In fact, fatigue is one of the leading symptoms reported among women with PCOS. Additional causes of fatigue may include an underactive thyroid, low vitamin B12 or vitamin D levels, and anemia (low blood count). Factors such as sleep problems and side effects of medications can also play a role.
Fatigue, or excessive tiredness, affects many women with PCOS. It currently is not clear what exactly causes it, and research about the connection between fatigue and PCOS is still going on. If you are affected by fatigue, make sure to mention it to your doctor or PCOS care team, as they can help you best.
Fatigue can have many causes, and PCOS is one of them. Many women report feeling lethargic, sluggish, or low on energy levels. This is not a sign of laziness but the body's response to the underlying insulin resistance.
Some women have adrenal-dominant PCOS while other women have ovary-dominant PCOS, and many women have a combination of both. Women with PCOS have also been found to produce more cortisol at baseline than women without PCOS. This means that women with PCOS may have more sensitive stress response systems.
This includes having excess amounts of androgen hormones, like testosterone, and, in some cases, a lack of progesterone. All of this can lead to brain fog, irritability, depression, and anxiety that can be severe and debilitating. It can also lead to severe mood swings, which can cause a general feeling of instability.
Depression and Anxiety
It is widely believed that the hormonal imbalance caused by this condition affects the production of hormones and neurotransmitters affecting mood. Moreover, weight gain, excessive hair growth, and acne can be inevitable if you have PCOS which also fuels stress and anxiety.
The hormonal imbalances that are linked to PCOS can cause you to feel sluggish and lethargic, which can be linked to insulin resistance – a condition found in the majority of women with PCOS. Sometimes women with PCOS experience heavier bleeding during their menstrual cycle.
Practice positive affirmations
When you're dealing with PCOS, being told to be positive might come across as a little annoying. However, there is an effective way to challenge and overcome pessimistic thought patterns. This is by practicing positive affirmations, which can reinforce feelings of self-love and belief.
Will SSA Approve My Claim If I Have PCOS? As mentioned, PCOS syndrome alone is not a qualifying condition for disability claims.
- Naps are good — but only when few and short.
Keep your naps as short and infrequent as possible to get a good, deep sleep at night. Consistency is the most important factor in fixing your sleep schedule. It helps your body get accustomed to a sleep routine, and your body benefits from sleep accordingly.
Women with PCOS often report signs of mood swings, depression and anxiety. Mood swings can feel like rapidly fluctuating emotions that can manifest as irritability, temper, sadness and/or anxiety that results from hormonal imbalance. Many women do experience signs of mood swings, especially near their menstrual cycle.
For instance, brain fog is common among PCOS patients because of a number of conditions associated with the syndrome. These may include sleep apnea, mood disorders, abnormal hormone levels, and blood sugar spikes and dips due to insulin resistance.
One often overlooked feature of PCOS is its association with sleep disturbances. Recent studies have revealed a high prevalence of sleep disorders in women living with PCOS, suggesting that it is an amendable factor. Hence, it is recommended to sleep for 6 to 9 hours a day.
PCOS is a condition in which a woman's ovaries and adrenal glands produce more androgens than usual. 1 Androgens are generally considered male hormones. While all women produce some androgens, women with PCOS have higher levels of these hormones, leading to increased hair growth, acne, and weight gain.
Women with PCOS have a higher incidence of gestational diabetes, miscarriages, preterm deliveries, and stillbirths. It is estimated that 50-70% of women with PCOS have insulin resistance. Vitamin D, a hormone and a vitamin, has been shown to play a role in insulin resistance and egg development.
Depression and anxiety are common in women with PCOS but are often overlooked and therefore left untreated. Along with the physical disturbances, many mental problems are also associated with PCOS.
With the resistance and overproduction of insulin common with PCOS, blood sugar levels can fluctuate, with the body not getting enough sugar and then reacting by flooding the system with insulin just to get a small amount. This has tangible, visible effects: feeling shaky, mood swings and fatigue.
However, research shows that PCOS can also lead to severe mental health issues, including anxiety, depression, and eating disorders. PCOS is a debilitating condition, both physically and emotionally.
The group with PCOS had been diagnosed at a mean age of 27 years. The mean follow-up time was 13.1 years in both groups, during which 1,003 controls and 177 women with PCOS died. The mean age at death was 51.4 years for the PCOS group versus 52.6 years for the control women, a significant difference (P < . 001).
Recent studies have shown that women who were diagnosed as having PCOS 30 years ago have a completely normal life expectancy. An inspection of more than 700 death certificates from women with PCOS has shown that there is no excess risk of cancer in any organ or of heart disease.