Pills, PCOS and a Heart That Skipped More Than a Beat

A reality check for every woman managing PCOS

I came across a news story recently that made me drop my spoon mid-Maggi. A 27-year-old woman from Mumbai had a heart attack. Yes, 27. No, she wasn’t smoking 40 a day or training for a triathlon. She was just... normal. Like you and me. Working a job, battling hormones, popping a pill for her PCOS, and possibly wondering why her jeans shrink every winter.

Turns out, she’d been taking oral contraceptive pills for her PCOS. The same ones half of us are handed at the doctor’s without much conversation. You know, those “take this and your period will behave” pills. Apparently, those tiny white discs of promise come with some side effects no one really likes to talk about.

So before you spiral and throw your pill strip into the bin or worse, Google things, let’s just breathe and break this down.

She mistook her chest pain for acidity. We all do that, right? “Oh, just gas” — the Indian diagnosis for everything from heartbreak to dengue. But in her case, it wasn’t gas. It was a full-blown heart attack. And the culprit, according to her doctors, was the very medication prescribed to manage her PCOS.

Here’s where it gets messier. A study from Denmark (of course it had to be Denmark, the country that has butter but makes you feel bad about eating it) followed 2 million women between 15 and 49 years old. They found that the combined contraceptive pills — the ones with both estrogen and progestin — actually double your risk of having a stroke or heart attack. That’s right. Double.

And no, this isn’t a “take one pill and drop dead” situation. The numbers sound dramatic but are pretty grounded:

• For every 4,760 women taking the pill for a year, there’s one additional stroke.

• For every 10,000 pill users per year, one extra heart attack.

Doesn’t sound like much — until it’s you. Or your friend. Or your younger sister who just started on the same pills last month.

Now you’re thinking, “But I take them for PCOS. I need them.” Of course, you do. You’re not popping them for fun. PCOS isn’t just missed periods and facial hair. It’s weight gain that ignores gym memberships, mood swings that destroy relationships, and ovaries that act like they’re on vacation. Pills are often the first thing offered. Like a quick-fix band-aid on a system-wide issue.

But maybe, just maybe, we deserve to know what’s in that band-aid?

Here’s the boring-but-useful list you never read in your pill leaflet:

• Talk to your doctor. And I mean really talk. Not the 5-minute “take this, come back in 3 months” chat.

• Ask about progestin-only options. They’re lighter on your cardiovascular system and don’t come with estrogen’s flair for drama.

• Explore non-pill options. The Levonorgestrel IUD, for instance, does its job quietly without throwing your heart under a bus.

• Get some blood tests done — BP, cholesterol, blood sugar. Don’t just track your cycle on apps, track your actual health too.

• And please, if you smoke, quit. Your future self will thank you. Your lungs might even throw a party.

You know what frustrates me the most? We’re never told this. We’re handed a prescription with a smile and a “this will help.” And maybe it will. But should we be gambling with our hearts, literally, without even knowing the odds?

Our bodies aren’t one-size-fits-all. What worked wonders for your bestie might wreck you. Hormones are tricky little things. At 21, your body dances to the pill. At 28, it might just file a complaint.

So here’s the deal. Ask more questions. Read more than the first page of Google. Get that second opinion. Don’t settle for “this is just how it is.”

And before I go full drama mode, no, this blog isn’t meant to scare you. It’s a gentle, sarcastic, slightly emotional nudge to just pause and check in with your own body.

PCOS is tough. You’re tougher.

Just don’t let your heart pay the price while you’re busy fixing everything else.

Take care of it. Not just the one that breaks over failed diets and ghosted texts, but the one inside your chest that’s literally keeping you alive.

If this spoke to you, pass it on. Share it with someone who’s been on the same hormonal rollercoaster. And if you’ve had your own “pill and panic” moment, write to me. Who knows, your story might be the lifeline someone needs at 2 a.m. when they’re scrolling through symptoms instead of sleeping.

Are You Married?

Living with PCOD or PCOS can be a daily battle. From dealing with irregular periods and excessive bleeding to managing weight gain and hormonal imbalances, the journey is far from easy. But what adds to this struggle is the way medical professionals approach these conditions, particularly in India.

One of the most common suggestions gynecologists in India offer to PCOD/PCOS patients is to get pregnant. Yes, you heard that right. The recommended solution to reverse the symptoms is to conceive. But here's the funny and somewhat perplexing part: when doctors want to inquire about our sexual activity, they don’t ask directly. Instead, they ask, "Are you married?"

Why do medical professionals hesitate to talk about sex? It's a crucial aspect of our health, yet it's shrouded in unnecessary secrecy and cultural taboos. My friend recently had an experience that perfectly illustrates this issue. She asked her gynecologist whether she should get the cervical vaccine. The doctor responded, "It's not for married women." Confused, my friend did some research and found out that the vaccine is intended for those who are sexually active, particularly those with multiple partners, not just for married or unmarried individuals.

This hesitance to discuss sex openly can have serious repercussions. If doctors can't have these important conversations with us, who will? The lack of straightforward communication can lead to misinformation, missed opportunities for preventive care, and a general feeling of being unsupported.

Moreover, why should we be pressured into pregnancy when we are already struggling with our own health issues? Excessive bleeding, pain, and misery are daily realities for many PCOD/PCOS patients. Adding the physical and emotional demands of pregnancy seems like an unfair and impractical solution.

Seriously? That’s the best advice you can offer? And guess what, the last gynecologist I saw had my ultrasounds in her hand and still she asked me, "Are you sure you are not pregnant?" I mean, look at the God damn ultrasound. It’s an image of all that is going on in my uterus, and surely there is not a baby floating in there.

That's where my brother comes in. He’s a breast cancer surgeon, and I’ve been shamelessly discussing all my issues with him. He’s been absolutely honest in answering my questions. I also keep listening to his videos where he creates awareness about breast cancer. Now, I’m not saying that most doctors don’t do that. What I am saying is that I have been suffering from PCOD for 18 years and have met as many as 40-50 doctors. All of them have told me to "GET MARRIED". So, in my mind, will a court marriage resolve my issue, or do I have to do the 7 pheras to reverse PCOD?

We need more doctors who do not hesitate to use the words BREAST, SEX, and PREGNANCY and ensure their patients don’t hesitate either.

The crux of the problem is the challenge of getting appropriate and empathetic medical care. As patients, we need doctors who are willing to engage in open and honest conversations about all aspects of our health, including sexual health. We need professionals who understand the complexities of conditions like PCOD/PCOS and offer solutions that consider our overall well-being.

It's time for a change in the medical community's approach to these issues. We deserve to be heard, understood, and treated with respect. Only then can we hope to manage our conditions effectively and lead healthier, happier lives.

Next time your doctor asks you "Are you married?", You ask them "Are you asking if I am sexually active?"

Thanks for reading

💖Love, Priyanka💖

Confessions of a Poly Cystic…

Since I am on my periods thought this was the best time to actually write down my cystic journey.

I DON’T fall in the categories of those 2% women who remember their first period vividly. I don’t remember when, how and where. But yes I remember that after the first one it was always irregular. So period calendars
never really helped me. It would not come for months and months. The longest I’ve been without them is six months and the worst is when they’d come it’d be a flood like scenario.

I use to be scared initially but then my mom would say Let it go, the more it goes the better. OKAY I thought.

As I grew older and broader the irregularities increased so did the flooding. Finally we decided to get it checked. There was no way my Mom would’ve guessed it because it was this era’s disorder - A LIFESTYLE DISORDER.

We tried everything. Ayurved, homeopath, allopath, naturopath. It was only turning me into a psychopath. I couldn’t say no to all these treatments until 3 years back. Whenever someone suggested something my parents would rush me to that source. They couldn’t see me like that and I loved the attention.

My PMS would always mean fever, cough, cold and body aches. I still have these kind of PMS’s. Some PMS’s bring back the accident pain too. I also feel very dizzy. No matter how much I sleep it never seemed enough. But sometimes you need to give in to your body requirements to get that bloody thing out.

Ayurvedic medicines increased the heat inside my body, I just couldn’t bare it. Frankly I didn’t realize anything with homeopath medicines except  that it tasted good. Allopathy was all about oral contraceptives and I would never continue it because I just didn’t want to. Somehow it didn’t feel right. And that was a good enough reason. So all these medicines and several other activities led to no results at all or may be temporary results.

Well most Gynacs would suggest a fabulous way to treat this. They would tell my mom that she’ll be alright when she gets married. Now I laugh. God! I was a teenager when I first heard this. My mom understood what the doctor meant and they’d exchange smiles. It kind of reminds me of  my science teacher who blushed when she taught reproductive system. WHAT?? Yes she literally blushed. Alright, am sorry I know there is no connection between wedding and reproductive system.

I thank the Lord that my parents are liberal and they didn’t actually thought that only wedding will cure me.

I have also drank Cow Urine mixed with aloe juice and warm water. Yaah! Yaah! Judge me all you want but it worked. But also I couldn’t and wouldn’t continue it for obvious reasons.

Once I bled so much that I’d become all white and blood pressure dropped significantly. My parents took me to a Gynac. But I was embarrassed on the way. I stained my father’s car seat. I looked at him and he said don’t worry (SOOTHING WORDS). My jeans was all soaked. We had to first buy sanitary napkins and new pair of pants (see it’s not that bad, I got new pants). This doctor was astonished because I was dealing with this for over 20 days and she asked me how come you are alive. I felt like a superwomen. What! Did I just conquer DEATH? She gave me a steroid injection and my bleeding stopped before we reached home.

I remember, it was summer of 69 2010 (PJ ALERT), I was in Nanded at my Granny’s and people spoke about my weight. I think I was in graduation then. And my mom told them that she has not had her periods in three months and God those middle aged aunts looked me down. They thought I was pregnant. As much as I would’ve enjoyed it that wasn’t the case obviously. And when my mom told them in simple language that she has multiple lumps on her ovaries and that’s why. . Then those bunch of women looked at me with sympathy.

Grrr… I hated it then but I laugh now at 32.

Bottom line. You can try all you want externally but PCOD needs to be cured from deep within too. The mood swings, the burns, the acne, the excessive hair, the cramps, month long PMS’s all this impacts much more than one can imagine. And please don’t bother people talking about your bloating, acne, cravings or your appearance. They don’t know SHIT!

I have spent my precious energy on people demeaning me, calling me fat, fugga etc. People who didn’t understand my disorder also thought I was Sick. Seriously THEY DON’T KNOW SHIT…

Yes it took me almost one and half decade to stand up for myself and take charge of my PCOD. I told my parents very clearly that I won’t see a doctor anymore. I hate taking medicines.

It’s not completely cured but hey it’s not bad.

I started walking and I realised that every time my body has been active I did get my periods. In the past two years my cycles have been pretty normal (don’t want to jinx it). Yes the flow definitely varies. Sometimes it’s a flood and sometimes it just comes to give attendance. But hey as long as you bleed you are good.

Am no doctor and I know nothing about SCIENCE, but I know about mental stability. I needed to have faith in myself and self-love. I know that if you have control on yourself you can stabilize anything. Stress is your enemy. So is junk food, bread, rice, sugar, dairy. I eat everything on my cheat days that way I don’t feel deprived of the pleasure food gives us.

Am a slow learner. And from my experience the only suggestion I can give you beauties is learn your body, observe yourself before, during and after periods. Try changing a few habits. If you are an over thinker like me try meditating or indulging in books. Shut yourself from the world once a while. Reach out to family members when you feel like crying or removing frustrations. My sister is a God’s gift..

If you have a boyfriend or husband who tracks your cycle and takes extra care, you are already lucky and am jealous. I have come across very very few men who actually understand menstruation and everything that comes with it. Trust me, men who don’t understand what those 7 days mean to you (in my case 15 sometimes more) can be really annoying. Because we have no control on our mood and instead of acknowledging they would lose their temper. This can be chaotic. Just message them that you’re on your periods and you need peace/ SPACE. And also know that having said all this you will still crave for their attention.

We women are stronger than we know. We let ourselves and others underestimate us. Periods are good. There is nothing to be ashamed about. It’s okay if your skirt has a stain. It is okay if you don’t paper wrap the napkins you’ve just bought. But understand there is a thin line between being liberal and being rebel. We are accepting something that is normal. So let’s be liberal. We don’t have to be rebels. People who make you feel like you should hide, or this is pathetic or you are abnormal are stupid.

PCOD was rare but now it is as common as any other disorder. Every women’s struggle is different and equally difficult. Nobody can understand. And we will have a bunch of people who will judge us. But you continue being the strong women you’ve been all this while. Remember we are normal, the world isn’t.

Embrace it and it won’t embarrass you. Ever.

This was me blabbering about Mein menstrual Kampf while I was on it.

Thanks for reading.

Love

Priyanka Jawalgaonkar