovulated or IVF (whenever I want to have a child), there was someone who saved me, literally. I would see this board of a PCOD specialist Nutritionist, Gagan Sidhu (Chandigarh people must’ve heard about her) while going to work everyday. One day, I made up my mind to call her thinking there was no harm in giving it a try. After I took an appointment, I got a call from her where we spoke for about a good 30 minutes and there was a voice inside me that compelled me to meet her. Thank God for that!!

My first meeting with her and she tried to convince me that I could reverse my PCOD within 3-4 months, by changing my lifestyle and following an exercise regime. And that PCOD is a lifestyle disorder and not a disease that required medicine to be treated, the way obesity doesn’t require any medicine but only right food habits and a physical routine. I did come back home with a little hope but didn’t know if all that she said was even possible.

All I wanted was regular periods, but what I received was something that changed my life. Within 20 days of my different eating habits, I got my cycle back (a very less painful one and that lasted for 5 days only), I also started feeling light. My goal was a regular cycle but 5 months into this, I lost 9 kgs, my cycle became regular, found myself full of energy even by the end of the day, I was eating more meals but eating right, my skin became better, my stress reduced (also vice versa, because I started getting my periods on time, so my stress reduced, therefore reversing PCOD) and I conceived naturally..without any medication or ovulation or IVF treatment. I had a beautiful pregnancy, will be writing about that soon!!

Medicine is not wrong. But disorders don’t require medicine. I’ve learnt that human body is beautiful and it has the capacity to heal by itself, we just need to make sure we’re feeding it right.