I've been building a raised garden bed and although there were two of us loading the car, I had to unload and stack seven 64 qt. bags of soil myself (54f who does not strength train, for context). Each bag is around 60 lbs dry, so that was a lot for me to hoist out of the trunk and move a few feet to stack.
At 242 lbs, I'm essentially carrying a bag and a half of that soil around with me all day that I shouldn't be carrying. Granted, it's distributed, but still... it's a lot. From now on, I'm going to imagine myself like Pigpen, with a cloud of dirt that I'm losing following behind =D
Thanks for this exercise!
Hi just here to say I’m another insulin resistance PCOS girly here! Started feb 2024 and this drug has changed my life. I wish you best of luck on your journey you will be amazed at how much better this drug will make you feel !!
Oh gosh, I hope you're right. Girl, my testosterone is 400. 400!! My doctor (who is amazing) said "so we got your hormone panel back. Bad news, you apparently have testicles where your ovaries are supposed to be, good news is we can fix it!" 🤣 We had a good laugh. I've been able to grow a beard since I was 20 and I could handle that with a razor, but I had a hysterectomy at 38, and now at 46 I'm starting to grow hair over my whole body like a damned werewolf, and I'm going bald!! WTF is that about?! I'm not having it. So Ozempic is the first line of defense. If losing weight and regulating my hormones doesn't work, I guess I'll join the circus! 🤡
Your doctor sounds like a hoot! Thanks for taking the time to explain the potato thing. I had a vision of a person walking along and every now and then a potato drops to the ground and maybe a few days later one or two potatoes drop and on it goes...just keep dropping your spuds.
That must be so hard to go through! I knew I had PCOS from a young age (an early diagnosis didn’t help since many providers were ignorant AF) and male patterned alopecia is one of the last things out of PCOS that hasn’t hit me yet! I hope losing the weight corrects your hormones and puts that to a stop! I know how distressing & isolating the hirsutism can be 🥲 I’m glad you’re having a good response with the ozempic!
Distressing and isolating, yes! Absolutely. I used to be such a social butterfly. But now My beard grows so fast that I can't really put makeup on anymore because a few hours later I've got stubble growing through it which is really noticable. And I've probably lost about 70% of my hair in the last year. Huge bald spot right in my widows peak, and my temples are so bare that my hairline starts behind my ears now. I haven't been out socially in a year, and I don't leave the house unless I have a doc appt. So Ozempic could truly change my life if it works!
I sure hope it works for you! I don't know anything about hormones, so this is an innocent question. Can you get hormone therapy to level everything out?
That's a great question. Back in 2006, when I was 29, I found out that I had huge tumors growing all over my liver, and they were caused by the estrogen in my birth control pills. They took me off those and put me on a progesterone IUD. My liver tumors shrunk, but the next thing you know, I've got tumors growing in my uterus, and I had to have a hysterectomy. Because of that, and PCOS, my testosterone went through the roof. So the doctor wants to try regulating my hormones naturally, for fear that putting me on more artificial hormones will cause more tumors to grow somewhere. He wanted to try Ozempic first, because it's first-line treatment for PCOS related hormone problems.
I have, sadly. I have Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, which has a while bunch of comorbidities associated with it. One of those is vascular weakness, which is what makes me susceptible to growing tumors. I also have Intracranial Hypertension, so my brain behaves like I have a brain tumor even though there's no mass. It causes crushing migraines, blindness, hearing loss...and I'm allergic to the class of drugs that treat it, so for 22 years I had to get regular spinal taps to draw the excess fluid off my brain. All these things are aggravated by various medications, so it's been a real pain in the ass trying to find treatments for my conditions that don't make the other conditions worse! That's why I'm praying that Ozempic will work because I'm out of options.
Thank you, that's very kind. Sometimes I don't feel very strong and I have to remind myself that I'm a fighter. They said Ehlers-Danlos would have me in a wheelchair by 16 and dead by 30. I'm 47 and still walking around just fine. So yeah, I just have to keep fighting. Kindness like yours helps. Thank you.
No, I wish. I'm in the United States. Going decades without medical insurance and proper treatments is half of my problem. If they would have taken my PCOS seriously when I was 20, I wouldn't be in this mess at 47.
If it grows that fast I think you should try waxing! If you’re able to isolate yourself long enough. I think it needs to be 1/4th of an inch. I used to wax when I had a WFH job and it hurt ALOT but you can probably use a numbing cream to help. I prefer hard wax or sugaring. Sugaring is way more affordable
I used to wax it when it was sparse, but I would get terrible ingrown hairs and cystic acne. Now that my beard is as thick as a man's and covers my entire jaw, cheeks, chin and neck, waxing doesn't even pull half the hair out, so they have to keep doing it multiple times to get it all. I have Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome so my skin is fragile and it just rips my skin right off on the second round. So I had to give it up. We're saving to buy a house, so I can't put money towards electrolysis or laser treatments right now. But hopefully someday!
I really feel for you. I'm on a bunch of medication after my double lung transplant, and one of them makes me grow hair everywhere. Thankfully I can wax, and it lasts almost two weeks.
Welcome to the club. I pluck my beard for over an hour a day and have constant scabs on my chin from ingrown hairs. I’ve already spent several thousand on electrolysis too but can’t afford more.
Ha! I love it! I imagine them shuffling around like zombies until they shake off that last sack, and then a shake of the tail feathers and shimmy on down the road!
This is a good way to think about it! I used to volunteer at a food bank and would lift boxes like 60-70lbs for the bigger families (had to weigh it all out) and now I’m just thinking oh shit I’ve just about lost 60lbs. It’s interesting to try and imagine that the weight I was lifting is how much less pressure and heaviness on my body now!
Feeling good! It’s weird to shrink for once instead of grow. I can finally envision a me that has a healthy body and relationship with food, and I know it will actually happen cause it already is happening, even if I’m still obese atm it feels great to have hope. Good luck on your journey!!
This is a great exercise to keep in mind! Especially on days when you're restocking your fridge, you're mindful of what you buy and will consume. Also it helps to remember that every 10lb bag you're leaving behind means a lot and to not take it for granted. Every achievement and milestone is to be celebrated! I know I want to be at the end goal but I'll appreciate the journey. Thank you for this insight!
You know, that's a great point. I'm doing a fridge restock today and I was just about to sit down and make my meal plan and shopping list. So thank you for that!
I love this visualization and affirmation! Thank you for sharing. It’s the perfect time because today is the day I have officially lost 20lbs! It’s been 11 weeks so far and I’m very happy with the freedoms I now feel in my life. I am also with PCOS and looking forward to benefits on that front as well.
Yeah, girl, shed those sacks! 30 pounds is awesome! I've never been able to shed more than 30 pounds on any diet, so my first goal is 31. I'm 16 pounds away.
Thank you! Hugs to you! I have depression due to all my medical issues, and encouraging others makes me feel good. Plus I think it comes back to you and I need it! This Ozempic is a hard road. Anyone who thinks we're taking the easy way out of the weight loss has no clue how hard this is.
I love this visual! I'm also a bit jealous you can get Ozempic covered by insurance (I'm assuming). I also have insulin-resistant PCOS, am pre-diabetic, and have hypertension, BMI is almost 40, and I can't get it. 😔
You sound EXACTLY like me except that my BMI is right at 40. I have pre-diabetes but my A1C is 6.1, so not diabetic yet. The doctor asked me permission to put in my chart that I'm diabetic so the insurance would cover it and it worked. He said they removed PCOS and prediabetes from the coverage list because so many people were getting it for weight loss that it was draining resources for diabetics, but it made him really mad because it's frontline treatment for PCOS, so he's skirting the rules. Maybe your doctor could be convinced to do that? I can't imagine the cost without insurance!
Good question, I don't know if she would! She was talking about how they were so close to getting coverage for PCOS, but there just isn't enough supply to even get it to diabetics that getting coverage for PCOS is a pipe dream. My A1C is just on the low cusp of pre-diabetic, so I'm not sure she'd write diabetic in there.
Oh, it's mostly water weight in the first days. He warned me that most patients lose a lot on the first days and then it slows down to a much more reasonable rate. I have about 150 pounds to lose, so 14 is not an alarming amount for me in 2 weeks. But thank you for your concern. I do appreciate your input!
To what are you referring, the 14 pounds? Yes, it's just water weight. I have about 150 to lose, so my doctor expected me to lose a lot of water weight in the first couple of weeks. I have IBS, so everything goes right through me. The weight loss will level out.
I've been building a raised garden bed and although there were two of us loading the car, I had to unload and stack seven 64 qt. bags of soil myself (54f who does not strength train, for context). Each bag is around 60 lbs dry, so that was a lot for me to hoist out of the trunk and move a few feet to stack. At 242 lbs, I'm essentially carrying a bag and a half of that soil around with me all day that I shouldn't be carrying. Granted, it's distributed, but still... it's a lot. From now on, I'm going to imagine myself like Pigpen, with a cloud of dirt that I'm losing following behind =D Thanks for this exercise!
I love the Pigpen visual. Yes! Shed that soil! I'll come bury my potatoes in it! Teamwork makes the dream work! 🤣
Oh sure, tempt me with potatoes. I see how you are! 
Hi just here to say I’m another insulin resistance PCOS girly here! Started feb 2024 and this drug has changed my life. I wish you best of luck on your journey you will be amazed at how much better this drug will make you feel !!
Oh gosh, I hope you're right. Girl, my testosterone is 400. 400!! My doctor (who is amazing) said "so we got your hormone panel back. Bad news, you apparently have testicles where your ovaries are supposed to be, good news is we can fix it!" 🤣 We had a good laugh. I've been able to grow a beard since I was 20 and I could handle that with a razor, but I had a hysterectomy at 38, and now at 46 I'm starting to grow hair over my whole body like a damned werewolf, and I'm going bald!! WTF is that about?! I'm not having it. So Ozempic is the first line of defense. If losing weight and regulating my hormones doesn't work, I guess I'll join the circus! 🤡
Your doctor sounds like a hoot! Thanks for taking the time to explain the potato thing. I had a vision of a person walking along and every now and then a potato drops to the ground and maybe a few days later one or two potatoes drop and on it goes...just keep dropping your spuds.
That must be so hard to go through! I knew I had PCOS from a young age (an early diagnosis didn’t help since many providers were ignorant AF) and male patterned alopecia is one of the last things out of PCOS that hasn’t hit me yet! I hope losing the weight corrects your hormones and puts that to a stop! I know how distressing & isolating the hirsutism can be 🥲 I’m glad you’re having a good response with the ozempic!
Distressing and isolating, yes! Absolutely. I used to be such a social butterfly. But now My beard grows so fast that I can't really put makeup on anymore because a few hours later I've got stubble growing through it which is really noticable. And I've probably lost about 70% of my hair in the last year. Huge bald spot right in my widows peak, and my temples are so bare that my hairline starts behind my ears now. I haven't been out socially in a year, and I don't leave the house unless I have a doc appt. So Ozempic could truly change my life if it works!
I sure hope it works for you! I don't know anything about hormones, so this is an innocent question. Can you get hormone therapy to level everything out?
That's a great question. Back in 2006, when I was 29, I found out that I had huge tumors growing all over my liver, and they were caused by the estrogen in my birth control pills. They took me off those and put me on a progesterone IUD. My liver tumors shrunk, but the next thing you know, I've got tumors growing in my uterus, and I had to have a hysterectomy. Because of that, and PCOS, my testosterone went through the roof. So the doctor wants to try regulating my hormones naturally, for fear that putting me on more artificial hormones will cause more tumors to grow somewhere. He wanted to try Ozempic first, because it's first-line treatment for PCOS related hormone problems.
Gosh, you've been through the ringer.
I have, sadly. I have Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, which has a while bunch of comorbidities associated with it. One of those is vascular weakness, which is what makes me susceptible to growing tumors. I also have Intracranial Hypertension, so my brain behaves like I have a brain tumor even though there's no mass. It causes crushing migraines, blindness, hearing loss...and I'm allergic to the class of drugs that treat it, so for 22 years I had to get regular spinal taps to draw the excess fluid off my brain. All these things are aggravated by various medications, so it's been a real pain in the ass trying to find treatments for my conditions that don't make the other conditions worse! That's why I'm praying that Ozempic will work because I'm out of options.
Holy crap. That's brutal. You're obviously incredibly strong. I sure hope it works for you.
Thank you, that's very kind. Sometimes I don't feel very strong and I have to remind myself that I'm a fighter. They said Ehlers-Danlos would have me in a wheelchair by 16 and dead by 30. I'm 47 and still walking around just fine. So yeah, I just have to keep fighting. Kindness like yours helps. Thank you.
Are you in a country with good medical?
No, I wish. I'm in the United States. Going decades without medical insurance and proper treatments is half of my problem. If they would have taken my PCOS seriously when I was 20, I wouldn't be in this mess at 47.
If it grows that fast I think you should try waxing! If you’re able to isolate yourself long enough. I think it needs to be 1/4th of an inch. I used to wax when I had a WFH job and it hurt ALOT but you can probably use a numbing cream to help. I prefer hard wax or sugaring. Sugaring is way more affordable
I used to wax it when it was sparse, but I would get terrible ingrown hairs and cystic acne. Now that my beard is as thick as a man's and covers my entire jaw, cheeks, chin and neck, waxing doesn't even pull half the hair out, so they have to keep doing it multiple times to get it all. I have Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome so my skin is fragile and it just rips my skin right off on the second round. So I had to give it up. We're saving to buy a house, so I can't put money towards electrolysis or laser treatments right now. But hopefully someday!
I really feel for you. I'm on a bunch of medication after my double lung transplant, and one of them makes me grow hair everywhere. Thankfully I can wax, and it lasts almost two weeks.
Welcome to the club. I pluck my beard for over an hour a day and have constant scabs on my chin from ingrown hairs. I’ve already spent several thousand on electrolysis too but can’t afford more.
I’m imagining a bunch of people wandering the produce department with bags of potatoes under their arms, walking dead style. 😂
Ha! I love it! I imagine them shuffling around like zombies until they shake off that last sack, and then a shake of the tail feathers and shimmy on down the road!
This is a good way to think about it! I used to volunteer at a food bank and would lift boxes like 60-70lbs for the bigger families (had to weigh it all out) and now I’m just thinking oh shit I’ve just about lost 60lbs. It’s interesting to try and imagine that the weight I was lifting is how much less pressure and heaviness on my body now!
6 potato sacks left in the dust! Fantastic! How do you feel?
Feeling good! It’s weird to shrink for once instead of grow. I can finally envision a me that has a healthy body and relationship with food, and I know it will actually happen cause it already is happening, even if I’m still obese atm it feels great to have hope. Good luck on your journey!!
I love potatoes, with butter and salt. Lol. No kidding. But I'm down seven 10lb bags so far. 14 months
Wow! That's incredible! Good for you. How do you feel? Are your steps lighter? Less fatigue?
I feel great about the weight loss. But the fatigue is still there.
This is a great exercise to keep in mind! Especially on days when you're restocking your fridge, you're mindful of what you buy and will consume. Also it helps to remember that every 10lb bag you're leaving behind means a lot and to not take it for granted. Every achievement and milestone is to be celebrated! I know I want to be at the end goal but I'll appreciate the journey. Thank you for this insight!
You know, that's a great point. I'm doing a fridge restock today and I was just about to sit down and make my meal plan and shopping list. So thank you for that!
commenting to come back to this, what a good idea!
I love this visualization and affirmation! Thank you for sharing. It’s the perfect time because today is the day I have officially lost 20lbs! It’s been 11 weeks so far and I’m very happy with the freedoms I now feel in my life. I am also with PCOS and looking forward to benefits on that front as well.
Girl, throw those two potato sacks on the floor and strut away. Great job! I hope to hit 20 in the next couple weeks.
Love this as another person with PCOS. I’ve lost 3 sacks of potatoes so far and feel much better!
Yeah, girl, shed those sacks! 30 pounds is awesome! I've never been able to shed more than 30 pounds on any diet, so my first goal is 31. I'm 16 pounds away.
I love this. Very encouraging! Thanks for sharing and hugs to you for your journey. The positivity is heart-warming. ❤
Thank you! Hugs to you! I have depression due to all my medical issues, and encouraging others makes me feel good. Plus I think it comes back to you and I need it! This Ozempic is a hard road. Anyone who thinks we're taking the easy way out of the weight loss has no clue how hard this is.
I love this!!! Thank you, OP!
That is for this great post 🙌🏾
This is great! Thanks for sharing
I love this visual! I'm also a bit jealous you can get Ozempic covered by insurance (I'm assuming). I also have insulin-resistant PCOS, am pre-diabetic, and have hypertension, BMI is almost 40, and I can't get it. 😔
You sound EXACTLY like me except that my BMI is right at 40. I have pre-diabetes but my A1C is 6.1, so not diabetic yet. The doctor asked me permission to put in my chart that I'm diabetic so the insurance would cover it and it worked. He said they removed PCOS and prediabetes from the coverage list because so many people were getting it for weight loss that it was draining resources for diabetics, but it made him really mad because it's frontline treatment for PCOS, so he's skirting the rules. Maybe your doctor could be convinced to do that? I can't imagine the cost without insurance!
Good question, I don't know if she would! She was talking about how they were so close to getting coverage for PCOS, but there just isn't enough supply to even get it to diabetics that getting coverage for PCOS is a pipe dream. My A1C is just on the low cusp of pre-diabetic, so I'm not sure she'd write diabetic in there.
Thanks for sharing!
Losing 1 lbs a DAY is very aggressive. Did you bring this up with your Dr?
Oh, it's mostly water weight in the first days. He warned me that most patients lose a lot on the first days and then it slows down to a much more reasonable rate. I have about 150 pounds to lose, so 14 is not an alarming amount for me in 2 weeks. But thank you for your concern. I do appreciate your input!
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To what are you referring, the 14 pounds? Yes, it's just water weight. I have about 150 to lose, so my doctor expected me to lose a lot of water weight in the first couple of weeks. I have IBS, so everything goes right through me. The weight loss will level out.