My story - by Carol
I was diagnosed with PCOS just after my 18th birthday. (August 1999)
I had spent years with the most painful periods when I had them, and even experienced the pain when I missed them (which was most months). I also had also put on loads of weight for no apparent reason (my diet hadn't changed) and it got to the point that I had to know what was wrong with me.
The week before I got my diagnoses, I had heard on radio one Sunday surgery about PCOS and automatically knew this was what I had, so it wasn't so much of a surprise when I was told.
What I hadn't known was my dream of having children was all but over.
This was hard for me as all I had ever wanted was to have children.
I got a lot of support from my family, friends and my then boyfriend and in the September I got engaged. We planned to get married in the May of 2003 and the prospect of a wedding dress and me at the weight I was jump started me into starting at weight watchers.
My mum and me started at weight watchers. I weighed 14st 4lbs when I started and by the time the wedding came round my mum had lost a lot but even though I stuck to it religiously I had managed to loose 2st over 2 years and then put it plus more back on!!!!! No one knew why this was happening and it not only drove me mad, it was so upsetting as people would think I'd been lazy and cheated!
After spending a hell of a lot of money on loosing weight only to put it plus more back on, I gave up weight watchers.
After trying various other "plans" and diets (some of which were the most ridiculous things ever to be heard of!) I found myself even heavier, even more depressed and out of ideas.
My husband and I had started trying for a baby quite soon after getting married but were getting no where. The on going missed periods making me think I might be, then doing yet another test just to find out that it was negative was heartbreaking.
In the spring of 2004 my mother in law handed me a print off from the Internet. It was a healthy eating plan that helped PCOS sufferers and even helped them to fall pregnant!
I spent the next year weighing up whether I should put even more money into a "healthy eating plan" after all the money I had already spent, and wasted!
But then at 15st 12lbs and after being given the money for the registration by my mother in law at Christmas, on Sunday 24 Apr 2005 I finally went for it and became a member of vitaline!
Over the next few months my PCOS symptoms eased a little and the weight dropped off so easily I was just waiting for a catch, there wasn't one and by the August of 2005 I had lost 34lbs and my periods were (for the first time ever!) regular!
Then the unthinkable happened, I missed a period and found I had put on a few pounds!
I did a pregnancy test and, as usual, it came back negative. By this point I was trying to figure out what had gone wrong. My hubby told me to wait a week and we'd do another test.
The longest week went by and on 17th November I did another test. This time, unlike any other test I had done (and there have been many!), there was a tiny faint line. (So tiny my hubby couldn't see it and thought I was willing it to be there!)
We booked a doctors appointment on the 18th and we were told I probably wasn't pregnant but he could also see a very faint line on the test I did for him so we were told to wait two weeks and then come back.
Well me being me, and knowing that I had never ever got a pregnancy test come back with a faint line on it, I couldn't wait. I dragged Chris (hubby) into town and we bought a digital clear blue test (the one that actually spells it out on the screen, pregnant, not pregnant).
We got home, and I did the test.
We both stood in the bathroom denying ourselves the temptation of looking down at that little stick. After what felt like the longest few minutes of our lives, Chris looked down (as at this point I felt too sick and dizzy to be able to!) and his sharp intake of breath gave it away. I looked down to see the word I had longed for. PREGNANT.
That was it, I burst out crying! I took photos of the test just so that later I wouldn't think I was dreaming it!
I still couldn't believe it and during the two weeks waiting to go back to the doctors we did about seven more tests!!!!
On November 30th 2005 it was confirmed by the doctor that we were expecting our little miracle!
Some how we managed to keep this a secret until I was nearly 12 weeks pregnant!
On the 27th December we told our families. We had wrapped up little snowmen Christmas decorations with Grandpa, Grandma and Uncle on them. The looks on their faces as they realised what was going on was fantastic! (It took my mum nearly a month to get to grips with the news, she was so happy!)
At every scan and appointment I sat there amazed that this was happening.
I did worry throughout my pregnancy that something was going to go wrong, it had taken over two years to get this far and it had all seemed so easy once I had started with Vitaline.
I got through until 36 weeks without a problem.
At 36 weeks and 6 days (36+6), Thursday 29th June, I went to my midwife appointment and found my blood pressure had gone sky high and there was protein in my urine. I was rushed to the hospital to be monitored and have baby on a foetal trace. I was only supposed to be there for a few hours, but they took the decision to induce me. I had the on set of pre eclampsia and I was also anaemic.
So Thursday night I had my first dose of gel and had mild contractions through the night. I was given 5 doses of gel in total and finally on Sunday 2nd July I got to 3cms and was taken down to the delivery ward after waiting all day for a bed there.
My waters were broken at 8:10pm by a wonderful midwife called Karen who had looked after me all day on Sunday.
I was talked into having an epidural for the safety of me and the baby due to my pre eclampsia and they hooked it up, they didn't put the drugs in though as the anaesthetist was rushed away to an emergency c-section. By the time he got back it was too late, and baby Trent James was born at 2:46am Monday 3rd July 2006, 3 weeks early and weighing 6lbs 6 and a half oz.
I know I'm bias but he is gorgeous and has a full head of very dark hair. (takes after me and Chris)
I had a bit of a time after he was born as the umbilical cord came away from the placenta and then after that was sorted out I wouldn't stop bleeding.
My epidural came in handy then as I was taken down to theatre and they sorted out what was making me bleed.
I lost quite a lot of blood and being anaemic already, this made me quite ill and I needed two blood transfusions.
Finally on the Wednesday (5th July) I was discharged from hospital.
My two to three hour stay had turned into nearly a weeks stay, but it meant I got my baby early!!
Thanks to vitaline I have my very much longed for miracle baby and I am about to start the healthy eating plan again so I can loose the baby weight and the rest of the weight I had to loose originally.
We are hoping that in a year we will start trying for a brother or sister for Trent and continue on with our dream for a large family.
I know that if you are reading this and aren't a member of Vitaline yet you may be unsure of whether to join or not, all I can say to you is it does work, and against other slimmers groups, it is worth the money as this plan is designed to work for you and your metabolic rate. Slimmers world, weight watchers slim fast etc may work for a while, but because of PCOS your body will catch up with it and you will start putting on weight again which is disheartening and an expensive waste of time.
Vitaline is easy to stick too and works, and if you have a bad day you can talk to your personal adviser and get help (or just something off your chest).
If you are anything like me, you will have found that there isn't much advice on PCOS and what you can do to help your symptoms and help you to fall pregnant. This is the site that will help you!
If you're not a PCOS sufferer, this healthy eating plan can still help you loose weight. I have various members of my family and friends who "steal" my cleanser diet after being on holiday, having a blow out weekend or just because they see the weight creeping on and they use it to great effect!
For those of you with PCOS wanting to have a baby, I am living proof that Vitaline can help you achieve your dream. I am told that Trent is the 108th Vitaline baby. That's a lot of babies!!!!
I am so happy that I have Trent in my life, and I thank Vitaline so very much!
God Bless to anyone who is a member already or about to join vitaline!
Love and best wishes to you all, From Carol Hewlett.
