MY BUMPY JOURNEY WITH PCOS

My diagnosis came right after my 21st birthday. I had just finished celebrating my transition into a new age. I wasn't prepared for what I heard. For the first few days, all I did was process the information I was given. My symptoms became visible when I was sixteen. At that time, I ruled out the pain I felt in my pelvic region as being normal. The pain that left me bedridden for days on end. I told myself it was normal for girls to have period pain. The first symptom I paid attention to was a strand of hair on my chin. For weeks, I had acne on my face. My dad took me to a doctor, and I was dismissed because he felt it was probably an issue with my hormones; "she will be fine as she ages"—I wasn't. My symptoms became worse. At the age of 19, I dealt with terrible acne. Acne that becomes worse with each treatment I had issues with my self-esteem because I believed my body was a mess. Not only was I dealing with hair growing in unusual places, I was also dealing with irregular periods and acne. A few days before my 21st birthday, I went to the gynaecologist to complain about my irregular periods. After a series of tests and scans, a diagnosis was made—I suffer from PCOS. I was shocked, livid even. The truth is, I was a bit relieved. After all the painful and irregular periods, the pus-filled acne and worrying about the strands of hair on my chin, there is finally an issue to tackle. I began treatment, and my symptoms are being managed. My life is finally in my control. My only regret was not seeing the gynaecologist earlier. PCOS doesn't have to define you; you can still be whoever you want to be, PCOS or not.