Guest guest Posted November 20, 2008 Report Share Posted November 20, 2008 Hi everyone, just wondering if anyone has any suggestions... I have had an enquiry from a patient with PCOS. I have treated patients with PCOS several times, but none of them have been on any contrceptive pills at the time. The new patient is still on Dianette and I was wondering if you have any ideas on how I can best support her coming off it smoothly and on to a herbal regime. Alongside irregular periods, she is particularly worried about her acne (scares suggest this was quite bad)on her face and back, hirsuitism (mild) and weight control problems returning when she comes off the dianette. All advice much appreciated... Thanks, Gursewa Harrad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 20, 2008 Report Share Posted November 20, 2008 I was put on dianette at 15 for acne and as a contraceptive. Was on it for 5 yrs, had a break (1.5 yrs on depo injection, put on weight, mood swings etc yuk!) went back on it for 1.5 yrs till studying to become herbalist and got wise and came off. In my experiance i did not get a return of acne or put on weight, i however do not have PCOS. Mentally i felt much better and found i felt like 'me' again. A few years ago i did read a report that said that dianette was now only recommended for short term (18mth i think)use for acne and that it had been linked to suicidal feelings (of which i never felt). Hope this helps in some way. Kind reguards Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 21, 2008 Report Share Posted November 21, 2008 Hello I am currently treating a lady who came to see me because she has a history of PCOS and wanted to come off her OCP with a view to starting a family. Last time she tried stopping the pill her periods very quickly became erractic and she suffered with severe facial acne. She began treatment one month before her last pill, and this time around, with the herbal support, her periods are still regular after 4 months. The acne is only present on her back, which according to her is a marked improvement on last time. Current Rx: Echinacea 20 Iris 15 Arctium 10 Smilax 10 Alchemilla 15 Eleutherococcus 20 Serenoa 20 However, she is very well informed about her own condition, and I firmly believe that a great deal of the benefits she is experiencing is because she stays right away from sugar and junk foods, to minimise the effects of insulin resistance. She also has plenty of patience, and was willing to wait a few months to monitor her progress before attempting to get pregnant. She also takes her basal body temperature every day to monitor ovulation. Interestingly, I added Vitex to the mix for a month, at which point she reported her BBT fluctuated more than usual - I took it out again as I did not want it to interfere with her ovulation. I will probably encorporate reproductive tonics at the point at which she feels ready to try for a family, but on the other hand, there may be no need - and I am very optimistic for her. I often use Paeonia/Glyc for amenorrhoea, but there has been no need in this case so far. Regards, > > Hi everyone, > > just wondering if anyone has any suggestions... > > I have had an enquiry from a patient with PCOS. I have treated patients with PCOS several times, but none of them have been on any contrceptive pills at the time. The new patient is still on Dianette and I was wondering if you have any ideas on how I can best support her coming off it smoothly and on to a herbal regime. Alongside irregular periods, she is particularly worried about her acne (scares suggest this was quite bad)on her face and back, hirsuitism (mild) and weight control problems returning when she comes off the dianette. > > All advice much appreciated... > > Thanks, > Gursewa Harrad. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 6, 2008 Report Share Posted December 6, 2008 Dear and , thank you very much for your advice. Â , your prescription reminded me of the importance of using alteratives - these can often get lost in the rush to 'balance hormones' in such cases! Â Also, your patient's experience with Vitex is interesting to hear as I've recently been reading of some of the potential problems indiscriminate Vitex use can cause - a far cry from my college days when it sometimes seemed that they started to write a prescription for vitex as soon as a female patient walked in! (I am of course exaggerating, before I get any ex-lecturers sending irate messages! As it happens, this particular patient has decided to delay coming off the dianette and just follow the dietry changes I have suggested for a while to better prepare herself - which I think is probably the right thing for her for now. regards, gursewa. Â Hello I am currently treating a lady who came to see me because she has a history of PCOS and wanted to come off her OCP with a view to starting a family. Last time she tried stopping the pill her periods very quickly became erractic and she suffered with severe facial acne. She began treatment one month before her last pill, and this time around, with the herbal support, her periods are still regular after 4 months. The acne is only present on her back, which according to her is a marked improvement on last time. Current Rx: Echinacea 20 Iris 15 Arctium 10 Smilax 10 Alchemilla 15 Eleutherococcus 20 Serenoa 20 However, she is very well informed about her own condition, and I firmly believe that a great deal of the benefits she is experiencing is because she stays right away from sugar and junk foods, to minimise the effects of insulin resistance. She also has plenty of patience, and was willing to wait a few months to monitor her progress before attempting to get pregnant. She also takes her basal body temperature every day to monitor ovulation. Interestingly, I added Vitex to the mix for a month, at which point she reported her BBT fluctuated more than usual - I took it out again as I did not want it to interfere with her ovulation. I will probably encorporate reproductive tonics at the point at which she feels ready to try for a family, but on the other hand, there may be no need - and I am very optimistic for her. I often use Paeonia/Glyc for amenorrhoea, but there has been no need in this case so far. Regards, > > Hi everyone, > > just wondering if anyone has any suggestions... > > I have had an enquiry from a patient with PCOS. I have treated patients with PCOS several times, but none of them have been on any contrceptive pills at the time. The new patient is still on Dianette and I was wondering if you have any ideas on how I can best support her coming off it smoothly and on to a herbal regime. Alongside irregular periods, she is particularly worried about her acne (scares suggest this was quite bad)on her face and back, hirsuitism (mild) and weight control problems returning when she comes off the dianette. > > All advice much appreciated... > > Thanks, > Gursewa Harrad. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 8, 2008 Report Share Posted December 8, 2008 Thanks Gursewa, As a happy post script, I found out last week that my patient is now pregnant!! Of course I credit the herbs, and my patient's own body and actions, but that's what I call job satisfaction :-D Regards, > > > > > > Hi everyone, > > > > > > just wondering if anyone has any suggestions... > > > > > > I have had an enquiry from a patient with PCOS. I have treated > > patients with PCOS several times, but none of them have been on any > > contrceptive pills at the time. The new patient is still on Dianette > > and I was wondering if you have any ideas on how I can best support > > her coming off it smoothly and on to a herbal regime. Alongside > > irregular periods, she is particularly worried about her acne (scares > > suggest this was quite bad)on her face and back, hirsuitism (mild) > > and weight control problems returning when she comes off the dianette. > > > > > > All advice much appreciated... > > > > > > Thanks, > > > Gursewa Harrad. > > > > > > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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