Rachel’s amazing pregnancy journey
My initial PCOS diagnosis was anticlimactic. I was 19 years old and my physician told me to take birth control to manage my symptoms. I didn’t think much of it. She told me that when I was ready to have a family, I would just stop birth control and everything would be fine. If only it were that easy!
Fast forward to 30 years old. I stopped birth control and expected to immediately get pregnant. Instead, all of my PCOS symptoms came back and progressively got worse over 6 months. Night sweats. Missing periods. Acne. Facial hair. Polycystic ovaries. Fatigue. It was a nightmare. My primary care and OBGYN physicians were in disagreement regarding my PCOS diagnosis. Neither offered me any help other than Clomid for infertility. I left the OBGYN particularly upset and started to do my own research. I came across Clare’s PCOS Protocol and immediately signed up. After reading every Testimonial, I knew I was on the right path.
Before the Protocol I was eating a ton of carbs. Like a ton. I couldn’t go to bed without having dessert or candy. And I would immediately fall asleep after eating sugar. As my symptoms, especially night sweats got worse, I knew something was really wrong. Once the Protocol began, many of my symptoms disappeared quickly. I cut caffeine and sugar cold turkey and felt amazing after 1 week. I was shocked that I didn’t crave either of them and had a ton of energy. As the Protocol progressed, I felt better and better. My night sweats disappeared after 2 weeks. After about a month and a half, my acne improved and I had lost 15 lbs. without “dieting”.
It felt really good to have Clare and my fellow Protocolers to chat with when I had questions or needed support. Any time I had a question, it was answered in the weekly Q&A calls. I religiously watched the weekly video modules and often refer back to them. I particularly liked having the Facebook group to connect with the other participants because we were all, for the most part, experiencing the same things each week. The Protocol takes accountability and self-motivation but after seeing results, it’s not hard to keep going!
As we were coming up on the final weeks of the Protocol, I was thrilled with the results but worried my period had not returned. Every now and then I would take a pregnancy test and they would come up negative. It was crushing. Per Clare’s advice to the group, I began tracking my Basal Body Temperature (BBT). I spent a long time analyzing my BBT chart, wishing for my period to return so we could try for a baby. One week before my 12-month anniversary of going off of the pill, I took one last pregnancy test and could not believe it when it was POSITIVE. I had not had a period in almost a year but had ovulated! I found out the next week that I was 8 weeks along. Today I am in my 2nd trimester and still cannot believe it.
Do yourself a huge favor and sign up for the Protocol. It is absolutely worth the investment. If you’re struggling with infertility, compare the cost of the Protocol to fertility treatments. Those treatments will not solve your PCOS symptoms, but the Protocol will. It’s a lifelong investment!