Hi, My name is Kristin and my doctor has diagnosed me with PCOS because of my symptoms which are chin hair, acne, excessive weight gain(used to weigh 130, but gain 40lbs. in 6-8 mo. and my eating habit haven't changed), and it took 4 years to get pregnant with 2nd child. He also said that I have numerous follicles on/in my ovaries. But according to what I have read on the subject women generally go without having periods. My question is, since I have one every month, is this an accurate diagnosis? They usually last 2 weeks, I spot for a week, nothing for a week and it starts all over again. PURE MISERY!!!!!! Maybe it is accurate, and I'm in denile!?!?!?! Any advise would be greatly appreciated. HELP!!!!

The heavy bleeding you have is probably related to poor hormone control in PCOS.

You have some of the common symptoms of PCOS which was enough to establish a diagnosis. A person does not have to have irregular periods in order to have PCOS. Metformin is a good treatment for PCOS other symptoms but apparently doesn't improve hirsutism. It does help with fertility though.

Some other drugs for PCOS are

--combined oral contraceptives, especially those containing cyproterone acetate, this is good for hirsutism, acne, and would probably straighten out the excess bleeding you have; ask your doctor.

--finasteride, reduces the amount of excess hair but can cause depression and headaches.

--progestogens, reduce the likelihood of endometrial cancer. May cause fluid retention and bloating. The risk of endometrial cancer is greater in women with scant or absent menses, so probably does not apply in your case, however -- ask your doctor about this.

For fertility: clomiphene citrate, gonadotrophin injections, and gonadotrophin releasing hormone agonists. Of course, your doctor would be the best one to consult to see about fertility treatments. In your case because your menses occur at regular intervals but are in other ways irregular, I have no idea how the above drugs would be used.

If you are worried about fertility or about conceiving again, you should talk with a fertility specialist. Just the presence of the follicles would seem to indicate problems with fertility, in my opinion.

I agree with the above, did you have a bloodtest to confirm this too. My reproductive Endocrinologist had a blood test to confirm this in me recently and I was put on Metformin and Clomid to ovulate.

However growing up there has been times that I have been w/o TOM and when TOM came it felt like it lasted forever. Were you prescribed meds? Think they would help regulate you and your TOM wouldnt be so long.

Hiya, I had regular periods all of my life, and was still diagnosed with PCOS, so you can have it and still have a regular cycle!