I’ve been on a diet all my life and I’ve tried every one of them. Gaining weight was the main reason why I went to the doctor in the first place as I couldn’t understand why my stomach had got bigger so quickly and my mum was concerned that something was wrong. My family are all thin and so it seemed I was the odd one out. Unfortunately, I didn’t get the PCOS diagnosis until much later but that first doctor’s visit started me on a journey of yo-yo dieting. I tried everything going, low-carb, Atkins and I even joined slimming clubs but the weight always went down a bit then stopped and came back again.
A few years ago I realised this obsession with dieting was taking over my life when I was chatting to a friend and she said to me she never dieted in her life. She just eats what she wants but eats regular meals and exercises a bit. It got me thinking about how much time I was spending focusing on food and diets and I just thought – you know what? Maybe I was designed to be this size, just like someone else is tall or has red hair etc. Maybe I’m trying to be something I’m not. I switched my focus from the scales to how I felt generally. I starting focusing more on regular meal times, eating nice food and not starving myself half the time. I found that I did gain a bit of weight but now my weight has sort of levelled off and I’m happy with it. I wear clothes that I like and no I don’t wear bikinis or things like that but if that is the trade off for feeling so much happier in myself its worth it. I think I’m finally at peace with myself. Health wise my periods are regular now and I don’t have any heavy bleeding so I’m content that this new way of thinking is helping me but of course my doctor is going to keep a track of things with me. I know this doesn’t work for everyone but I wanted to share it because there is so much focus on weight loss in relation to PCOS and I’ve wasted a lot of time worrying about my weight and felt that it was right to take back my life for my own sanity.
© PCOS Vitality, 2020
Guest blog: by Michelle Carter-Phillips
DISCLAIMER: PCOS Vitality do not recommend any particular course of action. Not medical advice.
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