u/bessstie

I’m exploring churches to attend and currently narrowing it down to three. I’d really appreciate hearing personal experiences before I visit so I can get a better feel for each one.

For context, I was raised Catholic but left the church when I was young. More recently, I’ve started rebuilding my relationship with God and feel ready to re-engage with a church community.

The three I’m considering are:
• Venture Church – Mill Creek
• Compass City Church
• Gold Creek Community Church – Mill Creek

I’m also a little nervous about returning to church. My boyfriend and I live together and aren’t planning to get married anytime soon. He’s also unsure about church in general, so I’ve found that some more traditional or strict churches (like Canyon Hills) haven’t felt like the right fit for me.

That said, if you attend another church and really love it that’s not listed, please share!

I recently restarted Metformin and am currently in the ramp-up phase to 2,000 mg daily. I’m in week 2 and increased to 1,000 mg today.

The first week went really well. I’ve been eating egg bites and bone broth each morning before taking my medication while following a Mediterranean-style, lower-carb diet to help manage Insulin Resistance.

Yesterday, I took my medication at 7 AM and around 11 AM I suddenly became extremely sick. I didn’t start feeling better until I ate some carbohydrates.

This morning, I added a biscuit to breakfast and seemed to tolerate it much better.

For those taking metformin and trying to be mindful of insulin resistance, what do you eat for breakfast?

I’m not naturally a breakfast person, so even eating in the morning is a challenge. I’m open to lunch-style foods or any other tips that have worked for you.

Drove by the car wash today on my way to Sprouts and saw an insane amount of fire trucks, ambulances, and cop cars.

Since I was driving I didn’t get to full scope it out, but driving home I saw even MORE ambulances driving towards the scene.

Anyone know what happened? Praying that everyone is ok.

I see so many posts on here from people saying their doctor won’t prescribe anything or help manage their symptoms. I’m not chronically on Reddit, but from what I do see, a lot of people are only seeing a gyno or their primary care doctor.

If you take anything from this, PLEASE consider seeing an endocrinologist. They specialize in hormones and metabolic conditions, and in my experience, they’ve been the most helpful provider for PCOS. After that, your primary can help with ongoing management and bloodwork, and a gyno is great if you need things like ultrasounds. But at its core, PCOS is a metabolic condition, which is why an endocrinologist can be such a key piece of the puzzle.

Also, I want to say this upfront: I know PCOS is not one-size-fits-all. This is just my personal experience and what has worked for me. And if anything I’m sharing doesn’t resonate with you, that’s completely valid. If something I say comes off too strong or dismissive of other experiences, I’m sorry, that’s not my intention at all.

For anyone who needs help advocating for themselves, here are a few things I’ve learned:

If you struggle with persistent acne, it can sometimes be tied to higher androgen/testosterone levels. If you’re not trying to get pregnant, spironolactone combined with a form of birth control can be really effective. I’ve personally been on 200mg of spiro with the mini-pill for about 10 years, and together they helped stop my period and clear my skin. Spironolactone isn’t recommended if you’re trying to conceive because it blocks androgens and can affect fetal development.

If birth control isn’t for you and you want to maintain a natural cycle, metformin is another option often used for PCOS. A common therapeutic dose is around 2000mg. I’ve been on it for about a year, and my cycle is the most consistent it’s ever been. I do still deal with some acne compared to when I was on spiro, but I’m planning to have kids in the next few years and wanted my body to adjust.

At the end of the day, you have to listen to your body. For me, I learned over the years that high-intensity training spikes my cortisol, which then affects my testosterone and leads to more acne. Along with severely affects my energy levels. Lower-intensity movement works much better for me. Same thing with food.. if you’re struggling, a dietitian can be really helpful. If that’s not accessible, try keeping a food journal so you can track what might be triggering symptoms for you. For example, I’ve learned I can’t eat regular pasta without severe bloating, but protein pasta works fine for me. But that’s ME—your triggers may look completely different.

If seeing a doctor isn’t accessible or right for you right now, I completely understand. In that case, try keeping a PCOS journal and be mindful of your sleep, movement, food intake, and cycle. Writing these things down over time can help you start to see patterns and understand what might be triggering certain symptoms. Even though it can feel confusing, our bodies are constantly communicating with us, it just takes extra time and patience to learn how to listen when dealing with PCOS.

Again, this is just what has worked for me, but if you’re feeling stuck, I really encourage starting with an endocrinologist. It made a huge difference in my care.