Today we share Cajsa's story about how she discovered she had PCO and how through lifestyle changes she got back her missed ovulation and period which resulted in a long-awaited pregnancy 14 months later. You get to share concrete tools and tips for how Cajsa's journey began at the age of 30 until she was free of her PCO and felt much better.
How did your journey with PCO begin?
Already as a teenager, I lived an intense life with hard training, fast pace and a lot of stress. For as long as I can remember, I have had IBS symptoms and problems with my stomach. At the same time, I have been living with painful menstrual cramps, a lot of PMS symptoms and long cycles. My cycles could be between 37-45 days. Sometimes I had normal bleeding and sometimes I barely bled at all. However, I didn't understand that this was abnormal until I was 30 years old and my partner and I decided to have children.
I started by trying to track my bike with the help of Natural Cycles where I took the temp but got no result. Then I instead started testing myself through ovulation tests which I already started taking on day 10 of the cycle to make sure I didn't miss it. I also started tracking my cycle through the Preglife app to try and find patterns. Some months I didn't ovulate at all and some months it was very weak. We still tried to punctuate the days by having sex around the days when I thought I was ovulating and when I got a test that showed that LH was rising and that ovulation was then happening.
Already after 4 months we managed to get pregnant but unfortunately it was not there to stay but led to a miscarriage . I felt cheated by my own body and took the blame, but we kept trying.
Here I began to suspect that something was not right with my body. It was mainly my long and irregular cycles and the severe period pain I had that made me think. I then suspected that I had endometriosis and therefore started reading and seeing what I could do myself. Then I found Womensync and Jenny Koos on Instagram. Slowly I started making small changes in my lifestyle and came to the realization of how little I knew about my own body and the cyclical pattern that I and all other women go through.
A year after we started trying, I turned to the fertility investigation clinic Livio in Gothenburg, which established that I had PCO. The doctors explained to me that my eggs were not maturing properly and therefore not releasing from the ovary. I was also told that there was nothing I could do about it but that I had a better chance of getting pregnant at an older age because of my egg count.
Got pregnant after 14 months despite PCO
While we were investigating my PCO and queuing up to do IVF, the positive pregnancy test came. It had then been about 14 months since we started trying. On the same day that my period was due, I got up early before my partner and took the test with the attitude that it would be negative. I wanted to get over it, crawl back into bed and pull the covers over my head. Instead, it showed positive and I broke down with relief. All my fear of never getting pregnant again let go and I ran in to my partner, put the test in his hand and told him we were pregnant. We were so happy but at the same time couldn't understand that it was true. In the coming days, I took probably 5-6 more tests just to be on the safe side and all of them still showed positive.
In December 2022, our little guy arrived who is 4 months old at the time of writing. I am so grateful every day when I wake up and am greeted by that little smile. It was worth all the nausea and vomiting in the world. Childbirth is one of the coolest things I've ever experienced. I feel so proud of my body and am so grateful that I got to experience this miracle, because it really is.
Lifestyle changes to get rid of PCO and get pregnant
Before I started my journey, I felt pretty bad both physically and mentally. When we started trying to conceive, I was studying and constantly stressed about schoolwork, essays and job applications. My stomach was very affected by the stress and my IBS symptoms were extreme. I drank a lot of coffee , snuffed on and off, drank some alcohol and ran several times a week. My sleep was poor and I had no energy. The body went into overdrive.
One of the biggest changes I made was to stop high-intensity training . I used to love running but almost completely replaced it with walking, yoga or an evening on the sofa. I gave up caffeine altogether and replaced it with Chicca Roast , which I even think tastes better than coffee. I changed my diet by adding more fat and protein which made my blood sugar more stable. It was important for me to eat properly and not let my blood sugar dip during the day. I also stopped snuff and drank less alcohol.
Also reducing things that stressed me was an important piece of the puzzle. Something that previously contributed to a lot of stress was doing things for the sake of others instead of listening to what I wanted and could bear. I no longer filled the schedule with lots of activities, but started listening to my body and rested when I needed. My mornings started with meditation for 10-15 minutes for a calm start to the day.
To support my body , I added collagen daily to my diet, which made my gut feel much better and my IBS symptoms reduced. I also added other supplements such as magnesium , iron, vitamin D, cod liver oil and folic acid. Something that I really took to heart was vitamin D's impact on fertility, Jenny Koos has a great lecture to watch and listen to. Just before ovulation, when I became pregnant, I tried taking a larger dose of vitamin D.
A summary of the changes I made:
- Stopped with high intensity training
- Removed caffeine
- Eat more fat and protein
- Balanced blood sugar
- Cut down on stress
- Supported the body with nutritional supplements
- Quit snuff
How my lifestyle changes affected my well-being
Quite quickly after I started changing my lifestyle, I noticed that my body felt better and showed clear signs of ovulation. I got my cycle down to about 30-32 days and didn't have nearly as much PMS and period pain as before. Now I was able to follow my cycle much more easily and found out when I had fertile secretions.
Reduced stress, better diet, exercise adapted to my cycle and a more balanced gut brought many positive health effects. Today I feel much better than I did then. The biggest change I experienced was when I removed coffee and snus and changed the form of exercise. It meant that my body was not at all as stressed as before. I think stress was the biggest culprit from the start. However, I think it was the overall change that finally got me pregnant.
What tips would you give to others with PCO?
What I would like to convey to others is that it is possible to both protect yourself from becoming pregnant and have children without contraception. For me, understanding my cycle was essential, both for my fertility and my well-being. Remember that change takes time so be patient and listen to your body.
An important motto that I carry with me is that "health does not have to be a well-trained body, but rather a body that functions as it should." I have listened to all the Womensync podcasts multiple times and read their book , Womensync - For a Life in Sync with Your Female Biology which is absolutely magical. I have also listened to and read several podcasts and books with Jenny Koos.
Regarding stomach health, I can warmly recommend listening to 4Health with Anna Sparre, who really dives deep into many stomach-related problems. I really wish that all women out there could share the knowledge that I have gained. Today I know my body and know how it works, what triggers my IBS and what affects my fertility. Without you, I would never have sat with little E in my arms today, will be eternally grateful to you for that and all the knowledge you spread here at Womensync.
The knowledge that has helped me the most is understanding my menstrual cycle and adapting to what phase of my menstrual cycle I am in. Knowing what is fertile secretion also made me know my body more and was able to spot ovulation to get pregnant. Eating a hearty breakfast and not letting my blood sugar dip has helped me optimize my fertility as PCO can be triggered by uneven blood sugar. Supporting and focusing on having a healthy gut has also been very valuable to me as an inflamed gut can have a big impact on fertility.
I am so incredibly grateful that I found Womensync and also Jenny Koos who teaches about fertility understanding. Thanks to these people, I have learned so much about myself and my body.
This is a personal story from a person in the Womensync community. The same results and experience cannot be guaranteed, but depend on the person's state of health, background, lifestyle in general and genetics. Womensync does not intend to diagnose or treat medical conditions. Always consult a doctor in case of suspected illness.
