u/HappyCoolPerson

2 months ago my hormones were fine - more than fine, they were really really good. I had no cysts on my ovaries and my period was always regular.

Then I did some restrictive eating , lost a bit of weight and my period disappeared. My ovaries are full only cysts and my doctor diagnosed me with PCOS.

He told me to be careful with gaining weight (which I wanted to do since I thought I had HA) - now I don’t know what to do.

What if I always had pcos but the diet triggered the symtoms? Everything was great until I did the diet

I’ve always had a super regular cycle and good hormonal balance.
A few months ago I started losing weight by restrictive eating - at first my first two periods were a week late (which never happened before) now my period is completely gone.

I stopped restricting and went to the dr today. My hormones and ovaries etc were fine 2 months ago - now my ovaries are covered with cysts + my period is missing.

Doctor told me there is nothing I can do and I should be cautious with gaining weight since I have a higher risk of metabolic diseases with pcos.

I wanted to gain a bit of weight and stopped exercising (gym 4x per week and running 30-50km per week) - but if it’s probably pcos then I won’t stop and keep going.

Does anyone have any advice?
I just want to get my period back like it was before my restriction.

Is there and other reliable way to diagnose early IR without an OGTT Kraft test?

I read that in the early stages Insulin and C peptide can stay normal during fasting periods but overshoot after eating.

Thanks in advance

2y ago I had these results:

A1c: 5.7
Glucose: 71
Insulin: 10
C peptide: 2.0

1y ago:

A1c: 5.5
Glucose: 79
Insulin: 4.2
C peptide: 1.1

2months ago:

A1c: 5.4
Glucose: 79
Insulin: 2.6
C peptide: 0.8

Am I still insulin resistant? I still eat carbs, sweets etc - just changed my lifestyle and exercise more. Should I be cautious?

Im 19y old and during my finals 5 months ago my always super regular period was 4 days late, the next cycle was 7 days late and now this cycle I’m in won’t end. I’m at around day 50 for the first time in my life.

During my finals I ate less and lost some weight but I still ovulated (even if it was a bit late). No at the beginning of this cycle I had symtoms of ovulation but I still wasn’t eating enough so i think I didn’t ovulate and now I won’t get my period. I started eating enough and do less exercise, I have no stress anymore but for some reason nothing is happening.

I used to know my body so well now i don’t know anything. Also I read about bone loss etc which doesn’t sound good either.

Was anyone able to get their cycle back regular?
Does anyone have any advice or timeline how they recovered?

I’m wondering what each of these blood-test markers- insulin, fasting glucose, HbA1c, C-peptide, total testosterone, free testosterone, SHBG, DHEA/DHEA-S, etc - actually tells you, and how they relate to insulin sensitivity. Which results or patterns/ numbers would suggest that someone is insulin-resistant or starting to move in that direction or insulin sensitive?

And does insulin, c peptide etc after blood test being done during diet/ a day after exercise make it unreliable?

Also, is it relatively common for people to experience temporary periods of reduced insulin sensitivity/ high testo because of factors such as weight gain, diet, inactivity, stress, puberty, or other lifestyle changes, and then return to normal insulin sensitivity once those factors improve?

I’m almost 20 and I honestly don’t know what’s wrong with me.

I’ve always been someone who thinks, “I’ll get over it.” Whether it was unhealthy habits, self-harm when I was younger, or other things, I always eventually stopped, so I never believed I could develop an eating disorder. Even now, I don’t really believe I have anorexia… but at the same time I can’t ignore that my behavior looks a lot like one.

This all started during my final exams a few months ago. I was studying all day, barely sleeping, and unintentionally started eating less. I lost some weight, and the skinnier I got, the bigger my old body started to look to me, even though I never thought that before.

Around the same time I developed really bad health anxiety because of a PCOS/prediabetes scare from years ago that was later taken back by my doctor after repeat testing. Ever since then I’ve become obsessed with food, insulin, hormones and calories.
For the last three months I’ve counted every calorie. I even have a notebook where I write down my daily intake, exercise and net calories. My whole day revolves around trying to stay “even.”

The weirdest part is that I never used to binge. Now I either restrict all day or eat huge amounts of sugar, chocolate or ice cream, panic afterwards, and immediately go back into a deficit to “fix” it. Then I binge again. It’s like I’m stuck in a cycle that I created myself.
My period has made everything worse. I always had perfect 28-29 day cycles with obvious ovulation. During the first two months of dieting my ovulation was delayed by about a week, but once I started eating normally again it happened, so I convinced myself I could keep dieting because “my body recovers anyway.”
Then I repeated it for a third cycle. I restricted around the time I think I should have ovulated, and this time it never seemed to happen. I’m now around cycle day 50, which has never happened in my life.

I’ve finally been eating more normally for the last few days, and my cervical mucus has changed from being extremely dry to becoming wetter and thicker, which makes me hope my hormones are waking up again. But then I overate by about 2,000 kcal over the last few days, and my first thought today was that I need to diet tomorrow to undo it- even though another part of me knows that restricting again could make my hormones and period worse.

I genuinely don’t know what’s wrong with me.

I’m terrified that I’ve permanently damaged my body, that my period will never become regular again, that my hunger will never normalize, or that I’ll somehow develop insulin resistance because of all the bingeing and restricting. My health anxiety has become overwhelming, and I spend hours Googling hormones, PCOS, insulin, and calories.

Has anyone else started out thinking, “I don’t have an eating disorder, I’m just being disciplined,” and then realized later that it had become something much bigger? How did you finally break out of this cycle?

My finals started a few months ago and due to not eating enough my first two cycles got delayed (ovulation got delayed and happend when I ate enough food- first time in my life that my period wanst on time) - my finals are over and I’m eating normally again but for some reason I’m at day 50 of my cycle.

I’ve always had regular cycles - and I knew my body and my Symptoms- I was like literal clockwork.
Now idk what to do - every since my periods been off my hunger has been all over the place as well.
I used to have changes in discharge - wet then egg white after taht creamy then dry and lastly period - but now it’s dry/creamy on off.

I’m new to this and I honestly don’t know what to do.
I’m eating well, cut back on exercise, sleep good have no stress.

Advice is appreciated , thanks in advance

I’ve had a huge sweet tooth my whole life. My parents didn’t really supervise my eating habits, so I would often eat 2–3 ice creams at once or finish an entire bag of candy if we had one at home.
I’m almost 20 now. I’m lean, play a lot of sports, and exercise regularly. My recent blood tests (fasting glucose, HbA1c, insulin, etc.) are normal, but I’m wondering if I’m genuinely metabolically healthy or if I’m just “getting away with it” because I’m young and active.

Has anyone with a medical background or similar experience seen this? Can years of a high-sugar diet catch up with you later even if your current blood work is normal?

Edit: thanks for all your honest responses! I really appreciate it :)
My other question would be - how often per week/ how often per day would it be okay to have a sweet treat?
And whats your opinion on the trending protein bars

Hi everyone,
I’m a 19y old girl and I’m hoping to get some insight into my long-term risk of developing insulin resistance or PCOS.

When I was 16- 17, I was under a lot of stress, slept very poorly, didn’t exercise, and ate a lot of processed foods and sugar. During that time I gained weight and went from 50 kg to 54 kg (I’m 160cm). My diet was mostly cereal, cookies, Nutella, croissants, rice, potato’s, pizza etc.

My blood work then showed:
Fasting insulin: 10 μIU/mL
HbA1c: 5.7%
Fasting glucose: 80 mg/dL
Slightly elevated testosterone
High SHBG
C-peptide: 0.8 ng/mL

Because of those results, my doctor gave me the diagnosis pcos (even tho I always had a regular cycle with no issues) and insulin resistance/ early pre diabetes. Ever since then I’ve developed a lot of health anxiety and constantly worry about becoming insulin resistant.

After that I tried a low-carb diet for a few weeks, lost around 2 kg, and often became hypoglycemic and my 28-day cycle was late for the first time. I stopped the diet, cycles resumed normally and Over time lost another 2 kg.

At 18 I repeated my blood work. I still wasn’t exercising, but I had stopped eating processed sugar as much as I used to.

The results were:
Fasting insulin: 3 μIU/mL
Glucose: 77 mg/dL
C-peptide: 0.8 ng/mL
Testosterone still slightly elevated
SHBG high

Now I’m almost 20. A few months ago I started exercising regularly. I go to the gym about 4 times per week and run 25- 45 km per week.
My diet is mostly made up of whole foods such as chicken breast, steak, eggs, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, fruit, berries and vegetables.

That said, I definitely still have a sweet tooth. While my main meals are usually balanced, I tend to snack between meals. Sometimes I’ll eat an entire tub of ice cream (I recently discovered the new Kinder Bueno ice cream and loved it), several protein bars in a day, a big bowl of granola, or occasionally a whole bag of chips. I don’t eat like that every day, but I do go through phases where I become fixated on certain foods and end up eating much more of them than I probably should.

Despite that, my most recent blood work showed:

HbA1c: 5.4%
Fasting insulin: 2.6 μIU/mL
Fasting glucose: 80 mg/dL
C-peptide: 0.8 ng/mL
No elevated androgens

My question is:

Are my blood results good because I’m genuinely metabolically healthy (lean, physically active, etc.), or am I simply “getting away with it” because I’m still young?

I know nobody can predict what will happen in the future, and I know no one can guarantee that I’ll never develop insulin resistance or PCOS. What I’m really trying to understand is whether my current way of thinking is reasonable.
In my head, I often justify eating sweets because I’m very active. I tell myself that since I run 25-45 km per week and go to the gym four times a week, it’s okay if I occasionally eat an entire tub of ice cream, a lot of chocolate, several protein bars, or a whole bag of chips. I’m usually not in a calorie surplus overall, so I convince myself that it’s fine.

But I honestly don’t know if that’s a healthy mindset or if I’m unintentionally setting myself up for problems in the future. If I’m wrong and this is a habit that’s likely to increase my long-term risk of insulin resistance or other metabolic problems, I’d genuinely like someone to tell me now so I can change my habits before they become a bigger issue. I’m not looking for reassurance- I just want an honest, evidence-based opinion.

I appreciate any insight, especially from people with experience in endocrinology or metabolic health.