27: How to go from hitting ‘rock bottom’ to feeling in control of your PCOS

Struggling with fertility when you have PCOS is pretty common, but that doesn’t make it any easier to deal with. We’ve all heard doctors and OBGYNs say ‘you’re really going to struggle getting pregnant’. But usually it’s something that you push to the back burner to deal with when you’re ready to start a family. But when you decide it’s time and the reality of how hard it might be sinks in, it makes it 1000x harder.The stress from something so life altering - whether or not you’ll be able to have kids - flows on into the other parts of your life - and affects your relationships with others and with yourself.This is exactly what happened to Ciara. After being diagnosed as a teen and having extremely irregular cycles, Ciara went through the standard PCOS motions. Going on the Pill, gaining more weight when she was doing the same things her friends were, being told to ‘come back and see us when you want to have kids’, trying to conceive for YEARS and then still struggling to get pregnant.With all of this stress and the physical health issues PCOS brings weighing on her mind - Ciara’s mental health and relationships took a hit and everything in life seemed so much harder to cope with. Now, Ciara has done a complete 180. Today we’re talking to Ciara all about her story with PCOS and fertility - going from what felt like rock bottom to taking control of her PCOS and getting back to not letting symptoms stand in her way. She’s not only hilarious but she’s truly inspiring - it’s not easy to make the best out of your situation when it feels like the world is against you! If you’re feeling overwhelmed with your PCOS and you feel like it’s taking over your entire life, then you NEED to listen to this episode - I know it’ll make a world of a difference!This episode is for you if:You feel like PCOS is becoming just too much to cope withAre having trouble conceivingAre having trouble with weightHave irregular cyclesYour fertility issues are causing you extra mental stress and / or affecting your relationship with your SOSome things we cover in this episode:Knowing when you’re ovulating and your fertile windowThe role sleep has in PCOSCiara’s story - how she went from ‘rock bottom’ to taking control of her PCOS, fertility and overall healthWeight gain with PCOS and how Ciara addressed itThe importance of identifying your trigger points and root causeDealing with anxietyPersonal Trainers and Dietitian's - are they worth it and what you should look out forGoal setting